Seven days from now, SHAKING THE THRONE will be available! Today is part four of a ten-part series, letting you into the world of King Henry VIII’s Chief Minister Thomas Cromwell, and his master secretary Nicóla Frescobaldi, as they embark on part two of THE QUEENMAKER SERIES.

Part one of the series, FRAILTY OF HUMAN AFFAIRS, is out now, covering Cromwell and Frescobaldi in 1529 – 1533,  SHAKING THE THRONE, covering 1533-1536, will be available worldwide on October 1st. NO AMOUR AGAINST FATE shall cover 1537 – 1540 and will be released September 2019.

Let’s jump right in, but first, the synopsis –

November 1533 – Thomas Cromwell and Nicóla Frescobaldi have their queen on the throne. The Catholic Church is being destroyed as the Reformation looms over England. Cromwell has total power at court and in parliament, while Frescobaldi wins favour with the King’s illegitimate son, Henry Fitzroy.

But England’s fate is uncertain. The nobles still despise Cromwell and his Italian creature. Anne has not given the king a son. Queen Katherine refuses to give up her title, and Thomas More and Bishop Fisher defy their king. The final Plantagenets think they should hold the throne, while the Catholics want Princess Mary named as heir.

England can be reformed, but Cromwell must dissolve all the monasteries and abbeys, and with the King on his side, the plan to change religion will sever heads. Queen Anne is losing Henry’s love, but Cromwell could suffer if Anne loses her crown. Frescobaldi creates a daring plan to replace Anne and regain the Pope’s favour, but Cromwell must execute the plans on his own. Schemes will go astray and the wrong heads will be severed to satisfy a vengeful sovereign.

Kings will rise, Queens shall fall, children will perish, and the people of England will march in a pilgrimage to take Cromwell’s head, but Frescobaldi will have to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Read part 1, part 2 and part 3 of the FAQ’s here, otherwise here we go… Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset, 1519 -1536

In late 1518, Henry VIII’s glorious wife Queen Katherine was pregnant for the final time, and Henry was enjoying the company of his long-term mistress, teenager Elizabeth ‘Bessie’ Blount. Elizabeth was a maid to the Queen and Henry’s quiet mistress for about eight years, young and exceptionally beautiful. The only twist – Elizabeth got pregnant at the same time as Katherine. In November 1518, Katherine delivered of a girl, who sadly died after birth. It would be Katherine’s final child.

Elizabeth, however, continued her pregnancy and in June 1519, gave birth to a boy at Augustinian Priory of St Lawrence at Blackmore, which no doubt crushed poor Katherine. Henry though was thrilled, as it proved he was capable for making sons.

Henry grew uninterested in Elizabeth after the birth of their son, who was named Henry Fitzroy, meaning ‘son of the king’. Elizabeth was only around 17 when she gave birth, and went on to marry and have more children, while Fitzroy was raised in obscurity. But Fitzroy meant something to Henry, for he was the only illegitimate child the King ever acknowledged. Elizabeth may have given birth again in 1520, a daughter that may have been the King’s. Elizabeth never returned to the royal court as a mistress, as Henry had moved on to Mary Boleyn, while Elizabeth went on to give her husband many children.

Come June 1525, little Fitzroy was six, and his father made him a Knight of the Garter, and then Duke of Richmond and Somerset in a glorious spectacle at court. The King had already married off both Elizabeth Blount and Mary Boleyn, and was eager to celebrate his ability to have a boy. Little Fitzroy became Lord High Admiral of England, Lord President of the Council of the North, and Warden of the Marches towards Scotland. At age six, Fitzroy was the highest ranked man in the north of England.

Young Fitzroy went to live in Yorkshire, living like a prince and received a top quality education. The King even thought his son, known as handsome, intelligent and gentlemanly, fine enough to marry Henry’s daughter Princess Mary (yes, his own half-sister). Even the Pope was ready to let the siblings wed for the sake of the throne. Luckily, for Fitzroy, Princess Mary and genetics in general, Henry fell in live with Anne Boleyn, and instead thought he could save this throne with Anne’s womb.

Fitzroy continued his quiet yet generous upbringing during his father’s angry divorce from Queen Katherine, never seeing his mother, but reports of his life reached his father, who adored his son. In 1532, Fitzroy met the French king, and corresponded with the Scots king. By November 1533, Fitzroy was married to Lady Mary Howard, daughter to the Duke of Norfolk. It was a celibate marriage, to spare Fitzroy’s health, as the King believed sex had contributed to his brother Arthur’s death.

Fitzroy spent no time with his wife, but rather her brother, Thomas Howard, Earl of Surrey. Fitzroy was living in London at St. James’ Palace in the mid-1530’s, when he was called to sit on the jury at the trial of Anne Boleyn. Fitzroy watched his stepmother executed and then attended his father’s marriage to Jane Seymour two weeks later.

In this turbulent time, young Fitzroy was ill. He suffered chest infections and a nasty cough many times, but now couldn’t shake off his illness. Just a month after his 17th birthday, Fitzroy was bedridden with consumption, and died at St. James’ Palace. Some claimed poison, so Fitzroy could not be elevated over Princess Mary or baby Princess Elizabeth in the line of succession, but no proof ever appeared as Henry refused an autopsy.

King Henry, in his raw grief, ordered Fitzroy’s death hushed up, and the Duke of Norfolk sent Fitzroy’s body 80 miles north to Thetford Priory, where Fitzroy was buried with no dignity. Days later, the grieving King screamed at the burial, regretting, or even forgetting, his own decision, and it was a turning point in Henry’s behaviour in his final decade. Henry had only told Fitzroy month earlier that he felt grateful he and Princess Mary had been saved from the clutches of Anne Boleyn, but now his perfect son was gone.

Once the dissolution of the monasteries reached Thetford Priory, Fitzroy was moved to St. Michael’s Church, Framlingham in  Suffolk, and was only joined by his wife in 1557, after never marrying and shunning royal life.

Fitzroy is a central character in SHAKING THE THRONE as the cherished only son of King Henry, the never-King of England.

Tomorrow – themes in the novel: Sir Thomas More, Bishop John Fisher and Elizabeth Barton
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