Episode 288: Bessie Blount and Henry Fitzroy
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Hi friend and welcome to the Renaissance English History Podcast, a part of the Agora Podcast Network and the original Tudor History Podcast telling stories of Tudor England since 2009. I am your host Heather. I am so delighted as always that you are here with me spending this time together. Over the next 20-ish minutes we are going to talk about Bessie Blunt and Henry Fitzroy, the

mistress and son, illegitimate son of Henry VIII. So that is our topic for today. And one quick announcement, and yes, I'm being very vague about this. That's on purpose. But let's just say that if you love Anne Boleyn and you recognize May as Anne Boleyn month, because that is when she was executed, of course,

and you love solving a good mystery, you're going to want to stick around for what I have planned in early May. It's going to be a mix of mystery and learning, a totally free event to celebrate Anne Boleyn, and that's all I'm going to tell you right now. However, if you are signed up to my newsletter at englandcast.com slash newsletter, you will be one of the first people to get all of the details. Again, it's a totally free

Special event celebrating Anne Boleyn and honoring her life right around the time of the anniversary of her execution. So make sure you are on my newsletter list if you aren't already. Englandcast.com slash newsletter for that. All right, let's dig in and talk about Bessie Blunt and Henry Fitzroy, shall we?

When we talk about the women in Henry VIII's life, it's usually the queens who dominate the conversation. Catherine, Anne, Jane, Anne, Catherine, Catherine, all of the six. But before the annulments and the executions, before Henry broke with Rome and upended the religious landscape of England, there was another woman who played a quiet but significant role in his personal history. And her name was Bessie Blunt. She was a woman who was a woman of the world.

She wasn't a queen. She wasn't even a part of the powerful aristocracy. But she holds a unique place in Tudor history because she gave Henry something that none of his wives up until that point had managed to deliver, a healthy son.

Today, we're going to look at the real story of Bessie Blunt and her son, Henry Fitzroy, the king's only acknowledged illegitimate child. No myths, no drama, just the facts about who she was, how she came to Henry's attention, what happened after their affair, and why her son, though born out of wedlock, came closer than anyone else in Henry's early reign to securing the Tudor line.

Elizabeth Blunt, known familiarly as Bessie, was born around 1498 in Kinlid in Shropshire to Sir John Blunt and Catherine Peschel. The Blunt family were part of the landed gentry, a class that was just below the nobility. They were well-established in their region, and they had strong Yorkist ties.

Though they were not members of the high aristocracy, the Blunts were influential enough to position their children for advancement, especially with the rise of the Tudor dynasty. As the eldest of several siblings, Bessie was raised with the kind of education expected of a gentry daughter with court ambitions. She would have been taught music, dancing needlework, reading, basic etiquette of court life, alongside religious instruction.

Her mother, Catherine, came from the Peschel family, also of gentry rank, and likely ensured that Bessie was trained in the things that were admired in Tudor women, piety, modesty, grace. Though, as we will see, Bessie's charm went far beyond the conventional. By around 1513, she was likely in her mid-teens by this point, Bessie arrived at court as a maid of honor to Queen Catherine of Aragon.

This, of course, was a massive position, very prestigious, placed her right in the queen's household and daily orbit, helping to dress her, attending prayers with her, and participating in court entertainments.

It also would have placed her in close proximity to the king himself. Court life under Henry VIII was glittering, energetic. This is still the early part of Henry's reign where he's still the athletic great prince. And Bessie would have danced masks, appeared at feasts, and moved through rooms filled with music and poetry and courtly flirtation. For a young woman from Shropshire, this was a world of endless opportunity, but also risk.

And it was here, in this swirl of courtly ceremony and flirtation, that Bessie first caught the king's eye. Now, we don't know the exact precise moment when Bessie became Henry's mistress. Like many royal affairs, it wasn't announced or recorded. But signs suggest the relationship began around 1515 or 16, during one of Queen Catherine's pregnancies. This

This was a period when Henry frequently took mistresses following the custom of abstaining from marital relations during gestation. It was seen as really bad luck for the king to have marital relations with the queen when she was pregnant.

