Spanish Muslim woman with central role in Tudor history

Catalina Motril, most likely a Muslim woman from Spain was thought to be the only witness to Catherine of Aragon and Prince Arthur’s marriage consummation (15th century).

Catalina Motril was part of Queen Catherine of Aragon’s entourage - she came from from Granada Spain when it was still a Muslim emirate.

According to historian, Lauren Johnson, this Muslim lady holds the key to the biggest unknown in British history.

In the wake of the Reconquista of Granada by Ferdinand and Isabella of Aragon, Muslims or ‘moors’ as they were called in history, were considered the spoils of war.

Most slaves in royal service had to convert to Christianity, changing their names in the process. Hence - Catalina was probably not her real name

Lauren Johnson says: “On Catherine’s marriage, her Spanish household travelled with Prince Arthur to his court at Ludlow. There, it was Catalina’s duty to make Catherine’s bed and attend ‘to other secret services’ of an intimate nature. Carrying the linen sheets to and from the royal bedchamber, Catalina was in a unique position to know whether Catherine and Arthur’s marriage was ever consummated. That question became of vital importance in the decades ahead.”

The African trumpeter John Blanke, is also said to arrive in England as part of Catherine of Aragon’s entourage. He was also thought to have been a North African Muslim from Andalusia.

Catherine then married King Henry VIII after Arthur’s death. And Catalina still served with her.

When Henry wanted to annul his marriage to Catherine it was “Catalina’s first-hand knowledge of the princess’s bedsheets became a matter of national importance.”

When she left Catherine’s service, Catalina later married a Moorish crossbow-maker called Oviedo in Ezcaray, northern Spain.

She was later sought out by Spanish agents to confirm Catherine’s virginity, but no evidence has been recorded of what she said.

For more information, read Lauren Johnson’s book: So Great a Prince: England and the Accession of Henry VIII.

Catalina is also featured in TV show ‘The Spanish Princess’.