1 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:04,760 Speaker 1: Hey listeners, before today's episode, I wanted to let you 2 00:00:04,800 --> 00:00:09,080 Speaker 1: know about a brand new podcast called Strange Arrivals that's 3 00:00:09,080 --> 00:00:11,400 Speaker 1: produced by Aaron Manky and the entire team at I 4 00:00:11,520 --> 00:00:15,320 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Strange Arrivals is a ten part mini series 5 00:00:15,600 --> 00:00:18,239 Speaker 1: about the occurrence that happened when Betty and Barney Hill 6 00:00:18,480 --> 00:00:21,239 Speaker 1: were driving through the White Mountains of New Hampshire when 7 00:00:21,239 --> 00:00:23,239 Speaker 1: they were faced with a flash of light in the 8 00:00:23,280 --> 00:00:27,720 Speaker 1: sky and said they were abducted by aliens. Host Toby 9 00:00:27,800 --> 00:00:30,560 Speaker 1: Ball will examine the Hills story and ask the question 10 00:00:30,880 --> 00:00:34,240 Speaker 1: what really happened that night in New Hampshire. So keep 11 00:00:34,280 --> 00:00:38,120 Speaker 1: listening after today's episode for an amazing trailer about the series, 12 00:00:38,640 --> 00:00:41,360 Speaker 1: and listen to Strange Arrivals on the I Heart Radio app, 13 00:00:41,479 --> 00:00:47,159 Speaker 1: Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to 14 00:00:47,240 --> 00:00:50,520 Speaker 1: Noble Blood, a production of I Heart Radio and Grimm 15 00:00:50,520 --> 00:00:59,639 Speaker 1: and Mild from Aaron Minky. Listener discretion is advised, they 16 00:00:59,680 --> 00:01:04,160 Speaker 1: say at after decapitation, the human brain can remain conscious 17 00:01:04,200 --> 00:01:08,040 Speaker 1: for several seconds, maybe even up to a minute, even 18 00:01:08,080 --> 00:01:11,160 Speaker 1: without fresh blood being pumped up from the heart. The 19 00:01:11,240 --> 00:01:15,959 Speaker 1: brain still has oxygen and neurons firing rapidly in confusion 20 00:01:16,400 --> 00:01:20,679 Speaker 1: her pain. They say that when Anne Boleyn's head fell 21 00:01:20,760 --> 00:01:24,640 Speaker 1: from her body into the straw waiting below, her dark, 22 00:01:24,760 --> 00:01:28,720 Speaker 1: intelligent eyes still flickered and blinked, and that her white 23 00:01:28,800 --> 00:01:32,520 Speaker 1: lips pressed together and apart, as if she was trying 24 00:01:32,560 --> 00:01:37,520 Speaker 1: to say one last thing. It seems fitting that even 25 00:01:37,560 --> 00:01:40,720 Speaker 1: in death, Anne would try to continue to speak. It 26 00:01:40,800 --> 00:01:43,640 Speaker 1: was her silver tongue that had initially charmed the king, 27 00:01:43,920 --> 00:01:47,120 Speaker 1: back when Anne was just a lady in waiting. No 28 00:01:47,160 --> 00:01:50,280 Speaker 1: one ever described her as the most beautiful girl at court, 29 00:01:50,360 --> 00:01:53,240 Speaker 1: although she was striking with her dark hair and her 30 00:01:53,280 --> 00:01:57,960 Speaker 1: milky skin so pale it was almost translucent. No, it 31 00:01:58,080 --> 00:02:01,720 Speaker 1: was her wit and her intelligence, her innate ability to 32 00:02:01,760 --> 00:02:05,000 Speaker 1: know exactly how to flirt without seeming like she was 33 00:02:05,080 --> 00:02:09,760 Speaker 1: trying to flirt. Anne engaged with poets and philosophers, and 34 00:02:09,840 --> 00:02:13,800 Speaker 1: debated issues of politics and religion. Henry had loved that 35 00:02:13,880 --> 00:02:16,520 Speaker 1: about Anne back when he was pursuing her, that she 36 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:20,440 Speaker 1: had challenged and teased him, but he found those qualities 37 00:02:20,560 --> 00:02:24,480 Speaker 1: far less compelling in a wife. Henry the Eighth did 38 00:02:24,520 --> 00:02:28,079 Speaker 1: Anne one kindness in her beheading. He had brought in 39 00:02:28,280 --> 00:02:31,840 Speaker 1: the hangman of Calais, known for his skill and accuracy 40 00:02:31,880 --> 00:02:35,799 Speaker 1: with the sword to do her decapitation, to liberate her 41 00:02:35,800 --> 00:02:39,720 Speaker 1: head from her neck in one smooth motion, instead of 42 00:02:39,760 --> 00:02:42,200 Speaker 1: the typical englishman with an axe, who was known to 43 00:02:42,240 --> 00:02:45,200 Speaker 1: sometimes take two or even three swings to get the 44 00:02:45,280 --> 00:02:49,840 Speaker 1: job done. The five men accused of being Anne's lovers 45 00:02:50,200 --> 00:02:55,080 Speaker 1: had been executed by Englishmen back when Henry was in 46 00:02:55,160 --> 00:02:58,640 Speaker 1: love with Anne. He disposed of his loyal wife twenty 47 00:02:58,680 --> 00:03:02,679 Speaker 1: four years and come completely overthrew the foundation of religion 48 00:03:02,680 --> 00:03:05,760 Speaker 1: in England along the way. It was all for the 49 00:03:05,840 --> 00:03:09,200 Speaker 1: promise of being with Anne, and for the promise of 50 00:03:09,200 --> 00:03:13,040 Speaker 1: the son that she would bear him. When that son 51 00:03:13,120 --> 00:03:18,919 Speaker 1: didn't come, obsession soured in Henry into something corrosive and hateful. 