On October 9, 1514, the beautiful, 18-year-old Princess Mary Tudor of England was married to the 52-year-old King Louis XII of France at Abbeville, in a union designed to forge peace between the two nations. Knowing the King’s advanced age and hoping to control her own destiny, Mary secured a promise from her brother, King Henry VIII, that she would be allowed to choose her own husband for her next marriage should Louis pass away.
The marriage proved to be exceptionally brief. Less than three months after their wedding, King Louis XII died in the early hours of January 1, 1515, after a severe bout of gout. While contemporary rumors playfully claimed that the elderly King’s sudden passing was caused by his strenuous marital exertions to satisfy his young, nubile wife, the historical consensus points to his failing health and joint ailments.
Following Louis’s death, a newly widowed Mary was placed into traditional seclusion for over a month to ensure she was not carrying a royal heir. Once it was confirmed she was not pregnant, Mary took matters into her own hands to avoid another arranged political marriage. Defying both court protocol and her brother’s authority, she secretly married her true love, Charles Brandon, the 1st Duke of Suffolk. After eventually paying a heavy fine to pacify an infuriated King Henry VIII, Mary secured her happily-ever-after with the man of her choice.
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