Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France. Henry was the second monarch of the Tudor dynasty, succeeding his father, Henry VII.
Besides his six marriages, Henry VIII is known for his role in the separation of the Church of England from the Roman Catholic Church. Henry's struggles with Rome led to the separation of the Church of England from papal authority, the Dissolution of the Monasteries, and establishing himself as the Supreme Head of the Church of England. Yet he remained a believer in core Catholic theological teachings, even after his excommunication from the Catholic Church. Henry oversaw the legal union of England and Wales with the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542.
Henry was considered an attractive, educated and accomplished king in his prime and has a reputation as "one of the most charismatic rulers to sit on the English throne". Besides ruling with absolute power, he also engaged himself as an author and composer. His desire to provide England with a male heir—which stemmed partly from personal vanity and partly because he believed a daughter would be unable to consolidate the Tudor dynasty and the fragile peace that existed following the Wars of the Roses—led to the two things for which Henry is remembered: His six marriages, and the English Reformation . In later life, he became morbidly obese and his health suffered; his public image is frequently depicted as one of a lustful, egotistical, harsh, and insecure king.
Early years: 1491–1509
Born at Greenwich Palace, Henry VIII was the third child of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York and their second son. Of the young Henry's six siblings, only three — Arthur, Prince of Wales; Margaret; and Mary — survived infancy. He was baptised by Richard Fox, the Bishop of Exeter, at a church of the Observant Franciscans close to the palace. In 1493, at the age of two, Henry was appointed Constable of Dover Castle and Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports. He was subsequently appointed Earl Marshal of England and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland aged three, and was inducted into the Order of the Bath soon after. The day after the ceremony he was made Duke of York; a month or so later he was made Warden of the Scottish Marches. In May 1495, he was appointed to the Order of the Garter. Elizabeth of York, his mother, died when Henry was aged 11. Not much is known about his early life – save for his appointments – because he was not expected to become king.
In 1502, Arthur died at the age of 15, after only 20 weeks of marriage to Catherine of Aragon. Arthur's death thrust all his duties upon his younger brother, the 10-year-old Henry, who after a little debate succeeded him to the Dukedom of Cornwall in October 1502, and the Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester in February 1503. Henry VII gave the boy few tasks. Young Henry was strictly supervised and did not appear in public. Scarisbrick says he ascended the throne "untrained in the exacting art of kingship."
Henry VII renewed his efforts to seal a marital alliance between England and Spain, by offering his second son in marriage to Catherine, youngest surviving child of King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile. On 23 June 1503, a treaty was signed for their marriage, and they were betrothed two days later. A papal dispensation was only needed for the "impedement of public honesty" if the marriage had not been consummated as Catherine and her duenna claimed, but Henry VII and the Spanish Ambassador set out to obtain a dispensation for "affinity", which took account of consummation. Catherine was left in limbo for some time, culminating in Prince Henry's rejection of the marriage as soon he was able, at the age of 14. Ferdinand's solution was to make his daughter ambassador, allowing her to stay. Devout, she began to believe that it was God's will that she marry the prince.
Early reign: 1509–1525
Henry VII died on 22 April 1509; soon after his burial on 10 May the new Henry VIII suddenly declared that he would indeed marry Catherine, curtailing the causes of hesitation concerning Catherine – over the papal dispensation and a missing part of the marriage portion. The new king maintained that it had been his father's dying wish that he marry Catherine. The wedding was kept low-key and was held at the friar's church in Greenwich. it was a grand affair: the king's passage was lined with tapestries and laid with fine cloth. As Catherine wrote to her father, "our time is spent in continuous festival".
Soon after the coronation, Catherine conceived, but the child – a girl – was stillborn on 31 January 1510. About four months later, she again became pregnant. On New Year's Day 1511, the child – Henry – was born. After the grief of losing their first child, the couple were pleased to have a boy and there were festivities to celebrate, including a jousting tournament. Unfortunately, however, the child died seven weeks later. Her brother became enraged and Lord George Hastings, her husband, sent her to a convent. Catherine miscarried again in 1514, but gave birth successfully in February 1516 to a girl, Princess Mary. Relations between king and queen had been strained, but they eased slightly after Mary's birth. Henry had had very few mistresses; the most significant was Elizabeth Blount for about three years in 1516 onwards. Catherine did not protest, and in 1518 fell pregnant again with another girl, only for her to be stillborn. Elizabeth is one of only two completely undisputed mistresses, few for a virile young king. Exactly how many Henry had is disputed: David Loades believes Henry had mistresses "only to a very limited extent", Blount gave birth in June 1519 to Henry's illegitimate son, Henry FitzRoy. Shortly after, he also signed a contradictory pact with Ferdinand against France. The problem was resolved with a shift in the League with the creation of the Holy League by Pope Julius II in October 1511. The attack, starting with the declaration of war on France in April, was not led by Henry personally. It was a considerable failure – due mostly to Ferdinand using the attack to his own ends – and put strain on the Anglo-Spanish alliance; however, the French were pushed out of Italy soon after and the alliance survived. Soon after Henry pulled off a diplomatic coup by convincing the Emperor to join the Holy League. Before Henry began on the invasion, he had Edmund de la Pole – a prisoner in the Tower of London – executed, prompted by his brother Richard siding against the king. Remarkably, Henry had also secured the promised title of "Most Christian King of France", and possibly coronation by the Pope himself in Paris, but only if Louis could be defeated.
On 30 June 1513, Henry invaded France and his troops defeated a French army at the Battle of the Spurs; a minor result, but one which was seized on by the English and played up. Soon after, the English seized Thérouanne and handed it over to Maximillian; Tournai, a more significant settlement, followed. Henry had led the army personally, complete with large entourage. His brother-in-law, James IV of Scotland, invaded England at the behest of Louis. The English army, led by Queen Catherine, who acted as regent of England while Henry was in France, defeated the Scots at the Battle of Flodden on 9 September 1513. Among the dead was the King James IV, ending Scotland's brief involvement in the war. These campaigns had given Henry a taste of the military success he so desired. However, despite initial indications he would pursue a 1514 campaign, Henry decided against such a move. He had been supporting Ferdinand and Maximilian financially during the campaign but had got back little; England's own coffers were now empty. With the replacement of Julius by Pope Leo X, who was inclined to peace with France, Henry instead signed a treaty with Louis: Mary would become Louis' wife, having previously been pledged to the younger Charles, and peace secured for eight years, a remarkably long time.
Charles I replaced Ferdinand as King of Spain in 1516 and Maxilimillian as Emperor in 1519; Francis I became King of France on Louis' death. Cardinal Thomas Wolsey's careful diplomacy had resulted in the Treaty of London in 1518, aimed at uniting the kingdoms of western Europe in the wake of a new Ottoman threat and it seemed that peace might be secured. Meeting Francis I on 7 June 1520 at the Field of the Cloth of Gold near Calais, he entertained the French king with a fortnight of lavish entertainment to establish a closer diplomatic relationship after the military conflicts of the previous decade. The strong air of competition laid to rest any hopes of a renewal of the Treaty of London, however, and conflict was inevitable. A small English attack in the north of France made up little ground. When Francis and his army were defeated at the Battle of Pavia, leaving Charles free to make peace, Henry decided to take England out of the war before his ally, signing the Treaty of the More on 30 August 1525.
King's Great Matter: 1525–1534