ABSTRACT
After briefly summarizing the argument that Richard and Anne had a chaste marriage, the chapter moves on to the evidence the couple tried to have children, particularly highlighting a letter from British Library Additional MS 6159 in which Anne mentions a miscarriage. The chapter also discusses Anne’s apothecary bill (National Archives E 101/402/18) and other evidence that the couple tried to have children. The chapter examines how Anne was commemorated as a nurturing mother. This builds on the work of John Carmi Parsons and argues that Anne’s intercessions and nurturing motherhood are reasons she was so well-liked at her death. Building on the work of Tara Williams, this section also discusses how Anne’s childlessness did not seem to create as many problems for her as it did for Richard II, which indicates that biological motherhood was not the end-all component of womanhood. In addition, Anne’s eulogies portrayed her as holy, even saintly, which complemented her husband’s performance of virginity (discussed in the next chapter) after her death.
