Catherine of Aragon
by Patricia Gaitan
 

Ms. Gaiten sheds some more light on the details of Catherine’s life from her tomb, which Patricia visitied in England.

     Catherine of Aragon Catherine of Aragon was indeed a good queen--it was Henry who was the philanderer, but, unfortunately, he was also the one with the power. I have just returned from a trip to England, where I saw her burial place in Peterborough Cathedral. Henry would not allow her to be buried as a queen and relegated her here to be buried. This now makes Peterborough a tourist site to visit (Mary, Queen of Scots initial burial was here also directly opposite, but she is now buried at Westminster). Catherine's burial is behind the altar on the left side in the floor. The site is very simple (no marble effigies), with just her name and a few latin phrases and the dates in a raised area around it. 

     I was impressed with how lovely she was as a young girl (Peterborough does a good job for tourists in showing her portraits and her life story) and she is also nice looking as a middle-aged woman but obviously not as sexy as Anne Boleyn must have been (her portraits don't show it). And Catherine was tenacious in her faith (Catholic) all her life in the face of the problems she faced.
 

Personal Note from Ms. Gaitin: Thank you for your continued work in History's Women. You do a lovely job. I may not always be happy about the women you choose, but you choose women who made a difference, and that is what it is all about. Pat