Anne is cousin to Henry VII. Legend has the young Shepherd Lord encountering her, lost on the fells, and taking her back to his home where she meets his surrogate family. This theme weaved into the novel very easily. Up until the encounter with her in Skiddaw Forest, young Henry Clifford is happy with his lot. Clearly smitten with her beauty, the fact that she is out of bounds to someone of his lowly rank tugs at his conscience and she is therefore the person, or device, in the context of the novel that minds him of his birthright. Henry gets his Nut Brown Maid in the end as the newly crowned Henry VII, desperate to maintain stability in the troublesome North, assures himself a loyal ally by granting her hand in marriage.