Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales
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Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales (19 February 1594 – 6 November 1612), was the eldest son and
heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...
of
James VI and I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...
, King of
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
; and his wife
Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and Queen of England and Ireland from the union of the Scottish and Eng ...
. His name derives from his grandfathers:
Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley (1546 – 10 February 1567), was an English nobleman who was the second husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, and the father of James VI of Scotland and I of England. Through his parents, he had claims to both the Scottis ...
; and Frederick II of Denmark. Prince Henry was widely seen as a bright and promising heir to his father's thrones. However, at the age of 18, he predeceased his father when he died of
typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...
. His younger brother Charles succeeded him as heir apparent to the English, Irish, and Scottish thrones.


Early life

Henry was born at Stirling Castle, Scotland, and became Duke of Rothesay,
Earl of Carrick Earl of Carrick (or Mormaer of Carrick) is the title applied to the ruler of Carrick (now South Ayrshire), subsequently part of the Peerage of Scotland. The position came to be strongly associated with the Scottish crown when Robert the Bruce, ...
, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles, and
Prince and Great Steward of Scotland Prince and Great Steward of Scotland are two of the titles of the heir apparent to the throne of the United Kingdom. The current holder of these titles is Prince William, who bears the other Scottish titles of Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick ...
automatically on his birth. His nurses included Mistress Primrose and Mistress Bruce. Henry's baptism on 30 August 1594 was celebrated with complex theatrical entertainments written by poet William Fowler and a ceremony in a new Chapel Royal at Stirling purpose-built by
William Schaw William Schaw (c. 1550–1602) was Master of Works to James VI of Scotland for building castles and palaces, and is claimed to have been an important figure in the development of Freemasonry in Scotland. Biography William Schaw was the second ...
. James VI set a tax of £100,000 for the expenses. Textiles and costume for the event were bought using Anne's dowry of £100,000 Scots which had been in the safekeeping of various towns. In the month before the baptism, there were rumours at the Scottish court that James VI was jealous of Anne of Denmark and thought that the
Duke of Lennox The title Duke of Lennox has been created several times in the peerage of Scotland, for Clan Stewart of Darnley. The dukedom, named for the district of Lennox in Dumbarton, was first created in 1581, and had formerly been the Earldom of Lenno ...
might be the father of Prince Henry. His father placed him in the care of John Erskine,
Earl of Mar There are currently two earldoms of Mar in the Peerage of Scotland, and the title has been created seven times. The first creation of the earldom is currently held by Margaret of Mar, 31st Countess of Mar, who is also clan chief of Clan Mar. T ...
, and his mother Annabell Murray, at Stirling Castle, out of the care of the boy's mother. James VI worried that the mother's tendency toward
Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
might affect the son. The child's removal to Stirling caused enormous tension between Anne and James, and Henry remained there under the care of Mar's family until 1603.Fritze, Ronald H. and William B. Robison
''Historical Dictionary of Stuart England, 1603–1689''
(Greenwood, 1996), retrieved via Google Books on 19 July 2009
James VI wrote a note to the Earl of Mar in June 1595 instructing him, in the event of his death, not to deliver Henry to Anne of Denmark or the
Parliament of Scotland The Parliament of Scotland ( sco, Pairlament o Scotland; gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba) was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland from the 13th century until 1707. The parliament evolved during the early 13th century from the king's council o ...
until he was 18 and gave the order himself. James VI frequently visited the Prince at Stirling. As early as August 1595 he encouraged the infant to hold a pen and make a penstroke on a document, which the king humorously certified, "I will testify this is the prince's own mark". At this time, the Master of Gray was keeper of Henry's wardrobe, and took delivery of a little coffer worth £8 Scots for the Prince's clothes.
Adam Newton Adam Lee Newton (born 4 December 1980) is a former professional footballer who played for West Ham United, Peterborough United, Brentford and Luton Town. Born in England, he represented the England U21 national team and the Saint Kitts and Ne ...
became his schoolmaster or tutor.
William Keith of Delny Sir William Keith of Delny (died 1599) was a Scottish courtier and Master of the Royal Wardrobe. He also served as ambassador for James VI to various countries. He was an important intermediary between George Keith, 5th Earl Marischal and the kin ...
and then George Lauder were his legal tutors, administrators of his estates and incomes. Anne of Denmark was reluctant to go to Stirling and was said to be afraid that her enemies would give her a poisoned
posset A posset (also historically spelled poshote, poshotte) was originally a popular British hot drink made of milk curdled with wine or ale, often spiced, which was often used as a remedy. The original drink became extinct and the name was revived ...
at the Castle. In 1596 Queen Elizabeth, via the
Earl of Essex Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new cre ...
, and his secretary Anthony Bacon, sent her miniature portrait by
Nicholas Hilliard Nicholas Hilliard () was an English goldsmith and limner best known for his portrait miniatures of members of the courts of Elizabeth I and James I of England. He mostly painted small oval miniatures, but also some larger cabinet miniatures, ...
to Prince Henry, and this was received by the Earl of Mar at Stirling. It was said that Prince Henry would be godfather to his younger brother Duke Robert, in May 1602, and afterwards stay at
Dunfermline Palace Dunfermline Palace is a ruined former Scottish royal palace and important tourist attraction in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland. It is currently, along with other buildings of the adjacent Dunfermline Abbey, under the care of Historic Environment ...
with his mother, but James VI forbade this. In 1602 a visit to his mother at
Falkland Palace Falkland Palace, in Falkland, Fife, Scotland, is a royal palace of the Scottish Kings. It was one of the favourite places of Mary, Queen of Scots, providing an escape from political and religious turmoil. Today it is under the stewardship of ...
was planned, but was postponed because of her sickness. The French ambassador in London
Christophe de Harlay, Count of Beaumont Christophe de Harlay, Count of Beaumont (1570–1615) was a French politician and diplomat who served as ambassador to England. He was the son of Achillee de Harlay, seigneur de Beaumont (1504–1572) and Catherine de Thou. He married Anne Rabot in ...
, reported a rumour, spread by James's friends, that Anne of Denmark was cruel and ambitious, and hoped to rule Scotland as Regent or Governor for Henry after the death of her husband.


