Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Anne Boleyn

The subject of this portrait is often identified as Mary Boleyn.

History Remembers Mary Boleyn as the Scandalous ‘Other Boleyn Girl.’ New Research Debunks the Myths Surrounding the Tudor Mistress

Sylvia Barbara Soberton’s latest book challenges the perception of Anne Boleyn’s sister as “promiscuous, intellectually incurious and unambitious”

For centuries, the sketch on the left has been identified as Anne Boleyn, while the identity of the woman on the right has been unknown.

Did Facial Recognition Find a Lost Portrait of Anne Boleyn? Scholars Debate Whether A.I. Solved or Merely Muddled an Art History Mystery

Accused of treason, the second wife of Henry VIII lost her head. Now, some researchers argue that she also lost her face among dozens of potentially mislabeled portraits in a royal art collection

This map shows an English flag flying over Calais, an English territory lost to France in 1558.

Cool Finds

A Collection of Maps Owned by England’s First Queen Spent Centuries Overlooked in a Family Library. Now, the Rare Volume Is on Sale for $1.6 Million

Created for Mary I, the first woman to rule England in her own right, the book is “perhaps the most significant artifact of Tudor intellectual history still in private hands,” the seller says

Infrared scans suggest that the artist reworked their composition to prominently feature Anne's hands clasping a rose. “By clearly displaying five digits on each hand, the portrait acts as a visual rebuttal to hostile rumors and as a defense of Anne Boleyn—and, by extension, of her daughter Elizabeth’s legitimacy,” says curator Owen Emmerson.

Rumors Suggested That Anne Boleyn Was a Witch With Six Fingers. Did This Elizabethan Artist Rework a Portrait of the Tudor Queen to Debunk the Gossip?

A new analysis of the Hever Rose portrait suggests that the painter deliberately modified an existing template to showcase Anne’s hands—with no extra digits—holding a delicate rose

This late 16th-century portrait of Anne Boleyn (left) closely resembles a circa 1590 portrait of Elizabeth I (right), as well as two separate likenesses of Mary I and Edward IV. The paintings appear to share the same established “face pattern” of the then-queen, Elizabeth.

Why Do These Tudor-Era Portraits of Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I Look So Strikingly Similar?

The artist behind the works may have used Elizabeth’s likeness as a template in other royal portraits to visually emphasize her resemblance to previous monarchs and reinforce her status as the legitimate Tudor heir

Real tennis was played indoors, usually in a court with high windows, a sloping roof and a spectators’ gallery.

Why European Royals, From Henry VIII to Louis X, Loved Playing ‘Real Tennis,’ the So-Called Sport of Kings

Modern tennis’ predecessor was a different—and potentially more dangerous—test of athletic prowess

The excavations are taking place at the Chapel Royal of St. Peter ad Vincula while crews install an elevator to make the landmark more accessible.

Cool Finds

The First Major Excavation at the Tower of London in Three Decades Is Shedding New Light on the Iconic Landmark’s History

Archaeologists have discovered the skeletal remains of at least 25 individuals and possibly as many as 50, as well as various artifacts and architectural remnants

Mark Rylance (left) and Damian Lewis (right) as Thomas Cromwell and Henry VIII in "Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light"

Based on a True Story

The Real Story Behind ‘Wolf Hall’ and the Fall of Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII’s Most Controversial Adviser

Based on Hilary Mantel’s novel “The Mirror & the Light,” the last installment in the acclaimed television series chronicles the last four years of the statesman’s life

Alicia Vikander portrays Henry VIII's sixth wife, Catherine Parr, in the new film Firebrand.

Based on a True Story

The Real Story Behind ‘Firebrand’ and Henry VIII’s Tumultuous Relationship With His Sixth Wife, Catherine Parr

A new film dramatizes how the Tudor queen narrowly avoided execution on charges of heresy

That Mary consigned some 280 Protestants to the flames is both indisputable and indefensible. But as historians have increasingly argued, this number is just one element of a much larger story that warrants contextualization.

The Myth of ‘Bloody Mary,’ England’s First Queen

History remembers Mary I as a murderous monster who burned hundreds of her subjects at the stake, but the real story of the Tudor monarch is far more nuanced

Hans Holbein the Younger's 1539 portrait of Anne of Cleves before (left) and after (right) conservation

See the Portrait That Made Henry VIII Fall in Love With Anne of Cleves, Newly Restored to Its Former Glory

The Louvre cleaned and conserved Hans Holbein’s 1539 likeness of the Tudor queen, revealing its vibrant colors and previously hidden details

Smithsonian's picks for the best history books of 2023 include King: A Life, The Sisterhood and The Wager.

The Best Books of 2023

The Ten Best History Books of 2023

Our favorite titles of the year resurrect forgotten histories and illuminate how the United States ended up where it is today

Thomas Cromwell, Anne Boleyn and Catherine of Aragon all owned a copy of the same Book of Hours.

Cool Finds

Prayer Book Owned by Thomas Cromwell, Adviser to Henry VIII, Was Hidden in Plain Sight for Centuries

The Book of Hours appears in a famous painting of the Tudor statesman

In May 1536, Henry had his second wife, Anne Boleyn, beheaded on trumped-up charges of adultery and incest. For centuries, historians blamed Anne's sister-in-law, Jane Boleyn, for testifying against the queen—but new research calls this claim into question.

The Myths of Lady Rochford, the Tudor Noblewoman Who Supposedly Betrayed George and Anne Boleyn

Historians are reevaluating Jane Boleyn’s role in her husband and sister-in-law’s downfall

A supporter of the doomed Tudor queen may have hidden the falcon following Anne's downfall.

Cool Finds

Wooden Falcon Sold for $101 Originally Belonged to Anne Boleyn

The discovery is striking because Henry VIII removed almost all traces of his second queen following her execution in 1536

Mary Boleyn (right) served as Henry VIII's mistress before her sister Anne's (left) ascent to the throne.

The Rise and Fall of Tudor England’s Scandalous Boleyn Family

A new documentary offers a more sympathetic view of Henry VIII’s second wife, Anne Boleyn, and her inner circle

“We have these iconic figures from history and literature, who people feel possessive about in some way,” says scholar Miranda Kaufman, author of Black Tudors: The Untold Story. “But you have to remember that it’s not a historical reconstruction: it’s a thriller; it’s a drama; it’s entertainment.”

Why the Controversy Over a Black Actress Playing Anne Boleyn Is Unnecessary and Harmful

Long before Jodie Turner-Smith’s miniseries came under criticism, British Indian actress Merle Oberon portrayed the Tudor queen

Kate McCaffrey, a former steward at Anne's childhood home, used ultraviolet light and photo editing software to reveal hidden writing in the Tudor queen's Book of Hours.

Cool Finds

Hidden Inscriptions Discovered in Anne Boleyn’s Execution Prayer Book

New research suggests a circle of Tudor women saved the “Book of Hours” for the queen’s daughter, Elizabeth I

Anne Boleyn was the only Tudor figure beheaded with a sword instead of an ax.

Why Henry VIII Orchestrated Every Detail of Anne Boleyn’s Execution

The Tudor king had his disgraced queen killed by beheading rather than burning

Researchers recently identified the unnamed sitter in this portrait as Mary Boleyn, older sister of Anne Boleyn.

After Hundreds of Years, Unknown Woman in Tudor Portrait Identified as Mary Boleyn

New evidence suggests the painting depicts Anne Boleyn’s older sister, the one-time mistress of Henry VIII