52 00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:23,880 Speaker 1: It would cost Anne her life. She had played the 53 00:03:23,919 --> 00:03:27,920 Speaker 1: game well enough, masterfully really, to become a queen, but 54 00:03:28,040 --> 00:03:30,640 Speaker 1: in the end there was nothing she could do to 55 00:03:30,760 --> 00:03:36,560 Speaker 1: save her own life. I'm danishchwartz and this is noble blood. 56 00:03:43,520 --> 00:03:47,040 Speaker 1: When Anne Boleyn found out that Henry's first wife, Catherine 57 00:03:47,040 --> 00:03:51,040 Speaker 1: of Arragon, died, Anne exhaled with a mixture of relief 58 00:03:51,240 --> 00:03:54,720 Speaker 1: and pleasure. As head of the Church of England, Henry 59 00:03:54,720 --> 00:03:57,960 Speaker 1: had officially declared himself divorced from Catherine, and he had 60 00:03:58,000 --> 00:04:01,520 Speaker 1: married Anne. But Catherine still was calling herself the Queen 61 00:04:01,520 --> 00:04:04,760 Speaker 1: of England. And as much as Anne hated to admit it, 62 00:04:05,200 --> 00:04:09,320 Speaker 1: the people had loved Catherine. They hissed a Anne in 63 00:04:09,320 --> 00:04:13,640 Speaker 1: the streets, called her Henry's goggalied whore. But now that 64 00:04:13,800 --> 00:04:16,800 Speaker 1: Catherine was dead, there was to be no more confusion. 65 00:04:17,360 --> 00:04:20,839 Speaker 1: There was one Queen of England, one wife of Henry 66 00:04:20,880 --> 00:04:26,480 Speaker 1: the eighth, Anne Boleyn. Anne had entranced Henry when she 67 00:04:26,520 --> 00:04:30,360 Speaker 1: returned from a childhood in the French court, instantly astonishing 68 00:04:30,400 --> 00:04:33,800 Speaker 1: the English with her wit and daring French fashion and 69 00:04:34,000 --> 00:04:39,480 Speaker 1: her allegedly dazzling repertoire of sexual foreplay. When Anne arrived 70 00:04:39,600 --> 00:04:43,839 Speaker 1: all glamor and fresh promise, Henry the eighth was facing 71 00:04:44,000 --> 00:04:48,800 Speaker 1: the massive issue of his wife, Katherine. After two decades 72 00:04:48,839 --> 00:04:53,400 Speaker 1: of marriage and half a dozen miscarriages, Catherine was entering menopause, 73 00:04:53,520 --> 00:04:58,679 Speaker 1: having only given Henry a single daughter. The Tutor dynasty 74 00:04:58,839 --> 00:05:02,160 Speaker 1: started only by Henr His father needed sons if it 75 00:05:02,200 --> 00:05:06,160 Speaker 1: were to continue to survive. Without a clear line of succession, 76 00:05:06,560 --> 00:05:10,400 Speaker 1: England could once again be plunged into a miserable civil war. 77 00:05:11,360 --> 00:05:15,080 Speaker 1: But what were Henry's options. His Spanish wife was powerful 78 00:05:15,160 --> 00:05:18,640 Speaker 1: and connected. Her nephew was the Holy Roman Emperor who 79 00:05:18,640 --> 00:05:22,039 Speaker 1: had the Vatican under his thumb. But if everything was 80 00:05:22,080 --> 00:05:24,960 Speaker 1: supposed to work out with Catherine, if everything was so perfect, 81 00:05:25,200 --> 00:05:28,599 Speaker 1: then why hadn't God given them a son? That was 82 00:05:28,680 --> 00:05:32,520 Speaker 1: the nagging voice in the back of Henry's head. After all, 83 00:05:33,080 --> 00:05:36,600 Speaker 1: Catherine had been married to Henry's older brother, Arthur First 84 00:05:37,080 --> 00:05:40,600 Speaker 1: for six months, until Arthur died of the sweating sickness. 85 00:05:41,520 --> 00:05:45,680 Speaker 1: Didn't the Bible forbid marrying your brother's wife. Catherine had 86 00:05:45,720 --> 00:05:48,640 Speaker 1: sworn that the marriage had never been consummated, and the 87 00:05:48,760 --> 00:05:52,960 Speaker 1: Vatican offered special dispensation. But what if she had been lying? 88 00:05:54,240 --> 00:05:56,760 Speaker 1: What if that was the reason that God was cursing 89 00:05:56,800 --> 00:06:01,400 Speaker 1: Henry with a lack of sons? And then Anne appeared, flirting, 90 00:06:01,960 --> 00:06:05,279 Speaker 1: making Henry feel away that he couldn't remember feeling for 91 00:06:05,320 --> 00:06:09,599 Speaker 1: a long time. He was still in his thirties, vital. 92 00:06:10,279 --> 00:06:12,560 Speaker 1: With a new wife, he could have a dozen sons. 93 00:06:13,279 --> 00:06:17,160 Speaker 1: Although he begged Anne, she refused to be his royal mistress, 94 00:06:17,600 --> 00:06:20,800 Speaker 1: refused to even sleep with him unless they were married. 95 00:06:21,680 --> 00:06:26,640 Speaker 1: Unless you divorce Katherine and marry me, Anne said, Catherine 96 00:06:26,640 --> 00:06:30,080 Speaker 1: of Arragon was banished to a remote palace and told 97 00:06:30,160 --> 00:06:34,000 Speaker 1: she was no longer Queen. Henry declared himself head of 98 00:06:34,040 --> 00:06:38,160 Speaker 1: the Church of England. While the nation protested and hurled 99 00:06:38,200 --> 00:06:43,400 Speaker 1: insults Anne, Henry married her in a secret ceremony. Within months, 100 00:06:43,440 --> 00:06:47,760 Speaker 1: she was pregnant. All of Henry's advisers, all of the doctors, 101 00:06:47,800 --> 00:06:50,680 Speaker 1: and the soothsayers said that this would be the son 102 00:06:50,800 --> 00:06:54,080 Speaker 1: he was waiting for, the boy that would show that 103 00:06:54,120 --> 00:06:56,400 