London

James became King of England in 1603 at the
Union of the Crowns The Union of the Crowns ( gd, Aonadh nan Crùintean; sco, Union o the Crouns) was the accession of James VI of Scotland to the throne of the Kingdom of England as James I and the practical unification of some functions (such as overseas dip ...
and his family moved south. Anne of Denmark came to Stirling to collect her son, and after an argument with the Prince's keepers,
Marie Stewart, Countess of Mar Marie Stewart, Countess of Mar (1576-1644) was a Scottish courtier. She was the daughter of Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox, a favourite of James VI of Scotland, and Catherine de Balsac. After her marriage, as was customary in Scotland, she di ...
and the Master of Mar, was allowed to take Henry to Edinburgh on 28 May. On the following Sunday she took him to St Giles Kirk in her famous silver coach, and they subsequently travelled to England. Henry's tutor
Adam Newton Adam Lee Newton (born 4 December 1980) is a former professional footballer who played for West Ham United, Peterborough United, Brentford and Luton Town. Born in England, he represented the England U21 national team and the Saint Kitts and Ne ...
continued to serve the Prince, and several Scottish servants from the Stirling household were retained, including the poet David Murray. The prince was lodged at Oatlands and
Nonsuch Palace Nonsuch Palace was a Tudor royal palace, built by Henry VIII in Surrey, England; it stood from 1538 to 1682–83. Its site lies in what is now Nonsuch Park on the boundaries of the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey and the London Boro ...
, and was relocated to Winchester during an outbreak of plague. At Winchester, in September 1603, Anne of Denmark produced a
masque The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment that flourished in 16th- and early 17th-century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio (a public version of the masque was the pageant). A masq ...
to welcome her son, which was controversial. In November 1603 he was staying at
Wilton House Wilton House is an English country house at Wilton near Salisbury in Wiltshire, which has been the country seat of the Earls of Pembroke for over 400 years. It was built on the site of the medieval Wilton Abbey. Following the dissolution ...
, and King James joked that a letter presented to Henry by the Venetian diplomats was bigger than he was. Henry rode with the
Earl of Nottingham :''See also Earl of Winchilsea'' Earl of Nottingham is a title that has been created seven times in the Peerage of England. It was first created for John de Mowbray in 1377, at the coronation of Richard II. As this creation could only pass to h ...
and his governor Sir Thomas Chaloner to Salisbury to dine with the Venetian ambassador
Nicolò Molin Nicolò Molin (1562-1608) was a Venetian noble and ambassador to England. The main residence of the Molin family in Venice was the Palazzo Molin del Cuoridoro. He commissioned the architect Vincenzo Scamozzi to build the Villa Molin near Padua ...
and other diplomats. This was the first time he had made an appearance and dined outside the royal household, and his father joked that Henry was the ambassador's prisoner. On 15 March 1604, Henry rode on horseback behind his father through the streets of London during the delayed Royal Entry. From 1604 onwards, Henry often stayed at St James's Palace. The gardens were improved for him by Alphonsus Fowle. The daily expenses of the Prince in England were managed by the
Cofferer of the Household The Cofferer of the Household was formerly an office in the English and British Royal Household. Next in rank to the Comptroller, the holder paid the wages of some of the servants above and below stairs, was a member of the Board of Green Cloth, a ...
,
Henry Cocke Sir Henry Cocke (1538 – 24 March 1610), of Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, was an English politician. He was the eldest son of John Cock, the Master of Requests, 1550–1552 and educated at St. John’s College, Cambridge (Easter 1553) and the ...
and after 1610 David Foulis. David Murray of Gorthy was keeper of the Prince's privy purse and his accounts reveal some details of Henry's interests. Two Scottish tailors, Alexander Wilson and Patrick Black, moved to London and made the prince's clothes. Wilson made him doublets and hose from cloth supplied by Robert Grigge, and a hunting coat of green chamlet lined with velvet. The prince was supplied with perfumed gloves made of stag's leather, perfumed gloves from Córdoba, and embroidered waistcoats "wrought very curiously in colour silks".


