One of the most shocking executions that took place during the reign of Henry VIII was when
his fifth wife Catherine Howard made her way to the scaffold.
Inside the Tower of London, an axeman awaited on a platform that was covered in hay to soak
up her blood, and as the witnesses prepared themselves for seeing the death of the young
Queen, the heads of the men she allegedly slept with were hanging high above London
Bridge.
But one of those men who was executed for allegedly having an affair with Catherine
Howard was Francis Dereham.
Much is known about the other man that she allegedly slept with Thomas Culpepper, who
was a well known and liked member of the King’s court, and he was a close friend of the King,
Henry VIII.
But Dereham’s alleged relations with Catherine supposedly took place many years before she
became the King’s wife.
Join us today as we look at the BRUTAL execution Of the man who slept with Henry VIII’s Queen.
Remember to support our channel, please make sure to subscribe.
Francis Dereham was born around 1506 to 1509, and he was the son of John Dereham from Norfolk
and his wife Isabel.
It’s assumed he had a rather normal upbringing, but he is best known in history for allegedly
having relations with the fifth wife of Henry VIII.
It is alleged that the relationship between Dereham and Catherine Howard took place when
she was around 15, and before she became the Queen.
The pair whilst Catherine lived in the household of Agnes Howard the Dowager Duchess of Norfolk
struck up a relationship, and Dereham was working for Agnes Howard.
Before he was involved with Catherine, he was already having relations and an affair
with Joan Bulmer who lived in the same household, but Catherine’s eye was captured by Dereham
following the breakdown of a rather inappropriate relationship Catherine allegedly had with
her music teacher Henry Mannox.
He was much older, and it’s clear by today’s standards that Mannox groomed her and abused
her.
It’s believed their relationship was physical and that he assaulted Catherine when she was
13.
Mannox would be the one who would end the relationship Dereham had with Catherine, as
he wrote to Agnes Howard and told her to visit Catherine’s bedroom half an hour after she
went to bed, as ‘she would see things that shall displease her.’
When she entered the bedchamber, she found Francis Dereham and Catherine Howard, and
because of this Francis was sent away and Catherine was scorned by Agnes Howard.
She was told that her reputation would hurt her beauty, and it’s believed Agnes Howard
was more bothered about Catherine’s appearance than her morals.
Dereham left England to go to Ireland where it’s believed he was involved in acts of
piracy, and before he left he asked Catherine to look after £100 of his money, most of
his savings.
But Catherine Howard’s career would take a different path.
Whilst Dereham was away, she was made a lady in waiting to Henry VIII’s fourth wife Anne
of Cleves.
But shortly after, Dereham returned and he became a secretary at Hampton Court Palace,
and was possibly given this job to silence him talking about Catherine Howard’s previous
relationships.
This would have affected her chances of marrying a rich and powerful husband, so Dereham was
kept quiet.
However Henry VIII’s eye was captured by Catherine Howard after his scandalous marriage
to Anne of Cleves.
Catherine became the King’s mistress, and Henry was infatuated with her especially after
the pair had slept together and Catherine was then made Queen after she and Henry VIII
married.
The age difference was huge, and it was not a good match as Henry VIII at this time was
large and grotesque and hugely overweight and old, and Catherine was still just a teenager.
But on the 27th Aguust 1541, Francis Dereham approached and confronted Catherine Howard
at Pontefract Castle whilst court was in progress.
Catherine was probably blackmailed, and was forced to make Dereham her private secretary
and he later then became a Gentleman Usher of the Queen’s chamber.
Francis said that if Henry VIII died then he planned to marry the Queen, and he benefitted
greatly from his previous relationship.
But at the time rumours were circulating around court about the Queen’s infidelity with
another man Thomas Culpepper, and Dereham may have made these claims to make Culepper
jealous.
We know that Dereham was a violent man who had a bad temper and also was often very drunk,
and he at one time attacked another Gentleman Usher who questioned Dereham at court one
time during a meeting.
But things quickly moved as Archbishop Thomas Cranmer was alerted to rumours about Queen
Catherine and her previous relations and possible adultery behind the Kings back.
This prompted a full investigation, and Thomas Culpepper, Catherine Howard, Francis Dereham
and many other members of Catherine’s family were arrested.
Much speculation emerged around Catherine and Culpepper, and Jane Boleyn Lady Rochford
had arranged for them to meet.
But Cranmer also found evidence that Dereham and Catherine had a pre-marital relationship.
This was obtained under interrogation, but the pair claimed they had never been intimate
despite being arranged to marry at some point.
Dereham testified against Culpepper, saying that he had captured the Queen’s affections
and not Dereham.
But Cranmer now had to sort the problem out, as a pre-contract between Dereham and Catherine
would have been as binding as a marriage, and this would be cemented if the pair had
relations like it’s claimed they did.
This meant that Catherine Howard’s marriage to the King would have then been unlawful,
which was of course a huge problem.
It’s believed that Agnes Howard may have burned any evidence of the pre-contract between
the pair, and that letters between the two were thrown out.
Dereham admitted under torture that the pre-contract was there, but Catherine admitted that she
have relations with Dereham on many occasions, but she blamed Dereham for forcing himself
on her.
Many witnesses actually claimed this was a lie, and they said that the Queen enjoyed
the company of Francis and whilst they were younger they would walk proudly arm in arm
and that Catherine seemed happy.
This was of course very dangerous, as it invalidated the King’s marriage.
On the 4th November 1541, Catherine was imprisoned at Syon Abbey, and weeks later she lost the
title of Queen and was to be referred to as simply Catherine Howard.
But on the 1st December 1541, Thomas Culpepper and Francis Dereham were tried at Guildhall
for treason.
The court heard of the charges and the alleged evidence, and with this they were both sentenced
to a traitors death.
They were to be hanged drawn and quartered, but they petitioned to Henry VIII to receive
a simpler and less painful beheading.
Culpepper was allowed this, but Dereham was made to suffer.
On the 10th December 1541, Francis Dereham was taken from the Tower of London to Tyburn
where he was to be hanged, drawn and quartered.
He had been paraded through the streets behind a horse on a hurdle, and was then taken to
the scaffold in front of a large crowd.
Dereham was to die a traditional traitor’s death, and he was greeted by the executioner
who was armed with his noose and also axe.
It was said that, ‘"Culpeper and Dereham were drawn from the Tower of London to Tyburn,
and there Culpeper, after an exhortation made to the people to pray for him, he standing
on the ground by the gallows, kneeled down and had his head stricken off; and then Dereham
was hanged, membered, bowelled, headed, and quartered [and both] their heads set on London
Bridge."
So Culpepper’s head was stricken off, but Dereham was hanged until almost dead, then
disembowelled and his privates were cut off and burned in front of him, before he was
beheaded and cut into four pieces.
His head was stuck on London Bridge, and as mentioned allegedly Catherine Howard saw this
when she too travelled to the Tower of London where she was imprisoned.
Catherine Howard would later be executed along with Jane Boleyn on the 13th February 1542,
3 months after her former lovers were.
But she was given a private execution, away from the eyes of the public.
Thanks for watching
To support our channel, please make sure to subscribe.
Thanks again for watching