Speaker 1: God was pleased with him and that he made the 104 00:06:56,520 --> 00:07:04,799 Speaker 1: right choice. When the doctor nervously announced that Queen Anne 105 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:09,120 Speaker 1: had given birth to a healthy baby girl, Henry couldn't 106 00:07:09,160 --> 00:07:13,160 Speaker 1: hide his disdain or his anger. But Anne loved her daughter, 107 00:07:13,520 --> 00:07:17,400 Speaker 1: the little girl they named Elizabeth. Anne played with her 108 00:07:17,800 --> 00:07:21,880 Speaker 1: dangling fingers over her bassinet, cooing at her beautiful daughter 109 00:07:21,920 --> 00:07:25,840 Speaker 1: with golden curls. Anne knew that there was still time 110 00:07:25,840 --> 00:07:27,800 Speaker 1: for her to have a son, still time for her 111 00:07:27,840 --> 00:07:31,680 Speaker 1: to secure her position, even if Henry's eye had already 112 00:07:31,680 --> 00:07:36,360 Speaker 1: begun to wander while Anne was on bedrest for her pregnancy, 113 00:07:37,120 --> 00:07:40,360 Speaker 1: while Catherine of Arragon had diplomatically turned a blind eye 114 00:07:40,360 --> 00:07:46,080 Speaker 1: to Henry's philandering, Anne became furious. She was jealous and 115 00:07:46,160 --> 00:07:49,280 Speaker 1: hot headed, with a biting tongue that never demurred from 116 00:07:49,280 --> 00:07:52,880 Speaker 1: a fight. But also, Catherine had been born and raised 117 00:07:52,880 --> 00:07:57,160 Speaker 1: a princess. Anne had once been a commoner. She had 118 00:07:57,160 --> 00:07:59,440 Speaker 1: been a lady in waiting who caught Henry's eye and 119 00:07:59,560 --> 00:08:03,200 Speaker 1: usurped a queen, and so she was perfectly aware that 120 00:08:03,320 --> 00:08:07,720 Speaker 1: the exact same thing could happen to her. Nothing protected 121 00:08:07,760 --> 00:08:15,480 Speaker 1: her except the possibility of a son. Anne got pregnant again, 122 00:08:15,720 --> 00:08:20,120 Speaker 1: and the court instantly began celebrating. When she miscarried just 123 00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:23,640 Speaker 1: three months later, it was so embarrassing that it wasn't 124 00:08:23,640 --> 00:08:28,559 Speaker 1: publicly announced, just a shameful whisper that circulated amongst the court, 125 00:08:29,000 --> 00:08:34,000 Speaker 1: starting with the woman who had changed Anne's bedsheets. Henry 126 00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:36,760 Speaker 1: and Anne both believed what everyone believed back in the 127 00:08:36,800 --> 00:08:40,520 Speaker 1: fifteen hundreds, that a miscarriage was a failure on the 128 00:08:40,559 --> 00:08:44,400 Speaker 1: part of the woman, a sign of God's ultimate displeasure. 129 00:08:45,400 --> 00:08:49,640 Speaker 1: The next miscarriage, too, was another tightly kept secret, and 130 00:08:49,720 --> 00:08:52,800 Speaker 1: the third was so well hidden that it's impossible to 131 00:08:52,880 --> 00:08:56,679 Speaker 1: trace when it actually occurred. By the time Catherine of 132 00:08:56,760 --> 00:09:00,160 Speaker 1: Arragon finally died, Anne was well aware that she was 133 00:09:00,240 --> 00:09:04,760 Speaker 1: carrying what could very well be her final hope. Anne 134 00:09:04,760 --> 00:09:07,680 Speaker 1: and Henry had been married for three years, but already 135 00:09:07,760 --> 00:09:11,400 Speaker 1: he had stopped coming to her bedroom. He ignored her 136 00:09:11,440 --> 00:09:14,319 Speaker 1: when he could, spending most of his time doating on 137 00:09:14,320 --> 00:09:20,160 Speaker 1: one of Anne's own ladies, Jane Seymour. Plain, obedient, soft spoken, 138 00:09:20,320 --> 00:09:25,840 Speaker 1: Jane Seymour, the exact opposite of Anne in every conceivable way. 139 00:09:26,520 --> 00:09:30,720 Speaker 1: Henry newly besott it gave Jane Seymour a locket containing 140 00:09:30,800 --> 00:09:34,360 Speaker 1: his portrait. Jane made the mistake of wearing it and 141 00:09:34,400 --> 00:09:37,160 Speaker 1: flicking it open and shut like a schoolgirl in love. 142 00:09:38,000 --> 00:09:41,080 Speaker 1: When Anne entered the room and saw the necklace, she 143 00:09:41,280 --> 00:09:44,480 Speaker 1: ripped it off Jane's neck with so much force that 144 00:09:44,559 --> 00:09:49,560 Speaker 1: Anne's fingers bled. The country already hated Anne, and she 145 00:09:49,600 --> 00:09:52,760 Speaker 1: had made powerful enemies in court. By pulling Henry away 146 00:09:52,760 --> 00:09:57,040 Speaker 1: from Catherine and away from the Catholic Church, Anne had 147 00:09:57,160 --> 00:10:00,840 Speaker 1: very few cards left to play. The old thing keeping 148 00:10:00,840 --> 00:10:03,839 Speaker 1: her in power was the child in her belly and 149 00:10:04,040 --> 00:10:07,160 Speaker 1: Henry's love for her, and that seemed to be diminishing 150 00:10:07,240 --> 00:10:12,800 Speaker 1: every day. Neither Henry nor Anne attended Catherine of Argan's funeral, 151 00:10:13,000 --> 00:10:15,400 Speaker 1: where she was laid to rest, not with the title 152 00:10:15,480 --> 00:10:20,880 Speaker 1: of former Queen but of dowager princess. That exact day, 153 00:10:21,160 --> 00:10:28,559 Speaker 1: miles away, Anne Boleyn miscarried a baby boy. Reports at 154 00:10:28,559 --> 00:10:32,120 Speaker 1: the time say that the cold, still tiny boy was 155 00:10:32,240 --> 00:10:36,440 Speaker 1: perfect and beautiful. Years later people would write that it 156 00:10:36,520 --> 00:10:41,080 Speaker 1: was misshapen, that it had physical deformities, evidence of its 157 00:10:41,120 --> 00:10:46,760 Speaker 1: mother committing some truly awful sin, adultery, incest, or witchcraft. 