Music, games and sports

Prince Henry was introduced to a variety of sports at Stirling Castle. In September 1600 he was bought two golf clubs, two staffs, and four rackets. The handles were covered with velvet and dressed with metal
passementerie Passementerie (, ) or passementarie is the art of making elaborate trimmings or edgings (in French, ) of applied braid, gold or silver cord, embroidery, colored silk, or beads for clothing or furnishings. Styles of passementerie include the tas ...
. In September 1601, an English visitor, Thomas Musgrave, saw Henry dance, leap, and wield a
pike Pike, Pikes or The Pike may refer to: Fish * Blue pike or blue walleye, an extinct color morph of the yellow walleye ''Sander vitreus'' * Ctenoluciidae, the "pike characins", some species of which are commonly known as pikes * ''Esox'', genus of ...
. On Sunday 8 May 1603 Henry exercised in the castle garden, watched by his mother, played billiards after dinner, and after supper "ran and played at the boards". In England, Henry was tutored in music by
Alfonso Ferrabosco the younger Alfonso Ferrabosco the younger (c. 1575 – March 1628) was an English composer and viol player of Italian descent. He straddles the line between the Renaissance and Baroque eras. Biography Ferrabosco was born at Greenwich, the illeg ...
, Nicholas Villiard, and Walter Quinn. Thomas Giles taught him to dance. Charles Guerolt taught him the "science of defence",
fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, ...
. At Oatlands in 1603 Prince Henry told Scaramelli, a Venetian diplomat, about his interests in dancing, tennis and hunting. In August 1604 Henry danced for the Spanish envoy, the Constable Velasco, and showed him military pike exercises in the palace garden. In 1606 the French ambassador
Antoine Lefèvre de la Boderie Antoine Lefèvre de la Boderie (1555-1615) was a French diplomat and ambassador to England. He was a son of Jacques Lefèvre de la Boderie and Anne de Montbray. Career Boderie was a master of household to Henry IV of France. In January 1598 he wel ...
noted that Prince Henry played golf, which he described as a Scottish game not unlike "pallemail" or
pall-mall Pall-mall, paille-maille, palle-maille, pell-mell, or palle-malle (, , ) is a lawn game (though mostly played on earth surfaces rather than grass) that was mostly played in the 16th and 17th centuries, a precursor to croquet. History Related to ...
. One of Prince Henry's biographers, "W. H.", mentioned that Henry nearly hit Adam Newton with a golf ball, and Henry said that would have paid him back. Henry also played tennis, and in July 1606 played with his uncle
Christian IV of Denmark Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian mon ...
at
Greenwich Palace Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...
. He had a court for "pall-mall", laid out at St James's Fields, north of St James's Palace. It was a long alley surfaced with cockle shells crushed into clay or loam. In 1607 Henry sought permission to learn to swim, but the Earls of Suffolk, and Shrewsbury, wrote to Newton that swimming was a "dangerous thing" that their own sons might practise "like feathers as light as things of nought", but was not suitable for Princes as "things of great weight and consequence". A riding school, one of the first in England, was built for him at St James's Palace in 1607. Henry competed at running at the ring with foreign visitors and diplomats including
Louis Frederick, Duke of Württemberg-Montbéliard Louis Frederick of Württemberg-Montbéliard (29 January 1586 in Montbéliard – 26 January 1631 in Montbéliard) was the founder of a cadet line of the House of Württemberg known as the Dukes of Württemberg-Montbéliard. Louis Frederick o ...
, in April and May 1610. Henry talked of the merits of various breeds of horses and his own Barbary horses to the Venetian ambassador
