Some say, "Rochford, haddest thou been not so proud,
For thy great wit each man would thee bemoan,
Since as it is so, many cry aloud
It is great loss that thou art dead and gone."
Attributed to Sir Thomas Wyatt.1
George Boleyn was Anne Boleyn's brother, and is best known for being accused of incest with her. However, he was very much a figure in his own right, and one of considerable intelligence. (In this context, it is worth noting that "wit" was used as a generic term for "intelligence" in the sixteenth century - but also more than that; the term meant that George was good company more generally, as with his sister. The Boleyns were nothing if not personable.) He was described by David Starkey as having "some of Anne's talents and all of her pride", and was a leading member of the Boleyn faction at court. He was close to Anne; it seems that neither was as close to Mary Boleyn.
Early Years
George's date of birth has been generally agreed upon (if Ives and Warnicke can agree, it must be!), but it was quite difficult to determine. The fact that his first royal grant was only secured in 1524 hints that he was the youngest of the three, but George Cavendish's Metrical Visions (and Cavendish almost certainly knew George Boleyn) records George as saying that he had obtained a place in the privy chamber at "thrice years nine my life had past away". We know that he was "retired" from the chamber in January 1526. At very latest, therefore (in order for George to have been 27 in 1526), this would indicate that he was born in 1499 - but this would make him older than Anne. However, as Cavendish was writing 30 years after the event and in meter (making the next possible verse "years thrice eight"), it's possible that he was trying to say that George was about 25, indicating a date of approximately 1501 - It could also be that Cavendish was referring to George's 1529 restoration to the privy chamber. "Thrice nine" taken literally would then give us a date of c. 1503, and an age of about 25 would give us a date of c. 1504. This last date is generally agreed to be the most likely, and is corroborated by Jean du Bellay opining (in 1529) that George was too young to be sent as an ambassador to France.2
Little is known of George's early years. He played a part in the 1514-1515 Christmas revels, but evidently as a child. He was certainly well educated in his youth, with a command of French, Latin and courtly skills; it is thought that he was educated at Oxford. He was also an accomplished poet and translator, with (like his sister) an interest in religious reform. It seems that he was very close to Anne, and would remain so throughout his life. (One of Anne's uppermost concerns after her arrest in 1536 was for her "sweet broder [sic]"3.) In 1525, he married Jane Parker, daughter of Lord Morely. The marriage was an unhappy one, and George was much closer to Anne than his wife. In January 1526, George lost his post in the Privy Chamber due to the Eltham Ordinances.4 (This was meant to reform the royal household, but Wolsey seized the opportunity to dispose of several courtiers who in his opinion might impinge on his own influence.) However, he remained in the King's intimate circle.
Rise to Prominence
Like the rest of his family, George benefited from the rise of his sister Anne. In 1529, he went on his first embassy to France. (This was the appointment which du Bellay thought him too young for; however, he advised Paris to "flatter Boleyn pretensions" and "lionise the . . . petit prince [George]". Evidently, George was worth cultivating. He would during his life go on a number of diplomatic missions to France.
Soon after his return, he was restored to the privy chamber as a full adult member.5 (Wolsey was out of favour now.) He was also known as Viscount Rochford from 1529 onwards (after his father became Earl of Wiltshire), and this ceased to be merely a courtesy title in 1530. Throughout, he was a firm supporter of Anne, helping to manage the clergy in convocation in 1531 when the latter were, more or less, coerced into declaring Henry "sole protector and supreme head of the English church and clergy" in the Pardon of the Clergy. The clergy showed who they thought was feeding the king with the whole idea, and tried (unsuccessfully) to communicate with him and bypass Rochford.6 In 1533, it was he who announced that his sister was married to Henry VIII and pregnant. Until April/May 1536, Rochford did well out of his sister's position, being appointed Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports and serving as one of the king's busiest diplomats. He also received one of Thomas More's Kentish manors after the latter's execution in 1535.
Like his sister, Rochford was a supporter of reform. (He was alleged to have suggested to Anne that she show the copy of Fish's A Supplication for the Beggars to the King that she had been sent.7) Indeed, Eustace Chapuys (the Imperial ambassador) complained that one could never dine with him without being subjected to some sort of theological debate. There was an element of self-interest in his support, but (as with Anne) he does seem to have had a genuine interest in reform for its own sake. When he and Anne fell, many reformers feared that their cause would go down with them.
Arrest, Trial and Execution
When Katherine of Aragon died in January 1536, Rochford's reaction was to express his regret that the Lady Mary did not keep company with her mother. As with his sister, however, his position (along with that of the Boleyns in general) was rendered that much more vulnerable to his enemies - and indeed, his failure to receive the Order of the Garter on 23 April was one of the first indicators that the Boleyns were in serious trouble.
As one of Anne's chief supporters, Rochford went down with her in May 1536.8 On May 2, 1536, he was arrested on charges of incest and treason. When in the Tower, he showed great agitation, asking Sir William Kingston (the Constable of the Tower), "When shall I come before the King's Council? I think I shall not come forth till I come to my judgement," and bursting into tears.
The charges against him were certainly false, and at his trial (15 May), as he "crumble[d] the royal case to dust"9, the odds were thought to be ten to one that he would be acquitted. However, he was asked whether he had ever said that which was written on a piece of paper handed to him, and he either read it out or said that he would not "create suspicion in a manner likely to prejudice the issue the King might have from a second marriage". "I did not say it!" he cried out, but it was too late.10 His wife, Jane, testified against him; this may have been because her father (Lord Morley) had been a devoted supporter of Katherine of Aragon, or an attempt to remain on the winning side, or possibly the result of an unhappy marriage; quite possibly Jane was jealous of the close bond between George and Anne.11 He was unanimously found guilty. He accepted the sentence, saying that after all, all men were sinners and deserving of death, but was concerned about those who owed him money, fearing that they would be ruined - some said that he read out a list of his debts in court!12 Certainly, his concerns for his creditors continued after his trial - so much so that even Sir William Kingston, the Keeper of the Tower, wrote to Cromwell that "you must help my lord of Rochford's conscience".
George Boleyn was beheaded with an axe on Tower Hill, on the morning of Wednesday, May 17. He died well, by Tudor standards, accepting his death and not challenging his sentence: "Masters all, I am come hither not to preach a sermon but to die, as the law hath found me, and to the law I submit me."
It is possible that he had a son, also named George, who was eventually appointed Dean of Lichfield by Elizabeth I.
Notes
1 Cit. Ives, p. 417
2 Ives, pp. 18-19
3 Warnicke, p. 226
4 Ives, p. 15 and p. 126
5 Ives, p. 18 and p. 154
6 Ives, p. 168
7 Warnicke, p. 112
8 Warnicke argues (p. 215) that Rochford had committed sodomy, using information from George Cavendish's Metrical Visions, and that this was why he had been accused of incest with his sister to explain her alleged deformed foetus. This is theoretically possible, but the use of the Metrical Visions seems to me highly questionable; more a case of explaining why the act is not mentioned than proving it from the text!
9 Ives, p. 388
10 Weir, p. 328
11 Fraser, p. 252
12 Ives, p. 388
Works Cited
Fraser, Lady Antonia. The Wives of Henry VIII. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1993.
Ives, Eric W. Anne Boleyn. London: Macmillan, 1984.
Warnicke, Retha M. The Rise and Fall of Anne Boleyn: Family Politics at the Court of Henry VIII. Cambridge: Canto, 1991.
Weir, Alison. The Six Wives of Henry VIII. New York: Ballantine Books, 1993.