158 00:10:47,880 --> 00:10:49,840 Speaker 1: But at the time there didn't need to be any 159 00:10:49,840 --> 00:10:53,280 Speaker 1: further proof. The sun that could have saved her life 160 00:10:53,280 --> 00:11:00,280 Speaker 1: was dead, and Anne Boleyn's fate was sealed. A man's 161 00:11:00,320 --> 00:11:04,240 Speaker 1: behavior became panicked and erratic. The man who had once 162 00:11:04,280 --> 00:11:07,080 Speaker 1: been so wildly in love with her he overthrew the 163 00:11:07,280 --> 00:11:10,600 Speaker 1: entire religious foundation of a nation, was now writing love 164 00:11:10,679 --> 00:11:14,440 Speaker 1: letters to another woman. Henry had stopped coming to her bed. 165 00:11:15,360 --> 00:11:19,800 Speaker 1: She was the queen, but she was also becoming increasingly 166 00:11:19,880 --> 00:11:23,560 Speaker 1: aware of what a precarious position that was. When her 167 00:11:23,679 --> 00:11:28,040 Speaker 1: king was Henry the Eighth, Anne engaged one of the 168 00:11:28,120 --> 00:11:31,520 Speaker 1: king's close friends, Sir Henry Norris, one afternoon to ask 169 00:11:31,600 --> 00:11:35,840 Speaker 1: him why he was still unmarried. An flirtation was normal 170 00:11:36,040 --> 00:11:39,240 Speaker 1: expected even if a queen. A queen was meant to 171 00:11:39,240 --> 00:11:42,559 Speaker 1: be beloved by all the knightly men of a kingdom 172 00:11:42,600 --> 00:11:45,679 Speaker 1: to inspire love and loyalty in them. But when Sir 173 00:11:45,840 --> 00:11:50,199 Speaker 1: Henry Norris demered, Anne continued pressing closer to him in 174 00:11:50,240 --> 00:11:54,640 Speaker 1: the hallway than might have been prudent. I think, Anne, per, 175 00:11:55,480 --> 00:11:58,640 Speaker 1: that you're waiting to marry a rich widow, you look 176 00:11:58,720 --> 00:12:03,440 Speaker 1: for dead men's shoe. Is that so, Sir Henry Norris replied, 177 00:12:03,840 --> 00:12:07,800 Speaker 1: smiling just a little bit. Anne looked into his eyes. 178 00:12:08,480 --> 00:12:10,600 Speaker 1: I think if something were to happen to the king, 179 00:12:11,200 --> 00:12:16,040 Speaker 1: you would look to marry me. Sir Henry Norris's smile disappeared. 180 00:12:16,640 --> 00:12:19,400 Speaker 1: To even think such a thing would cost me my head? 181 00:12:19,679 --> 00:12:23,840 Speaker 1: He said. Anne had crossed the line from courtly flirtation 182 00:12:24,280 --> 00:12:28,079 Speaker 1: to outrighte treason. It was a good thing. Anne thought, 183 00:12:28,120 --> 00:12:30,760 Speaker 1: as she returned to her chamber that night, that no 184 00:12:30,800 --> 00:12:35,000 Speaker 1: one had heard them. Another night, one of Anne Boleyn's 185 00:12:35,080 --> 00:12:39,640 Speaker 1: ladies in waiting, Lady Wooster, spent a banquet drinking slightly 186 00:12:39,679 --> 00:12:42,520 Speaker 1: too much wine and dancing slightly too close to one 187 00:12:42,640 --> 00:12:46,440 Speaker 1: or two eligible men. The next day, Lady Wooster's brother 188 00:12:46,600 --> 00:12:49,480 Speaker 1: confronted her and told her that she needed to stop 189 00:12:49,520 --> 00:12:54,720 Speaker 1: her behavior before her reputation was ruined. Lady Wooster just laughed. 190 00:12:55,080 --> 00:12:57,920 Speaker 1: If you think I'm bad, she said, I'm nothing compared 191 00:12:57,960 --> 00:13:00,959 Speaker 1: to the Queen. Anne has men her bed chamber late 192 00:13:01,000 --> 00:13:04,880 Speaker 1: at night all the time, including a certain Mark Smeaton. 193 00:13:06,000 --> 00:13:09,040 Speaker 1: Smeaton was a court musician, and Lady Wooster wasn't the 194 00:13:09,080 --> 00:13:12,600 Speaker 1: only one who noticed that Anne seemed to particularly enjoy 195 00:13:12,800 --> 00:13:17,520 Speaker 1: his company. Within days of the conversation between Lady Wooster 196 00:13:17,559 --> 00:13:21,079 Speaker 1: and her brother, Mark Smeaton was taken in for questioning 197 00:13:21,440 --> 00:13:26,160 Speaker 1: by the King's Chief Minister, Thomas Cromwell. We don't know 198 00:13:26,200 --> 00:13:30,800 Speaker 1: what happened behind closed doors, whether Smeaton was tortured or coerced. 199 00:13:31,520 --> 00:13:34,520 Speaker 1: He might have even been telling the truth. It's impossible 200 00:13:34,559 --> 00:13:38,840 Speaker 1: to know, but Mark Smeaton confessed to Thomas Cromwell that 201 00:13:38,960 --> 00:13:43,160 Speaker 1: he had slept with Queen Anne Boleyn on three separate occasions. 202 00:13:44,400 --> 00:13:47,319 Speaker 1: Anne Boleyn was arrested while she was watching a tennis 203 00:13:47,320 --> 00:13:50,440 Speaker 1: match and brought to a dim room where she was 204 00:13:50,480 --> 00:13:54,720 Speaker 1: interrogated by three men on charges of adultery and treason. 