King Henry VIII
Henry Tudor was the son of Henry VII of England and Elizabeth of York. Henry was born at the royal home, Greenwich Palace, on June 28, 1491. After the death of his father, he became Henry VIII, king of England. He married six times, executed two of his wives, and was the leader of the English Reformation. His only surviving son was Edward VI. He became king after Henry's death on January 28, 1547.
A Second Son Inherits The Crown
Henry Tudor had six siblings, but only three lived: Arthur, Margaret and Mary. Arthur was older than Henry, so he was expected to become king. In 1502, Prince Arthur married Catherine of Aragon. She was the daughter of the Spanish king and queen. Four months later, Arthur died at age 15, and 10-year-old Henry was the next in line for the throne.
Meanwhile, Henry's father wanted to maintain his family's partnership with Spain, so he offered his young son Henry to marry Catherine. Their marriage was postponed until the death of the elder Henry in 1509, when, at the age of 17, Henry married Catherine and the two were crowned king and queen. The couple remained married until 1533.
As a young man, Henry VIII was athletic and loved art, music and parties. As king, his court soon learned to bow to his every wish. Although Henry began his rule seeking advice on most matters, he ended his rule with complete authority.
Henry VIII's First Wife
On February 18, 1516, Queen Catherine gave birth to Princess Mary. She was Henry's first child to live beyond infancy. Henry grew frustrated by the lack of a male child and began keeping two mistresses. This led to his first divorce. One of his mistresses, Mary Boleyn, introduced him to her sister, Anne Boleyn. Anne and Henry began secretly seeing one another. Catherine was 42 and unable to have more children, though Henry still desperately wanted a son to succeed him. So, Henry ended his marriage to Catherine through a trial in court. Catherine was banished and Henry and Anne Boleyn married secretly in January 1533. In September of that year, Anne gave birth to a daughter named Elizabeth.
Formation Of The Church Of England
During his reign, Henry led the English Reformation. Henry declared that the king was "the only Supreme Head in Earth of the Church of England" and the Church of England was formed to be separate from the Christian church and the pope.
The Church of England was now under England's rule, not Rome's. From 1536 to 1537, about 30,000 people rebelled against the king's changes in what was known as the Pilgrimage of Grace. It was the only major threat to Henry's power during his rule, and about 200 people were executed.
Off With Anne's Head
Queen Anne suffered greatly from her failure to give birth to a son. After Anne miscarried twice, Henry became interested in a woman named Jane Seymour. To be able to end his marriage to Anne, Henry told an elaborate tale that she had committed adultery, had incestuous relations and was plotting to murder him. Anne denied all of the charges against her during the trial, but the marriage was declared invalid and she was beheaded. Within 24 hours of Anne's death, Jane Seymour and Henry VIII were married.
Birth Of An Heir
In October 1537, Jane Seymour produced Henry's long-hoped-for son, Edward. Jane died nine days later from an infection. Henry considered Jane to be his only "true" wife.
Three years later, Henry was ready to marry again, mainly to ensure the succession of his crown. He inquired in foreign courts about the appearances of available women. Anne, the sister of the Duke of Cleves, was suggested. The German artist Hans Holbein the Younger, who served as the king's official painter, was sent out to create a portrait of her. Henry disapproved of Anne in the flesh and divorced her after six months. She received the title of "The King's Sister" and was given Hever Castle as ample residence.
Within weeks, Henry married the very young Catherine Howard, a first cousin to Anne Boleyn. Henry, 49, and Catherine, 19, started out a happy pair. Henry was now dealing with tremendous weight gain and a bad leg. His new wife gave him zest for life, and he repaid her with a lavish gifts. But happiness would not last long for the couple. A pretty woman, Catherine began seeking the attention of men her own age—a tremendously dangerous endeavor for the queen of England. After an investigation into her behavior, she was deemed guilty of adultery. On February 13, 1542, Henry had Catherine executed on the Tower Green.
An Abundance Of Catherines
Catherine Parr became Henry's sixth and final wife in 1543. The most well-documented incident of Catherine Parr's life was her effort to ban books. When Henry wanted to punish her, she said she was merely creating a situation for him to teach her the proper way to behave. Henry accepted this creative story and she was not executed.
Later Life And Death
As a middle-aged man, Henry became covered with pus-filled boils and possibly suffered from gout and untreated Type 2 diabetes. A painful wound from a jousting match left him unable to play sports. His eventual weight gain required that he be moved with mechanical inventions of that era.
On January 28, 1547, at the age of 55, King Henry VIII of England died in London. He was laid to rest in St. George's Chapel in Windsor Castle alongside his third wife, Jane Seymour. Henry's only surviving son, Edward, inherited the throne, becoming Edward VI, ahead of Princesses Elizabeth and Mary.