Mary Boleyn (c. 1499-c. 1543)
She was the sister of the second wife of Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, who met a gruesome fate in the hands of the highly skilled French executioner who was commissioned by the king himself to execute her. Something which happened on May 19, 1536. Also, Mary was the mistress of that same king who had her sister killed, and that has led to certain guesses by historians for ages: Was King Henry the biological father of her two children or were they the true offspring of her husband, William Carey, whom she married in 1520? If they were the king's children then the Tudor-genes survived and were preserved in future kings and queens, like for instance queen Elizabeth II and her son, king Charles III and his children.
I suppose it shall never be proven beyond any doubt whether the bloodline really is the one of Mary Boleyn and king Henry VIII or not. Anyway, the mother of Queen Elizabeth II, the wife of king George VI, the so-called Queen Mother Elizabeth, was a descendant of Mary Boleyn's daughter, Catherine Carey (1524-1569). As said before, whether Catherine was a biological daughter of the king or not, we don't know for sure, but she was without doubt the first cousin of the King's daughter, Queen Elizabeth I, her maybe-half-sister. As neither the king nor his daughter, Queen Elizabeth I, claimed her as a close relative, I take it that it is more of a rumor than anything else, but it is what has kept the interest alive even today. After all, neither Mary Boleyn nor her daughter, Catherine Carey, were all that interesting in themselves, but the possibility of their being closely connected with the Tudors, and not only through Anne Boleyn, turns the searchlight on them and their descendants.
It has been suggested that this is a portrait of Catherine Carey, but nobody knows for sure. There are also some presumed Catherine Carey-portraits of women bearing a likeness to Elizabeth I, red hair and everything, but although it may be tempting they furnish the same problem: Nobody knows for sure who they are.
"True Daughter"? Naaahhh, but a "maybe-daughter", yes. Anyway, this niece of Anne Boleyn is said to have been present when she was executed. That's a much more interesting scenery in my opinion, than being a maybe-daughter or not. Also, she was recognized as the favorite cousin of Queen Elizabeth I, so I suppose it wasn't a great surprise that she was appointed her Chief Lady of the Bedchamber. She even kept that position for many years, at the same time giving birth to several children. To me, it seems a bit odd, that Catherine also had been "Maid of Honor", to two of King Henry VIII's queens, Anne of Cleves, and Katherine Howard before she became Elizabeth's "Chief Lady of the Bedchamber". However, quite a nice career, so to speak.
Wikipedia