205 00:13:55,440 --> 00:13:59,640 Speaker 1: They asked her about Mark Smeaton. Anne was completely baffled 206 00:13:59,720 --> 00:14:04,080 Speaker 1: and indignant. She denied ever sleeping with anyone except her husband, 207 00:14:04,120 --> 00:14:08,360 Speaker 1: the King. They asked about the conversation she had had 208 00:14:08,480 --> 00:14:13,000 Speaker 1: with Sir Henry Norris. This time Anne sputtered a little, 209 00:14:13,320 --> 00:14:16,880 Speaker 1: but still her point was clear. She hadn't sinned against 210 00:14:16,920 --> 00:14:21,400 Speaker 1: the King. The three men interrogating her were stony faced 211 00:14:21,480 --> 00:14:27,360 Speaker 1: and cruel, completely unmoved. Her lovers had already confessed, they 212 00:14:27,400 --> 00:14:31,920 Speaker 1: told her. Anne was escorted back to her chamber. She 213 00:14:32,040 --> 00:14:36,680 Speaker 1: and her ladies sat down to a silent dinner. None 214 00:14:36,680 --> 00:14:40,040 Speaker 1: of Anne's ladies made eye contact with her. The few 215 00:14:40,120 --> 00:14:45,480 Speaker 1: servants standing nearby barely managed to conceal her tears. That 216 00:14:45,600 --> 00:14:49,200 Speaker 1: very afternoon, Anne was brought to the Tower of London. 217 00:14:49,880 --> 00:14:52,440 Speaker 1: She was given no time to pack clothes or any 218 00:14:52,480 --> 00:14:55,600 Speaker 1: personal belongings, and though she begged to say goodbye to 219 00:14:55,640 --> 00:14:59,200 Speaker 1: her daughter Elizabeth, the guards pretended not to hear her. 220 00:15:04,000 --> 00:15:06,400 Speaker 1: Most criminals were brought to the tower in the middle 221 00:15:06,440 --> 00:15:09,240 Speaker 1: of the night. Anne was brought by barge down the 222 00:15:09,320 --> 00:15:13,320 Speaker 1: River Thames in broad daylight, with crowds gawking at her 223 00:15:13,400 --> 00:15:16,880 Speaker 1: and shouting as she went by. Anne begged to see 224 00:15:16,920 --> 00:15:19,880 Speaker 1: the king. If she could see Henry face to face, 225 00:15:20,280 --> 00:15:22,920 Speaker 1: if she could just talk to him, she could charm 226 00:15:23,000 --> 00:15:25,920 Speaker 1: him like she had before. She could remind him of 227 00:15:26,040 --> 00:15:29,120 Speaker 1: his love for her. He must have some tiny ounce 228 00:15:29,160 --> 00:15:32,360 Speaker 1: of affection for her left in his heart. Anne didn't 229 00:15:32,360 --> 00:15:35,440 Speaker 1: know that she and Henry would never lay eyes on 230 00:15:35,480 --> 00:15:39,840 Speaker 1: each other ever again. At five p m. She arrived 231 00:15:39,880 --> 00:15:43,440 Speaker 1: at the Tower of London, dazed and terrified. Am I 232 00:15:43,560 --> 00:15:46,880 Speaker 1: to be put in the dungeons? She said? The guards 233 00:15:46,880 --> 00:15:49,360 Speaker 1: shook his head. Anne was to be brought to the 234 00:15:49,440 --> 00:15:53,360 Speaker 1: Royal Apartments, the very same rooms that she had stayed 235 00:15:53,360 --> 00:15:57,120 Speaker 1: in the night before her coronation. The rooms had been 236 00:15:57,240 --> 00:16:02,800 Speaker 1: unused since. Hearing the Anne flung herself onto the cobblestones. 237 00:16:03,240 --> 00:16:06,840 Speaker 1: It is too good for me, she sobbed A cannon 238 00:16:06,920 --> 00:16:10,640 Speaker 1: on the tower wharf thundered. It was the sound that 239 00:16:10,720 --> 00:16:13,440 Speaker 1: rang when a person of nobility was brought to be 240 00:16:13,480 --> 00:16:17,800 Speaker 1: imprisoned in the fortress. It echoed through the city, causing 241 00:16:17,880 --> 00:16:23,360 Speaker 1: excitement and speculation. King Henry, deep inside the palace, didn't 242 00:16:23,400 --> 00:16:27,800 Speaker 1: hear it. He wouldn't make another public appearance until after 243 00:16:27,880 --> 00:16:33,480 Speaker 1: Anne was dead and buried. The man in charge of 244 00:16:33,480 --> 00:16:36,000 Speaker 1: Anne's custody while she was in the Tower of London 245 00:16:36,400 --> 00:16:40,680 Speaker 1: was a former knight named Sir William Kingston. Kingston was 246 00:16:40,720 --> 00:16:43,000 Speaker 1: tall and in his youth had been a strong and 247 00:16:43,080 --> 00:16:47,600 Speaker 1: triumphant jouster, even facing off against the king. He had 248 00:16:47,640 --> 00:16:50,960 Speaker 1: been devoted to Queen Catherine throughout his long career, but 249 00:16:51,040 --> 00:16:54,520 Speaker 1: even so during Anne's imprisonment he would only ever treat 250 00:16:54,560 --> 00:16:58,400 Speaker 1: her with courtesy and kindness. All of Anne's servants have 251 00:16:58,480 --> 00:17:02,840 Speaker 1: been dismissed replay eased by five new ladies, all spies 252 00:17:03,160 --> 00:17:06,520 Speaker 1: who were tasked with asking Anne about her alleged lovers 253 00:17:06,840 --> 00:17:10,720 Speaker 1: and her treasonous conversations, and then reporting back her answers 254 00:17:10,760 --> 00:17:15,800 Speaker 1: to Thomas Cromwell. But Anne never said anything incriminating. Instead, 255 00:17:15,840 --> 00:17:19,760 Speaker 1: her spies just reported that her mood shifted wildly from 256 00:17:19,800 --> 00:17:24,439 Speaker 1: wretching sobs to ecstatic