Antonio Foscarini Antonio Foscarini (c. 1570 in Venice – April 22, 1622) belonged to the Venetian nobility and was Venetian ambassador to Paris and later to London. He was the third son of Nicolò di Alvise of the family branch of San Polo and Maria Barbarigo di ...
in 1611.Roy Strong, ''Henry Prince of Wales and England's Lost Renaissance'' (London, 1986), pp. 14–5. He revealed an interest in Venetian maritime power and had a plan of the fortification of
Palmanova Palmanova ( fur, Palme) is a town and comune in northeast Italy. The town is an example of a star fort of the late Renaissance, built up by the Venetian Republic in 1593. The fortifications were included in UNESCO's World Heritage Site list as ...
. As an indoor amusement, Henry played chess.


Training and personality

The king greatly preferred the role of schoolmaster to that of father, and he wrote texts for the schooling of his children. James directed that Henry's household "should rather imitate a College than a Court",Carlton, Charles
''Charles I: The Personal Monarch''
second edition, Routledge, 1995, retrieved via Google Books on 19 July 2009
or, as Sir Thomas Chaloner wrote in 1607, "His Highness's household ..was intended by the King for a ''courtly college'' or a ''collegiate court''"McCullough, Peter E.
''Sermons at Court: Politics and Religion in Elizabethan and Jacobean Preaching''
Cambridge University Press, 1998, retrieved via Google Books on 19 July 2009
He passionately engaged in such physical pursuits as hawking, hunting, jousting and fencing, and from a young age studied naval and military affairs and national issues, about which he often disagreed with his father. He also disapproved of the way his father conducted the royal court, disliked
Robert Carr Leonard Robert Carr, Baron Carr of Hadley, (11 November 1916 – 17 February 2012) was a British Conservative Party politician who served as Home Secretary from 1972 to 1974. He served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for 26 years, and later se ...
, a favourite of his father, and esteemed Sir Walter Raleigh, wishing him to be released from the
Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is sep ...
. The prince's popularity rose so high that it threatened his father. Relations between the two could be tense, and on occasion surfaced in public. At one point, they were hunting near Royston when James criticised his son for lacking enthusiasm for the chase, and initially moved to strike his son with his cane, but Henry rode off. Most of the hunting party then followed the son. "Upright to the point of priggishness, he fined all who swore in his presence", according to Charles Carlton, a biographer of Charles I, who describes Henry as an "obdurate Protestant". In addition to the alms box to which Henry forced swearers to contribute, he made sure his household attended church services. His religious views were influenced by the clerics in his household, who came largely from a tradition of politicised
Calvinism Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...
. Henry listened humbly, attentively, and regularly to the sermons preached to his household, and once told his chaplain, Richard Milbourne, that he esteemed most the preachers whose attitude suggested, "Sir, you must hear me diligently: you must have a care to observe what I say." Henry is said to have disliked his younger brother, Charles, and to have teased him, although this derives from only one anecdote: when Charles was nine years of age, Henry snatched the hat off a bishop and put it on the younger child's head, then told his younger brother that when he became king he would make Charles Archbishop of Canterbury, and then Charles would have a long robe to hide his ugly rickety legs. Charles stamped on the cap and had to be dragged off in tears.