Bessie's position as a maid of honor gave her constant proximity to both the queen and the king. She would have participated in the elaborate court entertainments that Henry so loved. These were spaces where flirtation flourished and where a young, witty, musically gifted woman like Bessie could shine.

By all accounts, Bessie was attractive and well-mannered, with the kind of graceful presence that stood out at court. We don't have any portraits of her. The only likeness that we have that is confirmed of her is a stylized brass with her likeness.

And that is on the tomb monument of her parents. And all of the contemporary descriptions suggest that she conformed to the Tudor standard of beauty. She was fair. She was poised. Henry was in his kind of mid-20s at this point. He was still the athletic, charismatic king of legend. Muscular, handsome, and charming character.

their relationship likely followed the typical form of tudor courtship gifts compliments and private encounters facilitated by trusted courtiers william compton one of the king's close companions is often suggested as the go-between

Discretion would have been essential. Unlike later affairs that stirred controversy, most famously with Anne Boleyn, this liaison was quiet and even understated. There's little indication that Bessie received any kind of lavish gifts or titles during the affair itself. Her family did benefit, particularly her father, who received various grants and appointments right around this time. But Bessie herself remained largely in the background.

It's a reminder that royal mistresses in England didn't have the formal status that they might have in, say, the French court. They were tolerated, not celebrated. And yet in 1519, this private relationship suddenly became very, very public.

Bessie was pregnant, and this time the king would not deny paternity. The child born of this relationship would go on to become one of the most significant figures of Henry's early reign, not just a symbol of Henry's virility, but a potential dynastic solution. It's through the birth of that child, a son, Henry Fitzroy, that we know for sure that this affair even happened.

And in an age obsessed with bloodlines, the existence of a living, healthy son changed everything for Henry. So on June 15, 1519, Bessie Blunt gave birth to a healthy baby boy. The child was named Henry after his father and given the surname Fitzroy, which literally means the son of the king.

It was an unmistakable public statement. While Henry VIII had likely fathered other illegitimate children, we talked about Catherine Carey, for example, this was the only one that he formally acknowledged. In the context of the Tudor court, this was extraordinary. English kings rarely admitted to their illegitimate offspring, let alone celebrated them. Fitzroy's birth

came, though, at a critical moment. Queen Catherine had given birth to multiple children, but only one, Princess Mary, had survived. Henry was growing increasingly anxious about the future of his dynasty. A living, healthy boy, even one born outside of marriage, was proof that the fault did not lie with him. Bessie, now the mother of a royal son, disappeared quietly from court.

It was expected that women in her position would retreat from public life after bearing a child for the king. She likely gave birth at the Augustinian Priory of St. Lawrence at Blackmoor in Essex, which was a quiet religious house far from the scrutiny of London and one that had connections to Cardinal Woolsey, who may have helped to manage the arrangements.

After the birth, Henry was removed from Bessie's care and placed into a noble household with wet nurses, tutors, and attendants to raise him. This was standard practice for the elite children in Tudor England, especially those with political value. While Bessie had brought the child into the world, she wouldn't be a central figure in his upbringing.

King Henry's reaction to the birth was measured but still significant. He didn't legitimize the boy. Doing so would have complicated his marriage and the succession. But he made sure that Fitzroy was cared for, respected, and kept close. It's likely that he visited the child during progresses and received updates on his health and his education.

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As for Bessie, there was no dramatic scandal, no royal disgrace. Her withdrawal from court life was handled with discretion. She wouldn't become another royal mistress lingering in the shadows. Instead, her story took on a new turn, one that led to a respectable marriage, a quiet country life, and surprisingly continued royal favor.

But we'll come to that. First, let's talk about the boy that she bore and the possibility, however brief, that he might one day have worn the crown. From the moment he was acknowledged by his father, Henry Fitzroy's life was shaped not just as the son of a courtier or a mistress, but as the only male child that Henry VIII could call his own. Though illegitimate, he was raised with the deference and ceremony of a prince, and his upbringing was carefully managed,

likely under the oversight of Cardinal Woolsey, and he was surrounded by hand-picked tutors and servants and companions.

