Hunting the Falcon. Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn: a Marriage that Overturned Foundations, Shook Europe, and Changed

The marriage of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn is one of the most remarkable stories in history. After a long courtship, the king hastily wed the already pregnant Anne and crowned her, but less than three years later, her husband's... passion turned into such a hatred that he wished to rid himself of his wife. Outstanding British experts on the Tudor era, John Guy and Julia Fox, explore the latest archival findings and debunk historical myths, presenting Anne and Henry in a completely new light. They show how closely Anne and Henry's relationship is tied to the most significant events in international politics during pivotal moments in European history and that even in the 16th century, a woman was capable of influencing the politics and religious beliefs of a patriarchal society. Special attention is given to the seven years that Anne spent in France, which have been overlooked by historians, as well as how she organized her court by new rules, which ultimately became one of the reasons for her downfall. In their book, which serves as a model of profound historical analysis, Guy and Fox offer an original interpretation of one of the most significant marriages in history and create a captivating picture of the intertwining of love and passion, power and politics. "In the process of working on the book, we turned to the archives: we deciphered handwritten letters of the main actors, reports from advisors and ambassadors, and meticulous documents prepared by a hidden army of secretaries and clerks. We tried to do everything possible for Henry and Anne to speak for themselves; it was important for us to understand what and why they did, as well as to recreate their world and reflect on why their contemporaries told such different stories about the same events." (John Guy, Julia Fox)