18. Bloody Mary’s Desire for an Heir with Her Uninterested Husband Philip II of Spain Led to False Pregnancies
King Henry VIII of England left his throne to his only surviving son, Edward VI, when he died in 1547. After a brief six-year reign, the Protestant Edward died, passing the throne to his fervently Catholic sister Mary I. Determined to return Catholicism to the country, Mary outraged the nation by marrying her second cousin Prince Philip of Spain in July 1554. The 37-year-old Mary desperately loved her husband, and she quickly needed to produce an heir. Unfortunately, Philip, 11 years younger than her, only saw the union as a political advantage.
Three months after her marriage, Mary thought she was pregnant, but she never gave birth. Conflicts in Europe kept Philip away from England, sending Mary into a deep depression. When her husband returned in 1557, she believed that she was pregnant again. Suffering another false pregnancy, Mary’s health deteriorated. She died in November 1558, at age forty-two, most likely from ovarian or uterine cancer. Although previous studies of their relationship indicate that Philip hated his wife, evidence from his correspondence shows that he respected her and he regretted her passing.