In 1525, when he was only six years old, he was granted the titles Duke of Richmond and Somerset, an unprecedented move for an illegitimate royal child. These were not honorary appointments. They came with real land, real income, and real political visibility. He was also made Lord Admiral of England and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. These were roles traditionally held by the heir to the throne.

At the time, Princess Mary was the only legitimate child that Henry VIII had, but she was a girl, and in the Tudor world, that mattered deeply. Henry had no son to carry the dynasty forward. In Fitzroy, he saw proof that he could father a healthy male heir, just not, it seemed, with Queen Catherine. The fact that Fitzroy was illegitimate didn't remove him from Henry's consideration as a potential solution.

Fitzroy's elevation caused a stir. Foreign ambassadors took note, speculating that Henry might legitimize the boy and name him heir. And indeed, there were precedents for doing just that. For example, the Beaufort family, which is where Henry and the Tudors came from, had been legitimized bastards.

Fitzroy was given a household of his own, modeled on the structure of the royal household. He spent time at court, accompanied his father on progresses, and was widely treated as a royal prince in everything but name. In 1533, he was married to Mary Howard, the daughter of the Duke of Norfolk. It was a high-status match, unconsummated due to his youth, but one that cemented his role in court politics.

Though Bessie Blunt had given birth to him, she did not raise him. There's little indication that she played any role in his day-to-day life. Fitzroy was a ward of the state, groomed, educated, and moved like a chess piece with Henry's dynastic strategy. For a time, it seemed that he might be the next in line to rule England.

In 1525, when he was made the Duke of Richmond, ambassadors speculated that Henry was preparing to go even further, to legitimize him and declare him next in line. This wasn't an outlandish idea. The Tudors themselves owed their claim to the line of legitimized bastards. The Beaufort family descended from John of Gaunt and Catherine Swinford. Henry VIII, who valued precedent when it suited him, would have known this history well. But he never took that step.

Fitzroy remained illegitimate, however princely his treatment. There are a few likely reasons. First, declaring a bastard his heir would have required significant break with both tradition and Parliament. Second, as long as Henry believed that he might still father a legitimate son with Catherine or later with Anne Boleyn, he may have viewed Fitzroy as a backup rather than the solution.

But Henry's actions showed clear intention. By marrying Fitzroy into the Howard family, bringing him to court, assigning him ceremonial authority over Ireland and the Navy, he kept the boy in public view. Then in 1536, just weeks after Anne Boleyn's execution and the death of Catherine of Aragon, Fitzroy fell ill. And he died that July, likely of tuberculosis. He was only 17 years old.

With him, one of Henry's most promising dynastic alternatives vanished. After the birth of Henry Fitzroy, Bessie Blunt left court entirely. This wasn't a punishment or disgrace. It was a protocol. A mistress who bore the king a child had fulfilled her role. She wasn't expected to linger. Instead, arrangements were made to secure her future with dignity and distance. So in 1522, three years after Fitzroy's birth,

Bessie married Gilbert Tellboys, a Lincolnshire landowner of noble lineage. The marriage was advantageous for both parties. Gilbert gained a well-connected wife with royal associations, and Bessie gained a respectable husband, a new household, and a safe exit from court.

There's no evidence that the match was anything but amicable, and it may well have even been affectionate. The couple had at least three children together, including a son, George, who later inherited the title of Baron. Henry VIII helped to facilitate the marriage, ensuring that Bessie and Gilbert were granted lands and manners through a special act of parliament. These grants actually ensured that Bessie would be financially secure for the rest of her life.

Even after the affair ended, the relationship between Bessie and the king seems to have remained cordial. She continued to receive generous New Year's gifts from Henry, more lavish than one might expect for a former mistress who had moved on from court life. These small details suggest that Henry regarded her with some measure of respect and care, perhaps more so than many of his later partners.

Gilbert died in 1530, leaving Bessie a wealthy widow in her early 30s. She remarried not long after, this time to Edward Clinton, a rising figure at court who would later become the Earl of Lincoln. The second marriage also appears to have been stable and well-matched, producing three daughters.

