Arthur Tudor was the first son of King Henry VII of England and Elizabeth of York, and therefore, heir to the throne of England and Wales.

When Arthur was two years old, a marriage with the Spanish princess, Catherine of Aragon (in Spain, Catalina de Aragón) was arranged for him as part of the Treaty of Medina del Campo. On November 14, 1501, they were married at St. Paul's Cathedral.

The couple soon travelled to Ludlow Castle on the Welsh border, where Arthur normally resided in his capacity as Prince of Wales. He then died suddenly at the young age of fifteen. The cause of his death is unknown but may have been consumption, diabetes, tuberculosis, or the mysterious sweating sickness, which modern theorists tie to a hantavirus. Arthur was buried in Worcester Cathedral where "Prince Arthur's Chantry" stands today.