Henry VIII literally changed the laws of England in order to be able to behead Katheryn Howard. He could simply have annulled the marriage, but instead, he caused to be introduced into Parliament what would pass into law as the Royal Assent by Commission Act of 1541. Katheryn had been stripped of her title as Queen and imprisoned in November 1541, but it was not until January 29 of 1542, that it was introduced, and finally February 7. The law made it treason, and punishable by death, for a queen consort to fail to disclose her sexual history to the King within 20 days of their marriage, or to incite someone to commit adultery with her.
Katheryn’s retroactive death sentence was carried out on February 13, 1542 at 7am in the morning. Katheryn was buried in an unmarked grave in the yard of the Church of St Peter ad Vincula, the same graveyard where her cousin and fellow ex-wife of Henry, Anne Boleyn, had previously been buried.
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