Investiture and leadership

With his father's accession to the throne of England in 1603, Henry at once became Duke of Cornwall. In 1610 he was further invested as
Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...
and
Earl of Chester The Earldom of Chester was one of the most powerful earldoms in medieval England, extending principally over the counties of Cheshire and Flintshire. Since 1301 the title has generally been granted to heirs apparent to the English throne, and a ...
, thus for the first time uniting the six automatic and two traditional Scottish and English titles held by heirs-apparent to the two thrones. The ceremony of investiture was celebrated with a pageant ''
London's Love to Prince Henry ''London's Love to Prince Henry'' (31 May 1610), was a pageant on the River Thames organised by the city of London for the investiture of Prince Henry as Prince of Wales. This pageant was performed on the Thames between Chelsea and Whitehall. I ...
'', and a masque, ''
Tethys' Festival ''Tethys' Festival'' was a masque produced on 5 June 1610 to celebrate the investiture of Prince Henry (1594–1612) as Prince of Wales. Prince Henry, the son of James VI and I and Anne of Denmark, was made Prince of Wales in June 1610. Among ...
'', during which his mother gave a sword encrusted with diamonds, intended to represent justice. As a young man, Henry showed great promise and was beginning to be active in leadership matters. Among his activities, he was responsible for the reassignment of
Sir Thomas Dale Sir Thomas Dale ( 1570 − 19 August 1619) was an English naval commander and deputy-governor of the Virginia Colony in 1611 and from 1614 to 1616. Governor Dale is best remembered for the energy and the extreme rigour of his administration in ...
to the
Virginia Company of London The London Company, officially known as the Virginia Company of London, was a division of the Virginia Company with responsibility for colonizing the east coast of North America between latitudes 34° and 41° N. History Origins The territor ...
's struggling colony in North America. The city of
Henricus The "Citie of Henricus"—also known as Henricopolis, Henrico Town or Henrico—was a settlement in Virginia founded by Sir Thomas Dale in 1611 as an alternative to the swampy and dangerous area around the original English settlement at Jamest ...
in colonial Virginia was named in his honour in 1611; his name also survives in Henrico County, Virginia and Cape Henry. He was the "Supreme Protector" of the Company of Discoverers of the
Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The eastern route along the Arc ...
, and a patron of Robert Harcourt's expedition to Guiana. The Irish
Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...
lord of
Inishowen Inishowen () is a peninsula in the north of County Donegal in Ireland. Inishowen is the largest peninsula on the island of Ireland. The Inishowen peninsula includes Ireland's most northerly point, Malin Head. The Grianan of Aileach, a ringfort ...
, Sir
Cahir O'Doherty Sir Cahir O'Doherty ( ga, Cathaoir Ó Dochartaigh or ga, label=none, Caṫaoir Ó Doċartaiġ; 1587–5 July 1608) was the last Gaelic Chief of the Name of Clan O'Doherty and Lord of Inishowen, in what is now County Donegal. O'Doherty was a ...
, had applied to gain a position as a
courtier A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the official ...
in the household of Henry, to help him in his struggles against officials in
Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. Unknown to Sir Cahir, on 19 April 1608, the day he launched O'Doherty's Rebellion by Burning of Derry, burning Derry, his application was approved. Henry took an interest in the Kingdom of Ireland and was known to be supportive of the idea of a reconciliation with the former rebel Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone, who had fled into exile during the Flight of the Earls. Because of this Tyrone and his entourage mourned when the Prince met his early death. In 1611, King James gave Woodstock Palace in Oxfordshire to Prince Henry. Henry had a banqueting house built of leafy tree branches in the park, in which he held a dinner for his parents and his sister Elizabeth Stuart, Queen of Bohemia, Princess Elizabeth. David Murray paid 110 shillings for transporting musical instruments from London to Woodstock for the event.


