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Henry VIII (14911547)

King of England from 1509, when he succeeded his father Henry VII and married Catherine of Aragn, the widow of his brother. Boleyn, Anne During the period 151329 Henry pursued an active foreign policy, largely under the guidance of his Lord Chancellor, Cardinal Wolsey, who shared Henry's desire to make England stronger. Wolsey was replaced by Thomas More in 1529 for failing to persuade the pope to grant Henry a divorce. After 1532 Henry broke with papal authority, proclaimed himself head of the church in England, dissolved the monasteries, and divorced Catherine. His subsequent half-sovereign wives were Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Catherine of Henry VIII Howard, and Catherine Parr. He was succeeded by his son Edward VI. Henry divorced Catherine of Aragn in 1533 because she was too Hampton Court old to give him an heir, and married Anne Boleyn, who was Palace beheaded in 1536, ostensibly for adultery. Henry's third wife, Jane Seymour, died in 1537. He married Anne of Cleves in 1540 in pursuance of Thomas Cromwell's policy of allying with the German Protestants, but rapidly abandoned this policy, divorced Anne, and beheaded Cromwell. His fifth wife, Catherine Howard, was beheaded in 1542, and the following year he married Catherine Parr, who survived him. Henry never completely lost his popularity, but Henry VIII wars with France and Scotland towards the end of his reign sapped the economy, and in religion he not only executed Roman Catholics, including Thomas More, for refusing to acknowledge his supremacy in the church, but also Protestants who maintained his changes had not gone far enough. Foreign policy Henry's reign falls naturally into two parts, separated by the year 1529, which can be regarded as the critical year of the divorce. The early period is notable for his skilful foreign policy, guided by Wolsey, although Henry's will was always paramount. Henry and Wolsey exploited the rivalry between Francis I of France and the Holy Roman emperor Charles V by making England the arbiter between them, enhancing the prestige and influence of England. Both kings sought Henry's favour, Francis at the Field of the Cloth of Gold, and Charles, less ostentatiously, in Kent. The policy collapsed disastrously after Henry began supporting Charles in 1522. Charles comprehensively defeated Francis at Pavia in 1525 and no longer needed English support. Split from Rome Holbein, Hans, the Younger Henry VIII

Rebellions and Plantations

Henry VIII Selected Poetry of Henry VIII (14911547) Six Wives of

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By this time Henry's policy had become dominated by his desire to Henry VIII divorce Catherine as he was becoming desperate for a male heir and was determined to marry Anne Boleyn. At first there seemed a possibility that the divorce might be granted. The papal legate journeyed to England to hear the case, but Catherine appealed direct to the pope and the court was adjourned. The position was complicated by the fact that Charles V, Catherine's nephew, controlled Rome. Unable to obtain the annulment for his monarch, Wolsey was dismissed in 1529. Henry then proceeded to act through Parliament, and had the entire body of the clergy in England declared guilty of treason in 1531. The clergy were suitably cowed and agreed to repudiate papal supremacy and recognize Henry as supreme head of the church in England. The English ecclesiastical courts then pronounced his marriage to Catherine null and void and he married Anne Boleyn in 1533. Henry continued his attack on the church with the suppression of the monasteries (153639); their lands were confiscated and granted to his supporters. However, although he laid the ground for the English Reformation by the separation from Rome, he had little sympathy with Protestant dogmas. As early as 1521 a pamphlet which he had written against Lutheranism had won him the title of Fidei Defensor from the pope, and Henry's own religious views are quite clearly expressed in the Statute of Six Articles in 1539 which instituted the orthodox Catholic tenets as necessary conditions for Christian belief. As a result Protestants were being burnt for heresy even while Catholics were being executed for refusing to take the oath of supremacy. Henry's legacy Henry ended his reign with the reputation of a tyrant, despite the promise of his earlier years in 1536 the rebellion known as the Pilgrimage of Grace was viciously suppressed, and advisers of the calibre of More and Bishop John Fisher had died rather than sacrifice their own principles to Henry's will. But the power of the crown had been considerably strengthened by Henry's ecclesiastical policy, and the monastic confiscations gave impetus to the rise of a new nobility which was to become influential in succeeding reigns. "The hour of my death approaching ... I cannot choose, but out of love I bear you, advise you of your soul's health which you ought to prefer before all considerations of the world or flesh whatsoever. For which yet you have cast me into many calamities, and yourself into many troubles ... Lastly, I make this vow, that mine eyes desire you above all things. Farewell."

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Catherine of Aragon Queen of England.

[Letter to Henry VIII, written on her deathbed 5 January 1536]

"My Lord, if it were not to satisfy the world, and my Realm, I would not do that I must do this day for none earthly thing." Henry VIII King of England.
[Remark to Thomas Cromwell, on the day of his wedding to Anne of Cleves, 5 January 1540]

"My book maketh substantially for my matter; in looking whereof I have spent above IV hours this day, which caused me now to write the shorter letter to you ... because of some pain in my head, wishing myself ... in my sweetheart's arms, whose pretty dukkys I trust shortly to kiss." Henry VIII King of England.
[Letter to Anne Boleyn, August 1528. The book argued that his marriage to Catherine of Aragon was void]

"On light pretexts, by false accusations, they made me put to death the most faithful servant I ever had." Henry VIII King of England.
[Six months after Cromwell's execution, quoted in Wriothesley Chronicle 1875 and Beckingsale Thomas Cromwell 1978]

"We are, by the sufferance of God, King of England; and the Kings of England in times past never had any superior but God." Henry VIII King of England.
[Attributed remark, to Cardinal Wolsey 1515]

"You have sent me a Flanders mare." Henry VIII King of England.

[Attributed remark on seeing Anne of Cleves for the first time]

"He is a prince of royal courage and hath a princely heart; and rather than he will miss or want part of his appetite, he will hazard the loss of one-half of his

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kingdom." Thomas Wolsey English cleric and politician.

[Referring to Henry VIII]

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