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Introduction
The Tudor monarchs were one of the most well known and
powerful families in Britain. They reigned from 1485-1603 and
took their name from Owen Tudor, who was part of the Welsh
royal family.
The first Tudor king was Henry VII who became king
after defeating Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth in August
1485 which ended the Wars of the Roses. The battles between
two rival families, the House of York led by Richard III and the
House of Lancaster led by Henry Tudor for a claim to the throne
were known as the Wars of The Roses. Each House represented
a rose; the House of York a white rose and the House of
Lancaster a red rose. The wars began with the Battle of St.
Albans in 1455, and ended with the Battle of Bosworth in 1485
(30 years of fighting). After the war had ended Henry Tudor was
crowned King Henry VII. His next hope was to marry Elizabeth
of York and stop any more wars between the two families. Their
marriage united the two families creating the Tudor Rose which
consisted of the white rose of York and the red rose of
Lancaster.
The Tudor Rose
The Tudor monarchs ruled England, Wales and part of Ireland
and consisted of 5 Kings and Queens:
Henry VII (1485 - 1509)
Henry VIII (1509 - 1547)
Edward VI (1547 - 1553)
Mary I (1553 - 1558)
Elizabeth I (1558 - 1603)
And Lady Jane Grey who ruled for only nine days! These
monarchs altogether ruled for 118 years!
Henry VIII came to the throne aged 17 and was the most
famous Tudor king. He was born on 28th June 1491 at
Greenwich Palace, London, and was the second son of Henry
VII and Elizabeth of York. He was a bright student who enjoyed
playing the harp and lute, writing music and poetry. When his
elder brother, Arthur, sadly died on 2nd April 1502 aged 15,
Henry became Prince of Wales and heir to the throne.
Henry became king after his father died on 21st April 1509.
He was tall and handsome with red hair and bright blue - grey
eyes. At first he was a popular young king who preferred to
hunt, write music and play sports than run the country; this he
left to his trusted advisors. During his reign Henry fought
successful wars against France and Scotland, built up the
English Navy and wrote books on religion. At the end of his
reign Henry was a selfish tyrant with failing health who was
feared by many people.
This project is about Henry VIII, the most well known
Tudor monarch who was best remembered for having 6 wives
and breaking with the Church of Rome.
Henry VIII
The Tudor Family Tree
Young Prince Henry
Prince Henry was born on 28th June 1491 at Greenwich Palace,
and was the second son of King Henry VII and Elizabeth of
York. He spent his childhood in the royal palaces of London and
was very spoiled by his grandmother, mother and servants
whilst his father was often away visiting noblemen.
As a boy, Henry had a very strong temper and expected
people to obey him. He even had his own ‘whipping boy’ who
was punished every time Henry did something wrong.
Henry was a bright student who loved dancing, writing
poetry and playing music. His early education was supervised
by his grandmother, Margaret Beaufort, and he was taught a
wide range of lessons including languages, grammar, theology,
history, rhetoric, logic, philosophy, arithmetic, literature,
geometry, music, astronomy, navigation and cartography.
Religious studies were very important as it was thought that
Henry would take a secular role in the Catholic Church,
probably as Archbishop of Canterbury. He also loved sports and
particularly enjoyed riding, hunting, jousting, archery and
playing tennis.
Henry’s closest friends were his cousins, William
Compton and Charles Brandon, and a young noble called Henry
Norris. Charles was his favourite companion as they were both
great athletes who loved sports.
During his early life, Henry was not given many duties as
these were given to Arthur who was being prepared to be king.
Although when Arthur married the Spanish princess, Catherine
of Aragon on 14th November 1501, Henry aged 10 wearing a
golden robe escorted the bride to St. Pauls Cathedral.
On 2nd April, 1502 Arthur tragically died at Ludlow Castle
of the ‘sweating sickness’ resulting in Henry becoming heir to
the throne (just a few months before his 11th birthday). As Henry
was going to be king he was no longer expected to take religious
vows. Less then a year after Arthur’s death, Henry’s mother,
Elizabeth of York, died on 11th February 1503. After the death
of his first son and wife, Henry VII was worried that Prince
Henry would try to obtain too much power and kept a very close
eye on him. He was kept in his apartments and was only allowed
the company of his tutors, servants and guards. It was claimed
by Reginald Pole, Prince Henry’s cousin, that King Henry VII
disliked Henry and had only favoured Arthur. After many
disagreements between Henry and his father, Henry VII sadly
died on 21st April 1509 passing the crown to his son.
