 In 1521, on the advice of his Flemish counselors, especially William de Croÿ, Charles became engaged to his other first cousin, Mary, daughter of his aunt, Catherine of Aragon, and King Henry VIII, in order to secure an alliance with England.However, this engagement was very problematic because Mary was only 6 years old at the time, sixteen years Charles's junior, which meant that he would have to wait for her to be old enough to marry.By 1525, Charles was no longer interested in an alliance with England and could not wait any longer to have legitimate children and heirs.