Royal assent of the Crown, standing on the sovereign's right, then read aloud the titles of the bills (in earlier times, the entire text of the bills). The Clerk of the Parliaments, standing on the sovereign's left, responded by stating the appropriate Norman French formula. A new device for granting assent was created during the reign of King Henry VIII. In 1542, Henry sought to execute his fifth wife, Catherine Howard, whom he accused of committing adultery; the execution was to be authorised not after a trial but by a bill of attainder, to which he would have to personally assent after
Catherine Howard, Countess of Suffolk The Countess was ultimately caught and, as a result of her treachery, she and her family were banned from court. Peers generally sympathised with Sir Thomas for being caught in her web of corruption, and she endured the blunt of the blame for the Howards' fall from grace. After being expelled from court, she continued to write letters on behalf of others seeking court positions. Howard had fourteen children: Catherine Howard, Countess of Suffolk Catherine (or Katherine) Howard, Countess of Suffolk (1564–1638), was an English court office holder. She served as lady-in-waiting to the queen consort of England, Anne of