Henry VIII as a boy
Young King Henry
Henry was crowned king of England and Wales on 24th June
1509; when he was 17 years old! He had learned the ways of
kingship before his father died and was left a fortune from taxes
collected under his father’s reign. Henry was tall and handsome
and enjoyed spending money on luxurious clothes and fine
palaces. He wore embroidered robes decorated with roses made
from rubies and diamonds.
Many people believed Henry would be a more generous
ruler than his father. As his first act in power, Henry became
popular by getting rid of many of his Father’s old advisors.
These included two tax collectors, Richard Empson and
Edmund Dudley, who were both executed in 1510. Thomas
More, Henry’s friend and advisor wrote that Henry’s reign
would be “an end of sadness, the beginning of joy.”
Young King Henry
Although a popular young king, Henry was lazy and found
running the country boring. He left this to his advisors whilst he
preferred to enjoy himself, spending his time playing sports,
hunting, jousting, dancing, writing music and eating too much at
banquets.
During the first part of Henry’s reign, Henry chose
Thomas Wolsey to be his chief minister and govern England.
Thomas Wolsey was the son of a butcher from Ipswich in
Suffolk who had entered the Catholic Church and had become
Henry VII’s chaplain. As Henry VIII had known Wolsey all his
life he trusted him and was happy to let him run the country. In
return Henry helped Wolsey to rise higher in the Catholic
Church. In 1514, Henry persuaded the Pope to make Wolsey
Archbishop of York and then in 1515 he was made a cardinal
(the top rank of a churchman). In 1515 Henry made Wolsey
‘Lord Chancellor’, which meant that Wolsey was running most
of the state matters and even answering the king’s letters!
Cardinal Wolsey
Thomas Wolsey was very clever and extremely greedy. He used
his power to become one of the richest men in England. Wolsey
demanded new taxes, and many nobles didn’t like him as they
feared he would take away their old powers. For many years
Wolsey faithfully served the king even arranging foreign allies
to make Henry important in Europe.
Cardinal Wolsey built himself several palaces, including
Hampton Court Palace which he was later forced to give Henry
when he was losing favour with the king. When built Hampton
Court Palace was more impressive than any of the other palaces
at that time.
Hampton Court Palace
Henry VIII was a loyal Catholic. Early in his reign, he wrote a
book condemning the teachings of Martin Luther which was
published in 1521. Martin Luther was a German church
reformer who didn’t like the way the Catholic Church was run
and protested about corruption within the Catholic Church.
Henry was given the title ‘Defender of the Faith’ by the Pope for
writing the book. On modern British coins the initials F.D
around the monarch’s head still stand for this title.
The Six Wives of Henry VIII
During his reign, Henry married 6 times as he desperately
wanted a male heir. His first three wives were claimed to be
genuine love matches and he was happily married to his first
wife Catherine of Aragon for the first 20 years of his reign.
Henry married his other 5 wives within the last 11 years of his
life and he is the most married monarch in history. The fates of
his wives can be remembered in this rhyme: ‘divorced,
beheaded, died; divorced beheaded, survived!
Henry and his 6 wives
Catherine of Aragon
Catherine of Aragon was Henry’s first wife. She was born on
16th December 1485 and was a Spanish princess, the daughter of
King Ferdinand Lady Isabella I of Spain. Catherine was
beautiful, well educated, fun loving and a devout Catholic. She
was descended into the English royal house, through her great
grandmother Katherine of Lancaster who was the great
granddaughter of Edward III of England.
In 1501, Catherine was married to Henry’s older brother,
Arthur, to form an Anglo-Spanish alliance. They were married
at St Paul’s Cathedral and Henry was Catherine’s escort. Within
six months of marriage, Arthur died of ‘sweating sickness’ and
Catherine was left a widow.
Catherine remained in England and on 11th June 1509 aged
23 she married Henry. The wedding took place seven weeks
after the death of Henry’s father. Special permission for the
wedding had to be given by the Pope as Henry was marrying his
brother’s widow. Henry and Catherine were married in a private
ceremony at Greenwich Church. The marriage was initially to
keep the Anglo-Spanish alliance, but they both genuinely loved
each other.
The coronation of Henry and Catherine took place on
Sunday 24th June 1509 at Westminster Abbey by the Archbishop
of Canterbury. The coronation was followed by an extravagant
banquet in Westminster Hall and new knights of Bath were
created in honour of the coronation. Catherine was a popular
queen providing the poor with money, clothes, food and fuel in
winter.
