On Friday 19 May 1536, Anne Boleyn, former queen of England, was executed for high treason and adultery, her head severed from her body by an expert swordsman, the only concession made to her by her ex-husband, King Henry VIII. How had, in such a short time, the woman for whom Henry had defied the religious tradition of England, divorcing his wife and changing the history of religion in his country, which he had persecuted incessantly for years, to fall so low, so quickly? To understand it is necessary to examine Henry's desperate need for a male heir, understand the politics of the time and the personality of Anne Boleyn herself. When Henry VIII was seriously attracted to Anne Boleyn in 1525 (Weir The Six Wives of Henry VIII p. 159), he was in his prime. His wife, Catherine of Aragon, was aging rapidly and past childbearing age. Henry's desire for a son was common in his day, but more importantly imperative to him. If he had a male heir, he felt it would be a sign from God that his reign had been approved by God. Catherine of Aragon had provided him with only one daughter, Mary; so his marriage to her must anger God. Henry had had many mistresses in the past and felt that Anne Boleyn, who was young and intelligent, though not beautiful by the standards of the time, (Weir The Six Wives of Henry VIII p. 152) would have been an excellent choice for his next lover. . Anne, raised at the French court, learned much of her flirtatious ways in France, which would come back to haunt her later, possessing what could only be called sex appeal. Anne, who was ambitious and arrogant and looking for a good marriage, did not want to have an affair with King, and told him so (Weir, Henry VIII The King and His Court p. 257). This intrigued...... middle of paper ......d when he didn't keep his promises he quickly lost interest in her and looked away. She was arrogant, ambitious and haughty, feeling that if Catherine of Aragon left, all her problems would be over, which was not the case. She eventually became the victim of Henry's megalomania due to her ambition and desire to become Queen of England. Works Cited Erickson, Carrolly. Great Harry. New York, New York; Summit Books, 1980 Lindsay, Karen. Divorced, beheaded, survived; A feminist reinterpretation of Henry VIII's wives. Boston; Wesley-Addison, 1995Weir, Alison. The six wives of Henry VIII. New York; Ballantine Books, 1991Weir, Alison. Henry VIII; The king and his court. New York; Ballantine Books, 2001Wernicke, Rita. The rise and fall of Anne Boleyn. Cambridge, England; Cambridge Press 1991