Mary Tudor

Sister of Henry VIII

This is one of the more popular ones, constantly being recycled in news articles and internet ‘history facts’ lists, but does it stand up to scrutiny?

Mary Tudor is generally regarded by people who propose this theory as being Henry’s favourite sister. While there is some truth to this, would he name his brand new warship after her? There are no contemporary records saying that she was the inspiration for the name, so it seems to be based on speculation rather than anything else.

There are two problems with the "Mary Tudor" theory. Firstly, at the time ships were rarely, if ever, named after actual people. While there are a few exceptions (John Cabot’s The Matthew, for example, may have been named after his wife (!)), it’s unlikely that Henry would have chosen the name of his sister over his wife, Katherine of Aragon, whom he had recently married for political purposes.

Secondly, there is the mystery of the Mary Rose’s sister ship, the Peter Pomegranate. If the Mary Rose was Mary Tudor (who, despite what you might read on the internet, was never referred to as Mary Rose during her lifetime) and the Tudor Rose, who was the Peter associated with the Pomegranate, the symbol of the house of Aragon? There were a few historical Peters in the Queen’s family, but then why didn’t Henry do the same with the Mary Rose, naming it after an important ancestor?

Also, the name Mary Rose wasn't new when Henry came to the throne. In 1466, during the reign of Edward IV, Bristol customs accounts list a ship named Marrye de Rosse trading from that port. Clearly this wasn't taking its name from the unborn Henry VIII’s unborn favourite unborn sister, so who was it? There is a pretty obvious inspiration…