Posted by Allison
on 31/10/2009, 20:58:24, in reply to "Re: Opening the Vault of King Henry VIII and Charles I"
You're very welcome, Karen! And thanks for the responses, Dawn 
The discovery of Henry VIII's coffin in such a sad state made me wonder about the rest of the king's family... his beloved wife Jane is buried next to him, obviously, but what about the other five wives and his four children? A little investigation:
Wife 1: Catherine of Aragon, buried in Peterborough Cathedral: 
Wife 2: Anne Boleyn, buried in St. Peter in Chains, the Tower: 
Wife 3: Jane Seymour, buried in St. George's Chapel, Windsor (as we have seen)
Wife 4: Anne of Cleves, entombed behind a wall of chairs in Westminster Abbey: 
Wife 5: Catherine Howard, buried in St. Peter in Chains, the Tower (you can just make out the left side of her memorial stone next to Anne Boleyn's):
Wife 6: Catherine Parre, buried in St. Mary's Chapel, Sudeley Castle: 
The King's daughters, Mary and Elizabeth, are entombed in regal splendor at Westminster Abbey. I wonder why there is an effigy of just Elizabeth on top. Perhaps Dawn can explain this?
"Partners both in throne and grave, here rest we two sisters, Elizabeth and Mary, in the hope of one resurrection.": 
Henry VIII's illegitimate son, Henry Fitzroy, buried in St. Michael's Church, Framlingham: 
And the king's legitimate son and heir, Edward VI, buried at Westminster Abbey: 
*most photos come from the rather interesting website www.findagrave.com*
Like the interesting sketch made of the tomb in St. George's Chapel, I wish someone had documented the finds beneath the floor of St. Peter in Chains at the Tower. A restoration of the chapel was undertaken in the 19th century and a "treasure trove" of historically significant remains were found. The body of Anne Boleyn, among others,were discovered and reburied in the floor:
"Despite the effort put into Anne's execution, Henry failed to have organised any kind of funeral or even provide a proper coffin for her. Her body lay on the scaffold for sometime before a man (believed to be working inside the tower) found an empty arrow chest and placed her head and body inside. She (Anne Boleyn) was then buried in an unmarked grave in the Chapel of St Peter ad Vincula. Her skeleton was identified during renovations of the chapel in the reign of Queen Victoria and Anne's resting place is now marked in the marble floor."
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