Elvira Manuel
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Doña Elvira Manuel was a Spanish noblewoman and duenna of Princess Catherine of Aragon.
Catherine's mother, Queen Isabella I of Castile, trusted Doña Elvira completely. Shortly before the death of Queen Isabella in 1504, Catherine's husband, Arthur, Prince of Wales died. Catherine was then betrothed to Prince Henry of Wales, the future Henry VIII. Meanwhile Catherine's sister, Joanna was now reigning with her husband Philip in Castile. Joanna had a mental disability and could not properly rule as Queen, so it was Philip who held all the power. Henry VII saw that an alliance with Austria and Castile would do him better.
By this time, Philip had turned against his father-in-law, Ferdinand II of Aragon, Catherine's father, and took matters into his own hands by arranging with Henry VII that his son, the future Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, was to be married to Princess Mary Tudor and his daughter Archuchess Eleanor of Austria to Prince Henry. Henry VII then made his son repudiate his betrothal to Catherine and secretly engaged him to Catherine's niece. Doña Elvira took part in this intrigue as a spy, for she absolutely loathed Ferdinand. When Catherine discovered Doña Elvira's betrayal, she immediately dismissed her from her service.
Suddenly, in 1506, King Philip died. At this point it was only Aragon that was left as a political option for Henry VII, and he recanted and reinstated the bethrotal of Catherine and Prince Henry, but still it would take six more years till Catherine would get married to Henry VIII.
[edit] References
The Six Wives of Henry VIII, by Weir, Alison. 1991, London.
