Henry and Anne had always had a somewhat tempestuous relationship. Anne was a strong-willed woman, and Henry very clearly was a particularly entitled-feeling king. Arguments between the two were never uncommon – before they married, they had argued (although less heatedly) about sleeping together, because Anne, who had seen her sister become the king’s mistress and then be discarded by him, was not about to make that same mistake. But Henry’s drive for a son and heir was nigh all-consuming, and although Anne had given him a daughter, Elizabeth, in 1533, she had also had two miscarriages, one either side of Elizabeth.
Henry likely saw history repeating itself (his first wife, Katharine, had also given him a daughter and had several miscarriages), and it is clear that at time went on, the succession and Anne’s forthright behaviour both weighed on him. The marriage became increasingly tense, and while their dirty laundry was not to be aired in public, it is an indication of how badly tempers had failed that by 1536, they were arguing publicly. Anne’s downfall and execution took place less than a month after this event.
