Red Roses

Ned asks a servant to deliver some red roses to Katherine while they are both imprisoned. The guard asks her what they symbolize. She gave the meaning that resonated with her -- true love. (277) There may have been concern on the guard's part about the rose because of the War of the Roses, a British civil war fought from 1455 to 1487. In that war, The House of Lancaster, represented by a red rose, and the House of York, represented by a white rose, fought for power of the royal Plantagenet house through succession to the throne. The Tudor Rose technically combines elements of red and white to symbolize peace, but Katherine clearly states there is still some prejudice toward the Lancaster side when she says that no Tudor would ever offer a white rose.

Linnets

Linnets are a type of finch that Jane kept caged as...