During their marriage Catherine gave birth to six children
between 1510 and 1518 including three sons, but only one
daughter Princess Mary born on 18th February 1516 survived.
Henry desperately wanted a son to succeed him. As Catherine
was now nearly too old to have any more children Henry
thought God was punishing him and Catherine and they should
never have married.
Princess Mary
In 1526 Henry had fallen in love with one of the ladies of court,
Anne Boleyn. He wanted Anne to be his mistress, but she
refused wanting Henry to make her his wife. Henry wanted to
marry Anne, but first he had to divorce Catherine. Catherine
refused to divorce Henry and was supported by her powerful
nephew, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain.
Henry ordered Wolsey to arrange for the Pope to annul his
marriage on the grounds that as Catherine was his sister-in-law
it was an unlawful union. The Pope refused the divorce and said
the divorce must be heard in Rome. At this time the Pope was
under the control of the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, who
opposed the annulment. Henry was furious he didn’t get his
divorce and blamed Wolsey, even though it wasn’t his fault.
Wolsey was arrested for treason but fell ill and died in 1530
before he could be executed.
As he could not get a divorce, Henry broke with the
Church of Rome in 1533 and passed the Act of Supremacy
declaring he was the Head of the English Church. This meant he
could now divorce from Catherine. He secretly married Anne
Boleyn four months before his divorce from Catherine was
finalised. Catherine continued to reject the divorce and her new
title Princess Dowager (in recognition of her position as his
brother’s widow). She referred to herself as Henry’s only
lawfully-wedded wife and England’s only rightful Queen
Consort. Her faithful servants continued to call her by this title.
Catherine was banished from court and forced to live in much
reduced conditions. Her daughter Mary was also banished from
court and was known as Lady Mary as she was classed as
illegitimate. Catherine was denied access to Mary although they
secretly corresponded with each other. Catherine and Mary were
offered better quarters and to be able to see each other if they
would acknowledge Anne Boleyn as his new Queen, but they
both wouldn’t.
Catherine died on 7th January 1536 at Kimbolton House,
Cambridgeshire. Rumours suggested that she was poisoned by
Anne or Henry, but it is thought that she died of cancer. She was
buried in Peterborough Abbey with the ceremony due to a
Princess Dowager of Wales and Arthur’s widow but not as
Queen of England. Henry did not allow Mary to attend the
funeral. He also did not attend the funeral and showed no signs
of mourning.
Young Catherine
Old Catherine
Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn was Henry’s second wife and the marriage lasted
for just three years. Anne was the daughter of Sir Thomas
Boleyn and Lady Elizabeth Howard. The exact date of Anne’s
birth has been disputed although it is likely that she was born
between 1501 and 1507. Anne spent some of her childhood in
the Netherlands at the court of Archduchess Margaret, and later
in France where she was maid-of-honour to Queen Mary,
Henry’s sister who had married the King of France. When the
King of France died Mary returned to England but Anne
remained in France as maid-of-honour to the new queen, Queen
Claude. Anne received a good education in France and also
learnt French culture and etiquette. She was particularly
interested in fashion and religious philosophy and she also
enjoyed singing, music and dancing. During her time in France
Anne became a devout Christian.
In 1521 or early 1522 Anne returned home to England
where she was appointed as lady-in-waiting to Queen Catherine.
Anne was beautiful with long dark hair and dark eyes, lively,
intelligent and sophisticated. She had many admirers at court,
including King Henry. Henry had taken many mistresses
including Anne’s sister Mary when Queen Catherine could not
give him a son. When Henry began to fall in love with Anne she
was already secretly engaged to Henry Percy, the son and heir of
the Earl of Northumberland. Henry ordered Wolsey to put an
end to this relationship and Anne was briefly banned from court
and sent to her family home, Hever Castle in Kent. Henry sent
Anne many gifts and letters expressing his love for her and
hoped that when she returned to court she would be his mistress.
Hever Castle
In 1526 Henry was deeply infatuated with Anne and was
desperate for her to be his mistress, but Anne resisted, wanting
the King to marry her. Anne was very unpopular at court as
Catherine had many supporters. The King loved Anne and he
would eat alone with her and give her expensive gifts. By 1530
Anne was openly honoured by the King at court. She would sit
with the King at banquets and hunts while Catherine was
virtually ignored.
