Catherine of Aragon was born in 1485, the youngest child of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain. She was first married to Arthur, eldest son of Henry VIII, but was soon left a widow. In 1509, by a papal dispensation, she was married to her brother-in-law, who later became Henry VII. By Henry, she had one child, a daughter who eventually became Queen Mary I. Around 1529, Henry began to actively seek to nullify the original papal dispensation, making his marriage with Catherine invalid and opening the way to marry Anne Boleyn. Instead, the pope was obdurate. In 1533, Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, declared the parties to be no longer man and wife. Kept a prisoner, Catherin spent the remainder of her days in religious devotions. She died in 1536.
