"Queen Jane Seymour"

In an article, the authors Alastrair Vannan and E. C. Cawte explains a missing point in Queen Jane Seymour's death called,"The Death of the Queen." First, I'll touch on the Queens history and later my semester theme on gender identity. Queen Jane Seymour was born in England in 1508 and died in October 1537. She married King Henry VIII shortly after Anne Boleyn's death. 

Jane's peaceful nature was praised and was called, gentle a lady as ever I knew. It was because of her peacemaking's at court. Henry loved Jane Seymour the most, she was the first to give him an heir, a son named Prince Edward. Prince Edward was christened three days later. Jane died in October 1537 soon after the birth of Prince Edward. The article mentions a cesarean section while giving childbirth. 

In the article, "Cesarean section was occasionally performed to rescue a particular valued child if the mother was already at the point of death." (JSTOR) Jane was in good health after the delivery but why did she die? Dr. Cawte, explains the different procedures have different risks during childbirth and how it's important when determining the cause of death of Jane. It is an interesting article to read.

"Jane Seymour"
Hans Holbein 
1536
Kunsthistorisches Museum

The portrait, "Jane Seymour Queen of England" (JSTOR) was created by Hans Holbein (1497-1543) in 1536. The portrait measures 65.4 x 40.7 cm. Located in a museum called Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, Austria. Data is from the University of California, San Diego."She is depicted at half length, wearing a red velvet gown with cloth of gold sleeves and an English style gable headdress." (National) 

I selected Queen Jane Seymour who caught my interest because she was the only one who seemed to have made the King happy. Even though it was for a short amount of time, she made the unruly King Henry VIII happy by giving him an heir but it did cost her her life. She was actually the only wife of King Henry VII to have a Queen funeral.

Jane Seymore's gender identity was that of a woman. This self portrait shapes and celebrates her beauty as a female. This ruler and artist affirms my theme by showing her feminine side and visibility as a Queen in this portrait.   

(Portrait of a Queen: Jane Seymour, video 2:50) 

Citations

Holbein. Hans."Jane Seymour Queen of England" Cosumnes River College Library JSTOR, 1536, https://www.jstor.org/stable/community.13893635. Accessed 29 Apr. 2022.

"Jane Seymour." Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia. 29 Apr. 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Seymour

National Portrait Gallery. "Jane Seymour." https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw272045. Accessed 29 Apr. 2022.

"Portrait of a Queen:Jane Seymour." YouTube. 11 Aug. 2011,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4BmO-a_KX0. Accessed 29 Apr. 2022.

Vannan, Alastair and E. C. Cawte. "The Death of Queen Jane: Ballad, History, and Propaganda." Folk Music Journal, Vol. 10, No. 5 (2015), p. 644 (1 page). Cosumnes River College Library JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/45216733. Accessed 29 Apr. 2022.