Henry secretly married Anne in January 1533, four months
before his divorce from Catherine was finalised, when Anne was
already pregnant. Anne was crowned Queen Consort on 1st June
1533 in a magnificent ceremony at Westminster Abbey which
was followed by an extravagant banquet. On 7th September 1533
Anne gave birth to a baby girl, Princess Elizabeth. Anne feared
that Catherine’s daughter Mary would threaten Elizabeth’s
position, so Henry sent Mary to Hatfield House to serve
Elizabeth as one of her ladies-in-waiting. Elizabeth was sent to
Hatfield House to live as Henry thought that the country air
would be better for her. Anne loved Elizabeth very much and
regularly visited her.
Princess Elizabeth
Anne and Henry were happily married for a while although he
began to lose interest in her. He disliked how Anne could stand
up for herself and her short temper. After the birth of Elizabeth,
Anne had two stillborn children and miscarried a male child in
1536. As Anne could not provide Henry with a son he declared
that his marriage was cursed and was the product of witchcraft.
On 2nd May 1536, Anne was arrested and taken to the
Tower of London charged with treason. She was charged with
adultery with her own brother and four commoners. All of the
men were tried and convicted of treason by Anne’s uncle the
Duke of Norfolk. They were executed on 17th May 1536. Anne
was beheaded on 19th May 1536 and was the first English Queen
to be publicly executed. Henry had given permission for Anne
to be beheaded by a sword as Anne was terrified of the axe. An
executioner was brought from France to kill her swiftly. Anne
was buried in the Chapel of St. Vincula at the Tower of London.
Anne Boleyn
Jane Seymour
Jane Seymour was Henry’s third wife. She was the daughter of
Sir John Seymour of Wiltshire and Margery Wentworth and was
born between 1507 and 1509. The Seymour’s were a well
respected and old noble family. Jane was not as educated as
Catherine and Anne and could only read and write her name,
although she was skilled in needlework and household
management.
In 1532 Jane became maid-of-honour to Catherine and
then served Anne when she became Henry’s second wife. Jane
was beautiful with pale skin and blonde hair and had a calm and
gentle manner. It was reported that Henry showed signs of
interest in Jane in February 1536.
Jane and Henry were betrothed on 20th May 1536, the day
after Anne Boleyn’s execution. They married ten days later.
Jane was publicly proclaimed as Queen on 4th June 1536
although she was never crowned. She was a submissive wife
and was a strict and formal Queen.
In early 1537 Jane became pregnant and on 12th October
1537 at Hampton Court Palace she gave birth to a son, Prince
Edward, Henry’s heir.
Prince Edward
Jane was seriously ill after the birth of Edward and died twelve
days later of septicaemia on 24th October at Hampton Court. She
was buried at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. Henry was
distraught and wore black for three months after Jane died.
Henry did not marry again for three years after Jane’s death, and
because of his love for her for giving him a son he ordered that
he was to be buried beside her when he died.
Jane Seymour
Anne of Cleves
Anne of Cleves was born on 22nd September 1515in the small
north German state of Cleves and was Henry’s fourth wife. She
was the second daughter of John III, ruler of the Duchy of
Cleves, and his wife Maria. Anne received no formal education
and could only read and write in German. She was skilled in
needlework and had a gentle manner.
After mourning Jane, Henry began to look for a new wife.
The break with the Church of Rome had left England isolated
from much of Europe, and his ministers wanted him to have a
bride who could secure an alliance. Henry wanted his bride to be
desirable so he had portraits of suitable women sent back to him.
Thomas Cromwell, Henry’s Lord Chancellor, wanted England
to form an alliance with the Protestant nation of Germany and
wanted Henry to marry a German princess. Two suitable
German princesses were chosen and Hans Holbein, the most
famous of the Tudor court painters, was sent in 1539 to the court
of the Duke of Cleves to paint Amelia and Anne. From the
paintings, Henry chose Anne to be his next wife and a marriage
treaty was signed on 4th October 1539 even though they hadn’t
even met each other.
Anne arrived in England in December and Henry was
horrified and disgusted. He disliked her personality and found
her ugly. He thought she had the face of a ‘Flanders Mare’.
Henry did not want to marry Anne but he could not get out of
the marriage treaty and they were married on 6th January 1540 at
the Royal Palace of Placentia in Greenwich, London by
Archbishop Cranmer. They were divorced six months later in
July 1540 and Anne remained in England. Henry felt that the
marriage to Anne had made him look a fool and he blamed
Thomas Cromwell who was arrested and beheaded.