Death

Henry died from
typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...
at the age of 18, during the celebrations that led up to his sister Wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Frederick V of the Palatinate, Elizabeth's wedding. (The diagnosis can be made with reasonable certainty from written records of the post-mortem examination, which was ordered to be carried out in order to dispel rumours of poisoning.) It was reported that his last words were to ask for his sister Princess Elizabeth. After Henry's death, the prince's brother Charles fell ill, but he was the chief mourner at the funeral, which King James (who detested funerals) refused to attend. The body lay in state at St. James's Palace for four weeks. On 7 December, over a thousand people walked in the mile-long cortège to Westminster Abbey to hear a two-hour sermon delivered by George Abbot (bishop), George Abbot, the Archbishop of Canterbury. As Henry's body was lowered into the ground, his chief servants broke their staves of office at the grave. Prince Henry's death was widely regarded as a tragedy for the nation. According to Charles Carlton, "Few heirs to the English throne have been as widely and deeply mourned as Prince Henry." Henry's titles of Duke of Cornwall and Duke of Rothesay passed to Charles, who until then had lived in Henry's shadow. Four years later Charles, by then 16 years old, was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester.


Literature and music occasioned by the prince's death


Sermons

Henry's chaplain, Daniel Price, delivered a series of sermons about the young man's death. (Price borrowed from John Donne's unrelated ''The first Anniversary'', published in 1611, and ''The second Anniversary'', published in 1612, for some of his language and ideas.):Smith, Albert James, editor
''John Donne: The Critical Heritage''
p 37, Routledge, 1995, , retrieved via Google Books, 19 July 2009
* ''Lamentations for the death of the late illustrious Prince Henry ..Two Sermons'' (1613; see 1613 in literature): "Oh, why is there not a generall thaw throughout all mankinde? why in this debashed Ayre doe not all things expire, seeing Time looks upon us with watry eues, disheveld lockes, and heavie dismall lookes; now that the Sunne is gone out of our Firmament, the ioy, the beautie, the glory of Israel is departed?" * ''Spirituall Odours to the Memory of Prince Henry. In Four of the Last Sermons Preached in St James after his Highnesse Death'' (Oxford, 1613; see 1613 in literature) From "Meditations of Consolation in our Lamentations": " ..his body was so faire and strong that a soule might have been pleased to live an age in it ..vertue and valor, beauty and chastity, armes and arts, met and kist in him, and his goodnesse lent so much mintage to other Princes, that if Xenophon were now to describe a Prince, Prince HENRY had been his Patterne. ..He hath gon his Passover from death to life, where there is more grace and more capacity ..where earthly bodies shalbe more celestiall, then man in his Innocency or Angels in their glory, for they could fall: Hee is there with those Patriarchs that have expected Christ on earth, longer than they have enjoyed him in heaven; He is with those holy Penmen of the holy spirit, they bee now his paterns, who were here his teachers [...]" * ''Teares Shed over Abner. The Sermon Preached on the Sunday before the Prince his funerall in St James Chappell before the body'' (Oxford, (1613; see 1613 in literature): "He, He is dead, who while he lived, was a perpetuall Paradise, every season that he shewd himselfe in a perpetuall spring, eavery exercise wherein he was scene a special felicity: He, He is dead before us ..He, He is dead; that blessed Model of heaven his face is covered till the latter day, whose shining lamps his eyes in whose light there was life to the beholders, they bee ecclipsed until the sunne give over shining. ..He, He is dead, and now yee see this [...]"


