Henry VIII was born at Greenwhich on 28th January 1491, the second son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. He became heir to the throne on the death of his brother, Prince Arthur, in 1502 and succeeded in 1509. In his youth he was athletic and highly intelligent. A contemporary observer described him as: " he speaks good French,Latin and Spanish, is very religious and he is extremely fond of hunting and never takes that diversion without tiring eight or ten horses." Henry's scholarly interests included writing both books and music, being a lavish patron of arts.
Henry's varied interests and lack of application to government's business and administration increased the influence of Thomas Wolsey, who became Lord Chancellor in 1515. Wolsey became one of the most pow
erful ministers in British History. He was also appointed Cardinal in 1515 and was also given papal legal powers, which enabled him to by-pass the Archbishop of Canterbury and " govern" the English Church.
His interests in exteral policy were focused on Western Europe, which was a shifting pattern of alliances centered round the kings of Spain and France, and the Holy Roman Empire.
The second half of Henry's reign was dominated by two important events:the succession and the Protestant Reformation, which led to the formation of the Church of England.
Henry had married his brother's widow, Catherine of Aragon, in 1509. She gave him one child, Princess Mary. But anyway, Henry had fallen in love with Anne Boleyn, the sister of one of his mistresses and tried to persuade the Pope in granting him the divorce on the grounds that the marriage had never been legal. Wolsey failed to obtain the Pope's agreement and he died before he could be brought to trial.
In 1532 Cranmer was named Archbishop of Canterbury and declared Henry'a marriage invalid, thus permitting him another marriage. Anne Boleyn was declared queen a week later.
The Pope responded with excommunication: the Anglican Church was founded. Anne gave him another girl, Elizabeth and she was executed under the charges of treason. Jane Seymour, his third, wife gave him a son, Edward VII.
Henry also married Catherine Howard and Catherine Parr who did not succeed in giving him male heirs.
He died in 1547. To some Henry was a strong and ruthless ruler, forcing through changes to the Church-State relationship which excluded the papacy and brought the clergy under control, thus strenghtening the King's position and acquiring wealth.
The Life of Henry VIII written by Herminne Tonita for FamousWhy.com
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Henry VIII of England - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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by Herminne Tonita -