Henry was grateful that Anne agreed to the annulment of
the marriage and they became good friends. Henry called her
‘the King’s Beloved Sister’ and he often invited her to court. He
gave her a generous income and several homes, including Hever
Castle. Anne died at Hever Castle on 16th July 1557 and was the
last of Henry’s wives to die.
Anne of Cleves
Catherine Howard
Catherine Howard was born between 1520 and 1525 and was
Henry’s fifth wife. She was the daughter of Lord Edmund and
Joyce Culpeper, the niece of the Duke of Norfolk and 1st cousin
of Anne Boleyn. Catherine came from a powerful family and
came to court as a lady-in-waiting to Anne of Cleves. She was
beautiful, kind, lively and flirtatious and quickly caught the eye
of the king.
Henry soon became besotted with Catherine and would
give her fine clothes, jewels and land. He called her his “Rose
without a thorn”. Catherine was thirty years younger than Henry
and did not love the old, bloating king, but she did love how he
spoiled her. They married on 28th July 1540, just sixteen days
after Henry’s divorce from Anne.
Catherine was more attracted to men of her own age and
had many lovers. After seventeen months of marriage to Henry
she was arrested and accused of adultery and treason. Catherine
was beheaded at the Tower of London when she was just 21
years old. Her body was buried in an unmarked grave in the
chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula where her cousin Anne Boleyn
was also buried.
Catherine Howard
Catherine Parr
Catherine Parr was born in 1512 and was Henry’s sixth and final
wife. She was the daughter of Sir Thomas Parr and Maud Green
who were both at court during the early reign of Henry VIII. Her
mother, Maud, was lady-in-waiting to Queen Catherine of
Aragon and her father, Sir Thomas, was Sheriff of
Northamptonshire, Master of the Wards and comptroller to
Henry VIII. Catherine was well educated and was fluent in
French, Italian and Latin.
Catherine had been widowed twice and was in a
relationship with Thomas Seymour, the brother of Jane
Seymour, when Henry took a liking to her. She could not refuse
the attentions of the King and they were married on 12th July
1543 at Hampton Court Palace. Catherine was the first English
Queen Consort to be also Queen of Ireland.
Brought up as a Catholic, Catherine was deeply religious
although she was interested in the new Protestant faith. It was
thought that Catherine had strong reforming convictions which
brought her into conflict with Bishop Stephen Gardiner and
Chancellor Thomas Wriothesley. They tried to turn Henry
against her and a warrant for her arrest was drawn up. Catherine
managed to reconcile with Henry and she survived.
Catherine was around 31 years old and Henry was 52
years old when they married. Due to Henry’s failing health,
Catherine acted more as a nurse than a wife. She bled his legs to
relieve the pain he got in them and regularly read to him while
he was confined to bed. Henry was very fond of Catherine and
liked the calmness she brought to the royal household.
Catherine was a loyal wife and loving stepmother bringing
all three of Henry’s children back to court and giving them a
good education and kindness. She was partially responsible for
reconciling Henry with his daughters, Mary and Elizabeth, and
developed a good relationship with Edward.
Catherine was patron of the arts and music and in 1545 her
book ‘Prayers or Meditations’ became the first book to be
published by an English Queen under her own name. Her
second book ‘The Lamentations of a Sinner’, discussing
Christian behaviour was published after Henry died.
After Henry died on 28th January 1547, Catherine was able
to marry Thomas Seymour. She became pregnant and following
the birth of their daughter, Mary Seymour, Catherine died six
days later on 5th September 1548 at Sudeley Castle in
Gloucestershire. She died of puerperal fever and was buried in
the chapel at Sudeley Castle.
Catherine Parr
Henry and the Royal Navy
Henry had a keen interest in the navy and due to his
achievements in building up the navy and fortifying obvious
landing places he was known as ‘Father of the English Navy’.
During his reign Henry invested heavily in the navy increasing
its size from 5 warships, inherited from his father, to around 58
warships including his two favourites The Mary Rose and Henri
Grace a Dieu (Great Harry). Henry established Royal dockyards
at Deptford and Woolwich. Deptford and Woolwich were very
close to Greenwich so Henry could often visit and see his new
ships being built. The warships built carried much heavier
cannon, and the great cannon could fire ‘broadside’ which
meant all the guns along one side of the ship could fire at once.
