The Last, Long Day of Anne Boleyn

~ The Last, Long Day of Anne Boleyn, A Post by Lissa Bryan ~

Anne Boleyn expected to face the executioner at nine AM on May 18, 1536. She’d been told by William Kingston the previous evening after the execution of her brother that she needed to prepare her soul.

We don’t know what her reaction was - Kingston didn’t record what she said. She may have still believed it was an elaborate show so that Henry could appear gracious in his pardon of her on the scaffold itself. She had agreed to the annulment of their marriage in the apparent belief she was going to be sent to a nunnery if she cooperated. Though she had asked several times, the name of the convent had never been sent to her, and the building of the scaffold continued on the green. Did she hear the sound of the hammers and saws as she waited?

Whatever the king had in store for her, Anne decided to prepare her soul. She first begged Lady Kingston to take a message to Princess Mary, asking her forgiveness if she felt Anne had ever wronged her. This was traditional - to attempt to make amends to any persons with whom there was a quarrel or debt. (Francis Weston wrote out a long list of his debts and begged his wife for forgiveness for his sins.) Since she was not allowed any writing materials, Anne could only send verbal messages.

Anne’s almoner, John Skip, arrived at 2 AM and they spent the next seven hours in prayer.

At dawn, Anne gave her last confession, calling Kingston to witness her swearing twice on the consecrated communion host - before and after consuming it - that she had never committed adultery. Anne knew it was the only way to rehabilitate her reputation, and indeed, word of her oath spread quickly. Even Eustace Chapuys, who was one of Anne’s greatest enemies, wrote of it the next day, sparing comment.

Nine AM came and went. Anne summoned Kingston and he told her the execution was to going be delayed until noon. Anne must have taken a deep breath at that, and settled herself back into prayer. She had steeled her courage to keep her going through the long night until morning, and now she had to find the strength to continue for another three hours.

The reason for the delay was that a great number of Anne’s supporters and curious onlookers had gathered at the Tower, along with a number of “foreigners.”

Kingston wrote to Cromwell about their concerns (presented in modern English): "Sir, if we have not an hour certain known [publicly] in London, I think the number may be but few. I think a reasonable number would be best, for I suppose she will declare herself a good woman for [untouched by] all men but the king."

They were terrified Anne would buck tradition and proclaim her innocence in front of the crowd. What could they do? They couldn’t prevent her from speaking her last words. That would look bad for the king, and it would look even worse if she used those words to condemn the gross injustice of what was happening to her.

The best they could do would be to try to keep the crowd small and try to prevent anyone from a foreign court from attending to try to keep her words from spreading.

On the morning of the 18th, the crowd was shooed from the Tower. When they continued to mill around the gates outside, waiting, the execution was deferred to the following day. No announcement was made, hoping the crowd wouldn’t show up if they didn’t know the time.

Noon passed. Anne waited for the sound of footsteps outside her door, but none came. She finally had to call for Kingston again. Why didn’t he tell her himself once he knew the execution was going to be delayed until the following day?

Unintentional it might have been, but it was a cruelty just the same, and it added to Anne’s anguish. He arrived at her summons and told her she would not die until the following morning.

Anne had to be shaken. She was in an agony of uncertainty, not knowing if the king would pardon her or go through with the execution. She said she’d thought to be dead by now and past her pain.

Kingston misunderstood. He thought she was afraid of the physical pain of execution. He assured her the sword stroke would be very “subtle.”

Anne, on the fine edge of hysteria after being awake for more than 24 hours, began to laugh. She said she’d head the executioner was very good and she had a “lytle neck.”

Kingston thought her demeanor was odd. He wrote that he had executed many people, but never one who had such “joy and pleasure” in death. Anne was eager for it to be over. One way or the other.

And, so, Anne endured one last, long day …