laughter. Sometimes Anne would just burst 257 00:17:24,440 --> 00:17:28,040 Speaker 1: out laughing and say that history would remember her as 258 00:17:28,119 --> 00:17:32,280 Speaker 1: Anne the Headless. My innocence will save me, won't it. 259 00:17:32,800 --> 00:17:35,080 Speaker 1: I am innocent, and so the law will save me. 260 00:17:35,240 --> 00:17:39,240 Speaker 1: Anne thought maybe Henry was just testing her. He loved her, 261 00:17:39,320 --> 00:17:41,639 Speaker 1: didn't he. Even if he had tired of her, he 262 00:17:41,800 --> 00:17:46,440 Speaker 1: probably wouldn't kill her. Anne was accused of adultery with 263 00:17:46,600 --> 00:17:50,720 Speaker 1: five men, including her own brother, even though all of 264 00:17:50,760 --> 00:17:53,800 Speaker 1: the men, with the exception of Mark Smeaton, had proclaimed 265 00:17:53,800 --> 00:17:57,280 Speaker 1: their innocence the number was a calculated move on the 266 00:17:57,320 --> 00:18:00,800 Speaker 1: part of Thomas Cromwell and the King. One man could 267 00:18:00,800 --> 00:18:04,480 Speaker 1: be a mistake, but Anne being accused of intimacy with 268 00:18:04,680 --> 00:18:10,560 Speaker 1: five men the accusation alone cemented her guilt. When Anne 269 00:18:10,600 --> 00:18:13,600 Speaker 1: was called to her tribunal to stand before the jury 270 00:18:13,600 --> 00:18:16,920 Speaker 1: of twenty six men and listened to the allegations against her, 271 00:18:17,320 --> 00:18:21,280 Speaker 1: she didn't dress like she was walking to her death sentence. Instead, 272 00:18:21,440 --> 00:18:24,959 Speaker 1: Anne wore a black velvet gown and a red petticoat, 273 00:18:25,480 --> 00:18:27,760 Speaker 1: as if she were dressed to be awarded a medal 274 00:18:27,840 --> 00:18:31,600 Speaker 1: at some noble ceremony. She wasn't allowed to bring any 275 00:18:31,640 --> 00:18:35,440 Speaker 1: witnesses or have any legal counsel. All Anne could do 276 00:18:35,560 --> 00:18:38,960 Speaker 1: was continued to proclaim her innocence, to offer the best 277 00:18:39,000 --> 00:18:42,960 Speaker 1: defense she could, speaking with the eloquence and the intelligence 278 00:18:43,160 --> 00:18:50,760 Speaker 1: that Henry had once fallen in love with. Never before 279 00:18:50,880 --> 00:18:54,720 Speaker 1: in English history had a queen been sentenced to death. 280 00:18:55,960 --> 00:18:58,920 Speaker 1: Henry was just trying to scare her and thought, trying 281 00:18:58,960 --> 00:19:02,320 Speaker 1: to soothe herself to stave off the panic, maybe she 282 00:19:02,359 --> 00:19:06,199 Speaker 1: would just be banished. The Duke of Norfolk had tears 283 00:19:06,200 --> 00:19:09,240 Speaker 1: in his eyes when he read out the sentence. Anne 284 00:19:09,280 --> 00:19:12,600 Speaker 1: was his niece, his own sister's child. Some might have 285 00:19:12,640 --> 00:19:16,359 Speaker 1: thought that he was crying in grief or pity. Really, 286 00:19:16,400 --> 00:19:18,919 Speaker 1: though it was more likely he was crying for his 287 00:19:19,000 --> 00:19:24,880 Speaker 1: own lost honor and status. He read aloud, for offending 288 00:19:24,960 --> 00:19:29,080 Speaker 1: our Sovereign, the King, in committing treason against his person, 289 00:19:29,640 --> 00:19:33,080 Speaker 1: Anne Boleyn is sentenced to be burned within the Tower 290 00:19:33,119 --> 00:19:36,080 Speaker 1: of London on the Green, or else to have her 291 00:19:36,119 --> 00:19:40,840 Speaker 1: head cut off. Anne's expression didn't change when they read 292 00:19:40,880 --> 00:19:44,240 Speaker 1: her sentence. She lifted her eyes at the sky, but 293 00:19:44,440 --> 00:19:48,919 Speaker 1: she didn't cry. She maintained her innocence. I am ready 294 00:19:48,960 --> 00:19:52,439 Speaker 1: to greet death, she said. Finally, I am just sorry 295 00:19:52,520 --> 00:19:55,840 Speaker 1: for the others who are innocent and the King's loyal subjects, 296 00:19:56,280 --> 00:19:59,479 Speaker 1: that they should share my fate and die because of me. 297 00:20:00,520 --> 00:20:04,800 Speaker 1: Kingston escorted Anne back to her chambers, and Anne asked 298 00:20:04,840 --> 00:20:08,600 Speaker 1: to see a priest so that she could confess. The 299 00:20:08,800 --> 00:20:14,320 Speaker 1: Archbishop of Canterbury arrived to take Anne's final confession. Anne 300 00:20:14,400 --> 00:20:17,000 Speaker 1: was already sentenced to death. There was nothing she could 301 00:20:17,040 --> 00:20:20,000 Speaker 1: lose in confessing her sins now, and Anne knew that 302 00:20:20,040 --> 00:20:22,639 Speaker 1: if she told a lie in confession, she would be 303 00:20:22,720 --> 00:20:27,000 Speaker 1: damning her soul to eternal torment. She confessed to jealousy, 304 00:20:27,400 --> 00:20:31,120 Speaker 1: but nothing else. The archbishop asked if she was sure 305 00:20:31,160 --> 00:20:35,240 Speaker 1: she was done. Anne lowered her head. God knows that 306 00:20:35,280 --> 00:20:37,879 Speaker 1: I have not sinned against him in any other way. 307 00:20:38,520 --> 00:20:42,119 Speaker 1: Anne watched from her window as all five men, including 308 00:20:42,160 --> 00:20:45,920 Speaker 1: her own brother, were beheaded on the Tower Green. There 309 00:20:45,920 --> 00:20:48,760 Speaker 1: were whispers that Henry had put her in those rooms 310 00:20:48,800 --> 00:20:53,280 Speaker 1: specifically so that she could see those deaths. Anne's own 311 00:20:53,320 --> 00:20:57,320 Speaker 1: death was still aways away. They were specifically constructing a 312 00:20:57,400 --> 00:21:01,439 Speaker 1: new scaffolding for her so more OWDs could gather and 313 00:21:01,520 --> 00:21:04,640 Speaker 1: see their fallen queen end in a rush of blood. 