Mistresses of Henry VIII

In addition, Henry VIII was involved in a romantic relationship with three of his future wives before he married them.

[7] Henry and Anne's daughter, Elizabeth I, was born (7 September 1533) almost eight months on from their marriage (25 January 1533).

From the beginning of 1536, while still married to Anne Boleyn, he was openly courting his wife's second cousin and maid-of-honour, Jane Seymour.

It appears that his lust for mistresses did not abate as he reached middle age; in 1540, he began courting Catherine Howard, the maid-of-honour of his fourth spouse, Anne of Cleves.

In 2010, Mary Boleyn: The True Story of Henry VIII's Favourite Mistress by Josephine Wilkinson was published, and in 2012, Alison Weir published Mary Boleyn: The Great and Infamous Whore.

Portrait of Mary Boleyn , one of Henry VIII 's mistresses. She was known to be very beautiful by both the English and French courts.
Portrait of Anne Hastings . She is often considered to be one of Henry's mistresses.