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- First queen of Henry VIII of England,
- 1509-33, and mother of Mary I; Henry divorced
- her without papal approval, thus beginning
- the English Reformation. Catherine had
- married Henry's elder brother Prince Arthur
- 1501 and on his death 1502 was betrothed to
- Henry, marrying him on his accession 1509. Of
- their six children, only Mary lived. Wanting
- a male heir, Henry sought an annulment 1526
- when Catherine was too old to bear children.
- When the pope demanded that the case be
- referred to him, Henry married Anne Boleyn,
- afterwards receiving the desired decree of
- nullity from Cranmer, the archbishop of
- Canterbury, in 1533. The Reformation in
- England followed, and Catherine went into
- retirement until her death.
-