314 00:21:05,359 --> 00:21:08,160 Speaker 1: Anne turned away from the constructions she could see from 315 00:21:08,160 --> 00:21:11,639 Speaker 1: the window. I wish all this was over, that the 316 00:21:11,680 --> 00:21:15,240 Speaker 1: pain would just be finished already, she said to Kingston. 317 00:21:16,160 --> 00:21:19,239 Speaker 1: Kingston softly replied that he believed that when the end 318 00:21:19,320 --> 00:21:25,080 Speaker 1: finally came, there would be no pain, and when that 319 00:21:25,160 --> 00:21:29,400 Speaker 1: day finally came, Kingston helped Anne up the wooden steps 320 00:21:29,400 --> 00:21:32,760 Speaker 1: to the stage on the Green, accompanied by four ladies. 321 00:21:33,480 --> 00:21:36,920 Speaker 1: The ladies helped Anne to undress her neck, taking off 322 00:21:36,920 --> 00:21:39,480 Speaker 1: her head dress and the small white fur cloak she 323 00:21:39,520 --> 00:21:43,720 Speaker 1: wore a symbol of royalty. They gathered Anne's hair in 324 00:21:43,760 --> 00:21:46,200 Speaker 1: a linen cap so it wouldn't get in the way 325 00:21:46,200 --> 00:21:50,199 Speaker 1: of a sword. Anne whispered to her ladies and asked 326 00:21:50,240 --> 00:21:54,440 Speaker 1: them to pray for her. Unlike in an axe beheading, 327 00:21:54,720 --> 00:21:59,399 Speaker 1: a decapitation by sword required the victim to kneel very tall, 328 00:21:59,800 --> 00:22:03,399 Speaker 1: a right on both knees. Anne took the position with 329 00:22:03,480 --> 00:22:06,160 Speaker 1: as much grace as she could, but there was still 330 00:22:06,240 --> 00:22:09,160 Speaker 1: fear in her eyes and knew she had to keep 331 00:22:09,320 --> 00:22:12,399 Speaker 1: very still if the death was to be quick, But 332 00:22:12,480 --> 00:22:15,480 Speaker 1: she kept looking around, terrified for the moment when the 333 00:22:15,520 --> 00:22:19,399 Speaker 1: man with the sword would make his attack. Madam, do 334 00:22:19,480 --> 00:22:22,720 Speaker 1: not fear, the swordsman said, I will wait until you 335 00:22:22,760 --> 00:22:27,000 Speaker 1: are ready. Anne said a few words before her death 336 00:22:27,080 --> 00:22:31,560 Speaker 1: to the crowd below the nearly two thousand Englishmen who 337 00:22:31,600 --> 00:22:36,479 Speaker 1: had gathered for the spectacle. She accepted death, reasserted her 338 00:22:36,480 --> 00:22:40,199 Speaker 1: innocence once more, and asked for the good people to 339 00:22:40,359 --> 00:22:44,160 Speaker 1: pray for Henry and those who were sending her to death. 340 00:22:45,240 --> 00:22:49,000 Speaker 1: While Anne was looking away, the swordsman pulled his blade 341 00:22:49,280 --> 00:22:51,720 Speaker 1: from a pile of straw, where it had been hidden 342 00:22:51,760 --> 00:22:55,879 Speaker 1: so Anne wouldn't see. He wore no shoes so that 343 00:22:56,040 --> 00:22:58,920 Speaker 1: his step would be silent, so that when he came 344 00:22:59,000 --> 00:23:03,800 Speaker 1: up behind Anne, she wouldn't hear him, and then in 345 00:23:03,920 --> 00:23:08,240 Speaker 1: one stroke, her head was gone, fallen in a bloody mass, 346 00:23:08,359 --> 00:23:12,040 Speaker 1: into the pile of straw and sawdust. Waiting to welcome it. 347 00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:17,480 Speaker 1: One of Anne's ladies threw a white handkerchief over the head, 348 00:23:18,080 --> 00:23:21,880 Speaker 1: and the crowd watched as it slowly dappled with red blood. 349 00:23:23,400 --> 00:23:28,160 Speaker 1: The Queen of England was dead. Eleven days later, Henry 350 00:23:28,200 --> 00:23:38,120 Speaker 1: the Eighth married Anne's lady in waiting, Jane Seymour. That's 351 00:23:38,200 --> 00:23:41,640 Speaker 1: the story of Anne Boleyn's death, but stick around after 352 00:23:41,680 --> 00:23:44,679 Speaker 1: a brief sponsor break to hear a little bit about 353 00:23:44,720 --> 00:23:58,360 Speaker 1: Anne's afterlife. Anne Boleyn is one of the most famous 354 00:23:58,400 --> 00:24:01,959 Speaker 1: and enigmatic figures in Alish history, and she's also one 355 00:24:02,000 --> 00:24:07,440 Speaker 1: of England's most ubiquitous ghosts. According to a Victorian legend, 356 00:24:07,880 --> 00:24:10,720 Speaker 1: on certain nights, if you're on the road towards Blickling 357 00:24:10,760 --> 00:24:14,440 Speaker 1: Hall in Norfolk, where Anne was born, you might see 358 00:24:14,440 --> 00:24:17,879 Speaker 1: a carriage passed by. If you happen to look inside, 359 00:24:18,480 --> 00:24:22,840 Speaker 1: you'll see Anne bathed in a red glow and wearing 360 00:24:22,960 --> 00:24:27,639 Speaker 1: a pure white dress, holding her head gently in her lap. 361 00:24:28,440 --> 00:24:31,040 Speaker 