Prose memorials

Price also wrote two prose "Anniversaries" on the death: * ''Prince Henry His First Anniversary'' (Oxford, 1613; see 1613 in literature): "in HIM, a glimmering light of the Golden times appeare, all lines of expectation met in this Center, all spirits of vertue, scattered into others were extracted into him [...]" * Another "Anniversary", published in 1614


Verses

Within a few months of the prince's death, at least 32 poets had versified on it. In addition to those listed below, the writers included Sir Walter Raleigh (a friend), John Donne, Edward Herbert, 1st Baron Herbert of Cherbury, Edward Herbert, Thomas Heywood and Henry King (poet), Henry King. These poems were published in 1612 (see 1612 in poetry): * William Alexander, 1st Earl of Stirling, Sir William Alexander, ''An Elegie on the Death of Prince Henrie''Cox, Michael, editor, ''The Concise Oxford Chronology of English Literature'', Oxford University Press, 2004, * Joshua Sylvester, ''Lachrimae Lachrimarum; or, The Distillation of Teares Shede for the Untimely Death of the Incomparable Prince Panaretus'', also includes poems in English, French, Latin and Italian by Walter Quin * George Wither, ''Prince Henries Obsequies; or, Mournefull Elegies Upon his Death'' These poems and songs were published in 1613 (see 1613 in poetry): * Thomas Campion, ''Songs of Mourning: Bewailing the Untimely Death of Prince Henry'', verse and music; music by Giovanni Coperario (or "Copario"), said to have been John Cooper, an Englishman * George Chapman, ''An Epicede or Funerall Song, On the Most Disastrous Death, of the Highborne Prince of Men, Henry Prince of Wales, &c.'', the work states "1612" but was published in 1613 * John Davies of Hereford, John Davies, ''The Muses-Teares for the Losse of their Hope'' * William Drummond of Hawthornden, ''Tears on the Death of Moeliades'' * Mary Oxley, or Oxlie, a Scottish poetess living in Morpeth, Northumberland, Morpeth, wrote a response to William Drummond of Hawthornden's ''Moeliades'', which was published in 1656.


Music

In addition to the above verse-setting by Coperario, both Thomas Tomkins and Thomas Weelkes composed settings of "When David heard", a Biblical passage in which King David laments the loss of his son Absalom in battle; it is thought that both settings were directly inspired by the death of the prince. The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography refers to a mourning song in memory of Prince Henry by John Ward (composer), John Ward remaining unpublished during the composer's lifetime;Ward, John (bap. 1590, d. 1638)
, Ian Payne in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, See online ed., ed. Lawrence Goldman, Oxford: OUP (subscription or UK public library membership required). Accessed 14 November 2014.
however, a "newly composed" song on the same subject was included in his ''First Set'' of Madrigals (1613).


Titles, styles, honours and arms


Titles

* 19 February 1594 – 6 November 1612: The Duke of Rothesay (Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles, Prince and Great Steward of Scotland)) * 24 March 1603 – 6 November 1612: The Duke of Cornwall * 4 June 1610The Prince of Wales – Previous Princes of Wales
/ref> – 6 November 1612: The Prince of Wales (Earl of Chester, Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles, Prince and Great Steward of Scotland)


Honours

* KG: Order of the Garter, Knight of the Garter, ''14 June 1603''


Arms

Henry Frederick as Coat of arms of the Prince of Wales, Prince of Wales bore the arms of the kingdom, Difference (heraldry), differenced by a ''label of three points argent''.Marks of Cadency in the British Royal Family
/ref>


Ancestry


References


Bibliography

* * * * * *


External links


A poem by Andrew Melville on the birth of Prince Henry, 'Principis Scoto-Britannorum natalia' (1594), Bridging the Continental Divide, University of Glasgow
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales 1594 births 1612 deaths 1594 in Scotland 16th-century Scottish people 17th-century Scottish people 16th-century Scottish peers 17th-century Scottish peers 17th-century English nobility Heirs to the English throne Heirs to the Scottish throne House of Stuart Princes of England Princes of Scotland Heirs apparent who never acceded Princes of Wales Dukes of Cornwall Dukes of Rothesay Knights of the Garter People from Stirling Deaths from typhoid fever Infectious disease deaths in England High Stewards of Scotland Children of James VI and I Burials at Westminster Abbey People of Stirling Castle Sons of kings