Anne Basset (1520 – before 1558) was an English lady-in-waiting of the

Tudor period In England and Wales, the Tudor period occurred between 1485 and 1603, including the Elizabethan era during the reign of Elizabeth I (1558–1603). The Tudor period coincides with the dynasty of the House of Tudor in England, which began with ...

, reputed to have been the

mistress Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to: Romance and relationships * Mistress (lover), a female lover of a married man ** Royal mistress * Maîtresse-en-titre, official mistress of a ...

King Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disagreement w ...

Biography

Anne was born in 1520, the fourth child of Sir John Basset and

Honor Grenville Honor Grenville, Viscountess Lisle (c. 1493–1495Byrne, vol.1, p. 305, Honor's birthyear was estimated at 1493–95 – 1566) was a Cornwall, Cornish lady whose domestic life from 1533 to 1540 during the reign of King Henry VIII is exc ...

(daughter of Sir Thomas Grenville of Stowe in Kilkhampton, Cornwall and his wife Isabella). As her father died when she was young, Anne was brought up by her mother and stepfather, Arthur Plantagenet, Lord Lisle, in the English

enclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is so ...

Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a French port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Calais is the largest city in Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city proper is 67,544; that of the urban area is 144,6 ...

. Lord Lisle was the

illegitimate Legitimacy, in traditional Western common law, is the status of a child born to parents who are legally married to each other, and of a child conceived before the parents obtain a legal divorce. Conversely, ''illegitimacy'', also known as ''b ...

son of

Edward IV of England Edward IV (28 April 1442 – 9 April 1483) was King of England from 4 March 1461 to 3 October 1470, then again from 11 April 1471 until his death in 1483. He was a central figure in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars in England ...

, and thus Henry VIII's uncle. Anne Basset to ''Madame de Lisle ma bonne mere a Calleys'' on 24 March 1536:

Thanks her for all her kindness. Begs her to send her some cloth for shirts, not so thin as she sent before; and some hose, and a little money for her devotions. I have tried to find out, as you desired, what my Lady would like. She would like some needle-cases.

While Lady Lisle drafted her reply to Anne Basset, as she was wont to do:

I send you God's blessing, and my charge to you to please my Lord and Lady, and that you keep you a good maiden. I send you money to buy smocks, because you say that which I sent you was too thin. I also send you hose cloths, because the hosier here knows not the bigness of your legs. I have sent my Lady a needle-case; but as I had no time to work it, I trust she will "take it gree," and I will send a better.

Court career

Anne's mother, had attempted to secure a place for her two daughters (Anne and her sister Katharine Basset) in the service of Queen

Anne Boleyn Anne Boleyn (; 1501 or 1507 – 19 May 1536) was List of English royal consorts, Queen of England from 1533 to 1536, as the Wives of Henry VIII, second wife of King Henry VIII. The circumstances of her marriage and execution, by beheading ...

several times, but to no avail. She persisted in her efforts to secure them positions and eventually, after sending a large consignment of quails to Anne's successor, Queen

Jane Seymour Jane Seymour (; 24 October 1537) was Queen of England as the third wife of King Henry VIII from their marriage on 30 May 1536 until her death the next year. She became queen following the execution of Henry's second wife, Anne Boleyn, who was ...

, the latter relented. She allowed Lady Lisle to send her daughters but warned her that only one position could be found. Anne was the sister accepted and was sworn into service the day after the pregnant queen took to her chamber for her lying-in. Jane Seymour seems to have objected to the French-style clothes and French hood worn by her new maid. John Husee informed Lady Lisle that Anne was required to instead wear a "bonnet and frontlet of velvet", lamenting that it "became her nothing so well as the French hood". Anne is rumoured to have attracted Henry VIII in 1538 and 1539, and is rumoured to have been the king's mistress. The ambassadors thought that she might become his fourth wife in 1540, and again in 1542, just after Queen

Katherine Howard Catherine Howard ( – 13 February 1542) was Queen of England from July 1540 until November 1541 as the fifth wife of King Henry VIII. She was the daughter of Lord Edmund Howard and Joyce Culpeper, a first cousin to Anne Boleyn (the second ...

was sentenced to death. In August 1540, Anne Bassett and others ladies of the court visited Portsmouth to see a newly built ship. They sent Henry VIII a joint letter which was signed by Mabel, Lady Southampton, Margaret Tallebois, Margaret Howard, Alice Browne, Anne Knyvett (daughter of

Thomas Knyvett Sir Thomas Knyvett (also Knevitt or Knivet or Knevet), of Buckenham, Norfolk (c. 1485 – 10 August 1512) was a young English nobleman who was a close associate of King Henry VIII shortly after the monarch came to the throne. According to Hall ...

), Jane Denny, Jane Meutas, Anne Bassett, Elizabeth Tyrwhitt, and Elizabeth Harvey. Anne had served with Lady Anne Herbert as ladies to Queen Katherine Howard. Lady Herbert was sister to Henry’s sixth and final queen,

Katherine Parr Catherine Parr ( – 5 September 1548) was Queen of England and Ireland as the last of the six wives of King Henry VIII from their marriage on 12 July 1543 until Henry's death on 28 January 1547. Catherine was the final queen consort o ...

. Anne was a maid in waiting to Queen Katherine Parr. Anne was maid of honour to Queen

Mary I Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 and Queen of Spain as the wife of King Philip II from January 1556 until her death in 1558. She made vigorous a ...

. On 11 June 1554, Robert Swyfte reported her marriage to Sir Walter Hungerford in a letter to Francis Talbot, 5th Earl of Shrewsbury:

"on Thursday last was married at
Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...
, Basset the Queen's maid to Mr Hungerfurthe, son and heir to Lord Hungerfurthe, at which day the Queen shewed herself very pleasant, commanding all mirth and pastime"

There were two children of the marriage, who both died without issue. Anne died before 1558, when Sir Walter — with the permission of Mary — married Anne Dormer.

References in popular culture

Anne Bassett is the basis of the character Nan Bassett in Kate Emerson's novel, "Secrets of the Tudor Court: Between Two Queens"., as well as E. Knight's "My Lady Viper".

Notes

References

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Basset, Anne 1520 births Year of death unknown Mistresses of Henry VIII

Anne Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female name Anna (name), Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah (given name), Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie (given name), Annie a ...

English ladies-in-waiting Household of Jane Seymour Household of Anne of Cleves Household of Catherine Howard Court of Mary I of England Wives of knights