1: The moment that the carriage arrives at the front of 362 00:24:31,040 --> 00:24:35,880 Speaker 1: the house, it vanishes into Miss Anne can arrive at 363 00:24:35,880 --> 00:24:40,960 Speaker 1: her destination, but she can't stay. Alison Weir has written 364 00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:45,119 Speaker 1: extensively about Anne Boleyn and the myths and rumors surrounding 365 00:24:45,119 --> 00:24:48,280 Speaker 1: her death, and so I defer to her expertise on 366 00:24:48,359 --> 00:24:52,120 Speaker 1: the subject of Anne's ghosts, on which she writes as 367 00:24:52,119 --> 00:24:55,679 Speaker 1: a historian. I make no further comment on the veracity 368 00:24:55,720 --> 00:25:06,480 Speaker 1: of these stories or the existence of ghosts. Noble Blood 369 00:25:06,560 --> 00:25:08,840 Speaker 1: is a production of I Heart Radio and Grimm and 370 00:25:08,880 --> 00:25:12,040 Speaker 1: Mild from Aaron Monkey. The show was written and hosted 371 00:25:12,040 --> 00:25:15,520 Speaker 1: by Danis Schwartz and produced by Aaron Mankey, Matt Frederick, 372 00:25:15,800 --> 00:25:19,720 Speaker 1: Alex Williams, and Trevor Young. Noble Blood is on social 373 00:25:19,760 --> 00:25:22,560 Speaker 1: media at Noble Blood Tales, and you can learn more 374 00:25:22,560 --> 00:25:25,480 Speaker 1: about the show over at Noble Blood Tales dot com. 375 00:25:25,520 --> 00:25:28,119 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from I Heart Radio, visit the I 376 00:25:28,240 --> 00:25:31,560 Speaker 1: Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to 377 00:25:31,600 --> 00:25:45,040 Speaker 1: your favorite shows. On September, Betty and Barney Hill cut 378 00:25:45,080 --> 00:25:48,000 Speaker 1: their vacation short and decided to drive home. They were 379 00:25:48,000 --> 00:25:51,679 Speaker 1: having difficulty finding their way around the city, and Barney 380 00:25:51,760 --> 00:25:54,600 Speaker 1: decided he just wanted to drive home, knowing that they 381 00:25:54,600 --> 00:25:57,520 Speaker 1: would arrive at their home on New Hampshire Sea Coast 382 00:25:57,880 --> 00:26:01,120 Speaker 1: at about two o'clock in the morning. What they saw 383 00:26:01,160 --> 00:26:04,040 Speaker 1: that night in the New Hampshire sky would change everything. 384 00:26:04,400 --> 00:26:08,359 Speaker 1: I began walking across the highway, looking up at the 385 00:26:08,400 --> 00:26:12,160 Speaker 1: object with the binoculars, putting them down, taking my head, saying, well, 386 00:26:12,160 --> 00:26:14,399 Speaker 1: this yet can't be true. I don't believe it. A 387 00:26:14,520 --> 00:26:16,840 Speaker 1: light in the sky. At first, she thought of a 388 00:26:16,880 --> 00:26:20,720 Speaker 1: falling star, but she realized that following stars don't fall upwards, 389 00:26:20,760 --> 00:26:24,359 Speaker 1: and that's what this one was doing. Two years later, 390 00:26:24,600 --> 00:26:27,439 Speaker 1: the Hills would undergo hypnosis. How a boy did you 391 00:26:27,520 --> 00:26:30,440 Speaker 1: regress that? Before? I started telling I just look back 392 00:26:30,920 --> 00:26:35,240 Speaker 1: to the starting point of Montreal. A sinister story would emerge. 393 00:26:35,680 --> 00:26:38,560 Speaker 1: He walk he's trying to start the car walked back. 394 00:26:41,600 --> 00:26:44,679 Speaker 1: I think, well, I can't get away for this. I 395 00:26:44,720 --> 00:26:46,639 Speaker 1: guess if I get the card or of like a 396 00:26:46,720 --> 00:26:50,200 Speaker 1: brother than wits and hide that became known the world over. 397 00:26:51,119 --> 00:26:54,680 Speaker 1: Doctor Simon gave me a post amatic suggestion. He said, 398 00:26:54,720 --> 00:26:57,760 Speaker 1: if I wanted to, I could sketch the star map, 399 00:26:58,200 --> 00:26:59,679 Speaker 1: but if I didn't want to, I didn't have to. 400 00:27:00,000 --> 00:27:03,280 Speaker 1: So about two weeks later, I sketched. Their account has 401 00:27:03,280 --> 00:27:08,040 Speaker 1: been scrutinized. Under the influence of hypnosis, especially if you're 402 00:27:08,119 --> 00:27:13,040 Speaker 1: highly hypnotize herbal you are even more susceptible to contamination 403 00:27:13,280 --> 00:27:19,960 Speaker 1: and distortion by scientists, skeptics, theorists, and believers. He wound 404 00:27:20,000 --> 00:27:23,240 Speaker 1: up building a total of more than twenty three dimensional 405 00:27:23,480 --> 00:27:27,800 Speaker 1: models and was able to find one and only one 406 00:27:27,960 --> 00:27:32,000 Speaker 1: pattern that matched what Betty had drawn. What happened on 407 00:27:32,040 --> 00:27:36,080 Speaker 1: that night journey in. Were the Hills confused about what 408 00:27:36,119 --> 00:27:38,760 Speaker 1: they saw? Or did they have an encounter with beings 409 00:27:38,800 --> 00:27:42,080 Speaker 1: not of this world? From My Heart Radio and Aaron 410 00:27:42,119 --> 00:27:46,240 Speaker 1: Manky's Grimm and Mild, this is Strange Arrivals. Listen to 411 00:27:46,359 --> 00:27:49,760 Speaker 1: Strange Arrivals March thirty one on the I Heart Radio app, 412 00:27:49,840 --> 00:27:52,960 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.