She was the only wife of Henry VIII who survived him — Queen Katherine Parr. Intelligent, compassionate, and strong, she managed to outlive one of England’s most dangerous kings. But while she escaped the axe, she couldn’t escape a far stranger fate.
In 1548, just a year after Henry’s death, Katherine gave birth to a daughter, Mary Seymour. Two days later, she was gone — dying from childbirth complications at Sudeley Castle. Her funeral was historic: the first Protestant ceremony ever held for a Queen of England. She was buried in the castle chapel, and for centuries, she was forgotten.
Then, in 1782, her grave was rediscovered. When the coffin was opened, witnesses were stunned — her body was perfectly preserved, her skin still pale, and her eyes eerily open, as if she were only sleeping. Word spread quickly. People came from miles around to see the “Queen who would not decay.”
But fascination soon turned dark. Her coffin was reopened again and again — her golden hair stolen, her bones disturbed by drunken curiosity. Even in death, Katherine found no peace.
Today, she rests once more at Sudeley Chapel, beneath a beautifully carved tomb designed in 1861. But the legend of Katherine Parr — the queen who survived the king, yet could not rest in her grave — continues to haunt English history.
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