Howard, Catherine (1520?-1542), was the fifth wife of King Henry VIII of England. She was also a cousin of Henry’s second wife, Anne Boleyn. Catherine’s marriage to the king fell apart after she was accused of having affairs before and during the marriage. She was executed for treason.
Catherine (sometimes spelled Katherine) Howard’s birth date is not known, but was probably sometime between 1518 and 1524. Her mother died when Catherine was young. Catherine went to live in the household of her father’s stepmother, Agnes, the duchess of Norfolk. As a teenager, Catherine had a secret affair with Francis Dereham, a young man also living in the household.
In late 1539, the powerful Howard family arranged for Catherine to become a lady in waiting to Anne of Cleves, who married Henry VIII in January 1540. The marriage was part of an alliance agreement with the German dukedom of Cleves. However, Henry disliked Anne when he met her and soon sought to have the marriage annulled (canceled). By sometime in the spring of 1540, Henry also had fallen in love with Catherine. Henry’s marriage to Anne was annulled on July 9. Henry married Catherine on July 28.
At first, Henry doted on his young wife. This behavior changed when Henry was informed of Catherine’s past, learned that she had made Dereham her secretary, and was told that she was having an affair with another courtier, Thomas Culpeper. Catherine did have a relationship with Culpeper, though its exact nature remains unproven. Some historians believe Catherine was simply reckless. Others believe some of her actions may have been desperate attempts to buy silence about her past. She was also a victim of the court politics of both her Howard relatives, who originally pushed the marriage to gain royal favor, and their court rivals, who sought her downfall. Henry had Parliament pass a bill judging Catherine guilty of treason. She was beheaded on Feb. 13, 1542, at the Tower of London.