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In fries, encuentra ricos sabores y grandes ahorros. Fries, fresh for everyone. Aplican restricciones en combustible. Bessie died in 1539, likely in her early 40s. The cause of death is not recorded, but it may have been related to childbirth. No grave survives, and she left no personal correspondence. But through her children, and especially through her royal son, she left a lasting, if quiet, mark in Tudor England.

So what happened with her other children then, we might wonder? Well, she had a son, George, born around 1523, and he sadly died in 1540, the same year that Bessie died. Then she had another son, Robert, who became the third baron. He also died young, around age 14, only two years after his brother died.

The two of them didn't have any children. Obviously, they both died very young. Then she had a daughter, Elizabeth, who became a baroness. She inherited the barony in her own right. And she married twice. And there's actually an interesting connection that comes of that. Her second marriage was to Ambrose Dudley, who was the brother of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, and Elizabeth's favorite.

So that's an interesting connection because Elizabeth was in love with Robert Dudley. Robert Dudley was Elizabeth's brother-in-law. Elizabeth Tallboy is his brother-in-law. Elizabeth was the daughter of Elizabeth Blunt, who had been Elizabeth I's father's mistress. See, everything comes full circle. Everybody's related. Everybody's mixed together. You just need like charts to figure it all out.

She had a complex relationship with her first husband, Thomas Wimbush. There's actually records of a court case in which she successfully argued for her own title and rights independently of him. So she was an interesting one as well. With Bessie Blunt's second marriage to Edward Clinton, she had three daughters, Bridget, Catherine, and Margaret. Bridget and Catherine both got married in

Catherine actually rose through into becoming part of the English nobility. Less is known about Margaret. Some records suggest that she probably died young or may have remained unmarried because there don't seem to be any descendants. The line seems to dry up at that point.

So that's a little bit about Bessie Blunt's legitimate children. Now, Bessie Blunt's story is quiet, but it's not insignificant. She occupied a space that few others did. The king's mistress, the mother of a publicly acknowledged son, and briefly, the woman who gave Henry VIII a glimpse of the male heir he so desperately wanted. She didn't seem to seek power. She didn't make a dramatic exit. She never wore a crown and her son never ruled. But

But for a few short years, Bessie Blunt held something rarer than either, the king's open acknowledgement. So there you go, my friend, a little bit about Bessie Blunt and Henry Fitzroy. I sometimes think about that summer of 1536 for Henry VIII and Bessie.

How horrible that must have been for him, especially if you can have a little bit of empathy and think that there was part of him that had actually convinced himself that Anne Boleyn was a threat to him and Henry Fitzroy. There's stories of him saying how lucky it was that Henry Fitzroy had survived with this witch who could have potentially cast spells on him and stuff like that. So to lose him then two months after he executed Anne...

The whole thing is just very, very sad on so many levels. And it makes you kind of feel sorry for Henry for like a teeny, teeny, tiny little bit of time. Kind of just think how very sad that must have been for him to have lost this son that had meant so much to him.

We will leave it there. Thank you so much for spending this time with me today. Remember, stay tuned for this super fun Anne Boleyn kind of celebration honoring her life. And it's going to be a mix, like I said, of mystery and puzzle solving and really fun. And it's going to be totally free. So make sure you're on my newsletter list, englandcast.com slash newsletter to sign up to be the first to know about that.

All right, friend, I will be back again very, very soon. Have an amazing week. I'll talk to you next week. Bye-bye.

If you need inspiration to prepare food, go to Fry's, where you'll find delicious food and delicious ingredients. Choose what you like, and with our low prices, you'll save money. Also, take advantage of more than $600 in digital coupons every week, and up to $1 discount per gallon of fuel with your points. At Fry's, you'll find rich flavors and great savings. Fry's. Fry's.

Fresh for everyone. How do you make an Airbnb a Vrbo? Picture a vacation rental with a host. The host is dragging your family on a tour of the kitchen, the bathroom, the upstairs bathroom, the downstairs bedroom, and the TV room, which, surprise, is where you can watch TV. Now imagine there's no host giving you a tour because there's never any hosts at all. Ever. Never.

Voila, you've got yourself a Vrbo. Want a vacation that's completely and totally host-free? Make it a Vrbo.