ing authors of Bohemia wrote satirical
verses and parodies that ridiculed the em-
peror, the Catholic Church, and the nobil-
ity.
Boleyn, Anne ....................................
(ca. 1501–1536)
Queen of England and second wife to King
Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn was born to the
wealthy Sir Thomas Boleyn, the Earl of
Wilshire. When still a young girl, she trav-
eled and studied in the Netherlands and in
Paris, where she served the French royal
court as an interpreter and as a lady-in-
waiting to the queen. When she returned
to England, she entered the service of
Catherine of Aragon, the first wife of
Henry VIII.
As a young woman Anne became a
headstrong and charismatic figure at court,
and soon attracted the king’s eye. Henry
offered Anne her own staff of servants and
showered her with attention, presents, and
proposals of marriage. Worried over the
succession and the survival of the Tudor
dynasty, Henry was eager to have sons,
which Catherine of Aragon had failed to
provide. However, Pope Clement VII re-
fused to grant Henry the divorce he sought
from Catherine of Aragon. In 1531, Henry
banished Catherine of Aragon, an action
that elevated Anne to a powerful position
at court as an adviser to the king. Under
her influence, Henry broke with the Catho-
lic Church and, with Anne’s encourage-
ment, established the Church of England,
an institution free of the pope’s authority.
Henry and Anne were married in secret,
and in 1533 Anne Boleyn was formally
crowned as the new queen of England. Her
rise to power and Henry’s actions in dis-
avowing the pope greatly encouraged Prot-
estant reformers in Europe such as Martin
Luther.
In September of that year the new
queen gave birth to a girl, the future
Queen Elizabeth I, who would maintain
the primacy of the Church of England.
Henry’s many mistresses sparked bitter
marital conflict, however, and Anne’s fail-
ure to have a son also worsened his view
of her. Henry turned his attentions to an-
other court lady, Jane Seymour, while
Anne quickly fell out of favor. In 1536 she
was arrested and charged with adultery
and treason. She was convicted and the
marriage to Henry was officially annulled.
A few days later she was beheaded in the
Tower of London.Borgia, Cesare ...................................
(1475–1507)
Scion of the powerful Borgia family, Ce-
sare Borgia was born in Rome to Cardinal
Rodrigo Borgia and the cardinal’s obscure
mistress Vannozza dei Cattani. Cesare’s
uncle Alonso was elected as Pope Calixtus
III in 1455. His father Rodrigo became
Pope Alexander VI in 1492. Soon after-
ward Cesare was made the archbishop of
Valencia, and in the following year, at the
age of eighteen, became a cardinal. As a
young man he prepared to follow in his
father’s footsteps; the pope intended to es-
tablish a lasting family dynasty through
his eldest son Giovanni, the Duke of Gan-
dia. This gave rise to a violent jealousy on
the part of Cesare, who saw greater power
and glory in a career outside of the limita-
tions of the church. For this reason, histo-
rians believe Cesare had a central role in
the assassination of his brother in 1497.
This event ended Cesare’s career in the
church. He became an ambassador for the
pope in Naples and his father worked to
arrange a useful marriage for him with
Carlotta, the daughter of the king of
Naples. In 1498 Cesare resigned his office,
the first cardinal in history to do so, andBorgia, Cesare