When link designed her first collection, she gained inspiration from the Six Wives of King Henry the VIII. Her inspiration came from research, and also from the amazing novels written by Philippa Gregory. Philippa's personal view on the Six Wives of King Henry the VIII in her novels, and the way she shaped those wives, were a huge influence on Susie's creation of her shoe designs.

In this article we will discuss the link link has designed after Anne of Cleves, the fourth wife of King Henry the VIII.

Anne of Cleves was the ‘foreign bride’ and the fourth wife of King Henry the 8th. King Henry needed to choose a foreign bride because England was vulnerable after the split between itself and Rome. A foreign bride would secure an alliance, i.e., providing England with an instant ally.

Anne was chosen by the King from a painting that was made of her. Unfortunately however, poor Anne was found to be unattractive by the King, and he actually insulted her by referring to her as a ‘Flanders Mare’.

Anne’s unease in England as the King’s wife was evident as she grew up in a household where she focused on domestic duties and this was in stark contrast to life at court. Life at court was all about music and literature. It’s for this reason that this shoe was designed for Anne.

This link design reflects creative simplicity. Whilst Anne may have grown up in a household which focused on domestic duties, who knows what her personality could have grown to should she have been given another opportunity that the women in England and in particular, women in the Kings court grew up with, all those years ago.

The link was chosen to ‘highlight’ the fact that Anne was unable to blend in to life at court. The link was chosen as it reflected poor Anne’s vulnerability. Hence the birth of the link in this classy and classic design by link.

The King decided shortly after wedding Anne, that she was not the woman for him both on a personal level and a political level. The King therefore began making plans to ‘annul’ the marriage. In order to do this, Anne, who came from a very conservative background, had to testify that her marriage with King Henry the 8th was never consummated. Before Anne travelled to England to marry Henry, she was engaged to the son of the Duke Of Lorraine. So as part of her annulment to the King, Anne had to also testify that this engagement was not broken properly. This then got Anne and the King’s marriage successfully annulled with minimal fuss to the King’s credibility (or so he thought) and because of Anne’s willingness to comply, with the possibility that Anne would not share the same fate as Anne Boleyn, or cast aside in the same humiliating manner as Queen Catherine.

Instead, Anne’s fate was sealed by being given the honorary title of King’s Sister! Anne was also given a number of properties, one of which was Hever Castle which was once the home of the beheaded Anne Boleyn.

Anne’s new title gave her the opportunity to live as a free woman, under the care of the King who now looked on her as his sister. The richness of this status as given to Anne, is represented by the link colour on this shoe.