Every year, Peterborough Cathedral, the resting place of Catherine of Aragon, first wife of Henry VIII, put on a programme of events around the anniversary of her burial (29th January) known as the Katharine of Aragon Festival to commemorate her life.
Here is the programme of this year's festival:
- Thurday 28th January - 5.30pm, Sung Eucharist in commemoration of Katharine of Aragon, with music from the Tudor period, sung by Peterborough Cathedral Choir.
- Friday 29th January - 8.30am, Mass at Peterborough Cathedral.
- Friday 29th January - 10.15am, Civic dignitaries and schoolchildren proceed from Peterborough Museum to the Cathedral, accompanied by the period musicians of Hautbois.
- Friday 29th January - 10.30am, Service of Commemoration at Peterborough Cathedral, during which wreaths will be laid on Katherine's tomb. The service is followed by a Tudor history day for schools, in the Cathedral.
- Friday 29th January - 2.00pm, Guided tour of Peterborough Cathedral.
- Friday 29th January - 6.00pm, A Tudor-style Pottage and Ale Supper in the Becket Chapel, within the Cathedral Precincts.
- Friday 29th January - 7.30pm, Festival Lecture: Dr Jonathan Foyle on "The Forgotten Origins of the Tudor Rose".
- Saturday 30th January - 10.00am–5.00pm: At Home with the Tudors at Peterborough Museum.
- Saturday 30th January - 2pm Guided Tour of the Cathedral.
- Saturday 30th January - 5.30pm, Choral Evensong at Peterborough Cathedral.
- Sunday 31st January - 10.00am–5.00pm, At home with the Tudors at Peterborough Museum.
- Sunday 31st January - 2.00pm, Tudor Peterborough Walk starting at Peterborough Museum.
- Sunday 31st January - 3.30pm, Choral Evensong at Peterborough Cathedral.
See http://www.peterborough-cathedral.org.uk/home/katharine-2016.aspx for more details and to buy tickets.
I must admit that when I saw Katherine’s tomb, I felt such sadness. She was a woman of great courage and stubborn determination that one can’t help admire her very much, but to think that she died so utterly alone and forgotten by the very man who stated that he loved her above all woman, in the early years of their reign, is so heartbreaking.
Our “enry has a lot of things to answer for.
*Tudor Titbit Alert* Many many years ago I heard that it was believed that Katherine’s dear friend Maria da Salanas asked that when she died she wanted to buried in the same coffin as her dearest most beloved friend.
Anyway the rumour went onto say that when the Victorians were mucking about in the crypt (they were a macabre lot always playing around with old bones etc) they put a hook into the hole of Katherine Coffin and pulled out a strip black bead worked cloth which smelled strongly of herb and spices but the cloth disintigrated just as quickly as they realised what it was. Being curious they decided to look a little further into the coffin, maybe thinking there was something valuable buried in there they made the hole in the coffin a little bigger and one of them stuck in there hand gripped what he thought was a prize and pulled out 2 feet of Katherine’s body. Only to find that he was holding 2 left feet.
did one of the feet belong to Maria? Who knows, as frightened by what they had found or possibly disturbed by someone else they hastely stuffed the feet back in the coffin and fled. The coffin was reburied and the marble memorial erected.
If the story is true or not I don’t know and I doubt anyone would be allowed to find out, if there is anything left to find after all this time anyway.
Personally I believe Maria’s heart may well have been buried with Katherine and in a way that would make sense.
The 2 left feet may well have come from the fact, that when Victorians first went down into the crypt they may well have found a few bones lying about and they just scooped them up and dumped them in the nearest coffin,in this case Katherine’s.
The story of Maria being buried with Katherine was hastily made up because apart from the macabre they were also romantics and something like this would tickle their heartstrings.
I mean the Victorians were both macabre and romantic
That’s really interesting