The Constant Princess
“I was born to be Queen of England and mother of the next King of England. I have to fulfill my destiny, it is my God-given destiny.” – Catherine of Aragon, The Constant Princess.
As much as I loved The Other Boleyn Girl (and don’t misunderstand me, I really loved The Other Boleyn Girl) the other Philippa Gregory books I’ve read have just felt kind of…average. Perhaps it’s because the Tudors are my favourite period of medieval and early modern history, but I also read The Queen’s Fool (set in Elizabeth I’s reign), and didn’t even finish it because I lost interest. In fact, out of all the Philippa Gregory I’ve ever read, there’s only one other that in my opinion, can hold a candle to The Other Boleyn Girl. That would be The Constant Princess.
This emotionally traumatising novel follows the life of Catherine of Aragon, well known first wife of tyrant and bacon fanatic (I assume) Henry VIII. From childhood to her married life with a young King Henry, it follows the life of the women who always knew she would be Queen of England. I’ll admit, that summary makes it sound like a history textbook but in reality it’s the bittersweet exploration of the life of the woman who went from princess, to pauper, back the princess.
Many would assume that a novel about the life of Catherine of Aragon would be about the later years of her life, when Henry was trying to annul their marriage so he could go off and make many, many male heirs with Ann Boleyn (isn’t history a wonderfully ironic thing?). But The Constant Princess actually delves into her marriage with the original heir to the Tudor throne, Henry’s older brother Arthur. History tells us that they were only married for five months before Arthur died, Catherine claimed the marriage was never consummated (enabling her to marry Henry) as Arthur was known to be frail and fairly weak and they enjoyed a fairly loveless, boring marriage.
Gregory tells a very different story, of a fiery and arrogant Spanish princess, brought to the English court to marry the Prince of Wales. She thinks he’s a weakling boy, he’s trying to please his father and deal with the pressure of being the next in line, and heads butt together. Gregory has this beautiful gift of twisting romance with history, when we very well know that there might have been none, and making it believable. Sparks eventually fly between Catherine and Arthur, and they fall deeply and passionately in love. If the reader knows their Tudor history, at this point they’re frantically ripping through the pages, hoping desperately that maybe, just maybe there’s some way that Arthur lives.
History, thou art a cruel bitch.
Arthur dies, telling Catherine to pretend their marriage was never consummated, enabling her to marry Henry and keeping her from falling into poverty. For a long time, that plan doesn’t work. Her family won’t accept her back in Spain and with her dowry already given away, Catherine and her household fall into disrepair. Catherine’s heart is broken and her life falls into grey. Then Henry VII arrives on her doorstep, newly widowed with a desire for a fiery Spanish princess. This is likely another artistic license from Gregory but it really works. But Catherine is determined to obey Arthur’s last wishes and has her sights set on Henry. Her plan works, the young prince falls hopelessly for her and upon his father’s death and his coronation the two are wed.
The way Gregory writes about love, heartbreak and despair in this novel is really second to none, you will find yourself furious at history that Arthur had to die. The way Catherine falls into a dark, dark place without her love, and the raw emotion really affected me. I first read this about four years ago with a friend, and couldn’t put it down. My friend on the other hand, knowing that Arthur died, found herself too traumatised by what she knew was coming and refused to read past the first half of the novel, when he is very much alive and in love with Catherine. I decided to let her enjoy it while she could.