Catherine Parr ( also spelled Katherine or Katharine ) was an English woman and the daughter of Thomas Parr of Kendal , a county squire who had distinguised himself in the service of both King Henry VII of England and his son , King Henry VIII . At the age of fifteen , Catherine married Sir Edward Borough , but he died shortly afterwards in 1529 and Catherine became a widow . It was in the household of King Henry and Catherine of Aragon 's daughter , Lady Mary , that Catherine Parr caught the attention of the King .