Watertight ‘gun ports’ with hinges were invented so that in
battle the cannon could poke out of the side of the ship whilst
they were being fired. Navigational aids such as lighthouses,
buoys and beacons were developed and in 1540 Henry granted
Portsmouth harbour official status as a naval dockyard. In 1546
Henry established the Navy Board and created the Office of
Admirality, which was in charge of daily administration of the
navy.
Henri Grace a Dieu (Great Harry)
Henri Grace a Dieu (nicknamed ‘Great Harry’) was built at
Woolwich dockyard from 1512-1514 and was the largest ship
built by Henry VIII. The ship was 165 feet long, weighed 10001500 tons, had five decks and had more than 200 bronze and
iron cannons. The Henri Grace a Dieu was one of the first ships
to carry guns that fired through ports along her side to allow a
‘broadside’, and when launched was the largest and most
powerful warship in Europe.
The ship could hold 400 soldiers, 260 sailors and 40
gunners but saw little action. She sailed at the Battle of Solent
against Francis I of France, but was otherwise used as a
diplomatic vessel occasionally sailing with sails of gold cloth.
The great ship was accidentally destroyed by fire in 1553 at her
berth in Woolwich.
Henri Grace a Dieu
The Mary Rose
The Mary Rose was built at Portsmouth between 1509 and 1511
and was named after Henry’s sister, Mary Tudor, and the rose,
the Tudor emblem. She was a smaller ship than Henri Grace a
Dieu and was the second most powerful ship in Henry’s fleet.
The Mary Rose was a fine sailing ship and one of Henry’s
favourites. She could hold a crew of 200 sailors, 185 soldiers
and 30 gunners.
The Mary Rose was a carrack warship and was one of the
first warships able to fire a full ‘broadside’ of cannons. The ship
was originally equipped with 78 guns, although this increased to
91 guns after she was rebuilt in 1536.
On 10th August 1512 commanded by Sir Edward Howard,
the Mary Rose was the flagship of an English fleet of 50 ships
that attacked the French at Brest in Brittany. The Mary Rose
crippled the French flagship, Marie la Cordeliere, but was
damaged herself killing or injuring 300 of the crew.
After the death of Edward Howard in 1513, the Mary Rose
was commanded by Edward’s brother, Thomas Howard. He first
sailed the Mary Rose to Newcastle to fight against the Scots
who had invaded England at the Battle of Flodden, and then in
1514 sailed the ship back to France to attack some towns and
villages near Cherbourg. The Mary Rose was used as the
flagship again in 1522 when the French port of Morles was
captured. The Mary Rose was docked in Portsmouth in 1527 to
undergo repairs and in 1536 she was rebuilt again.
Henry attacked France again in 1543 and 1544 resulting in
a French fleet setting sail for England in 1545. The French could
not get into Portsmouth as it was heavily fortified and so entered
the Solent Channel between Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.
On 19th July 1545 watched by Henry the English fleet came out
of Portsmouth and attacked the French from a long range.
Having outrun the rest of the fleet, the Mary Rose waited for
support but a sudden gust of wind caused her to sink killing
most of her crew. It is thought that the ship tilted in the wind
and as the gun ports were too near the waterline the water
rushed in causing the ship to sink. Henry tried to recover the
Mary Rose from the bottom of the sea, but she wasn’t raised
until 1982 by the Mary Rose Trust.
The Mary Rose
Battles and Wars
As a bold and powerful king, Henry wanted the fame and glory
of war. Henry’s main target was France as like some previous
kings he claimed to be the rightful ruler of France. During his
reign Henry went to war with France many times.
After making an alliance with Spain and the Holy Roman
Empire, Henry agreed to attack France. In 1513, Henry sailed
across the English Channel to Calais to conquer territory. After
a small battle, won by Henry, the towns of Therouanne and
Tournai quickly surrendered. The battle was known as the Battle
of Spurs due to how quickly the French cavalry spurred their
horses to retreat. Whilst Henry was fighting in France, his
brother-in-law King James IV of Scotland invaded northern
England in support of France. The English defeated the Scots in
the battle known as the Battle of Flodden and more than 10,000
Scots were killed including King James IV.
The war against France had cost Henry a lot of money and
gained him little land, but he felt it had been a triumph and
shown that he was a courageous king. In 1514 Wolsey
persuaded Henry to make peace with France and an agreement
was reached. The French gave Henry a lot of gold and he was
allowed to keep the French town of Tournai.
For the next eight years Wolsey prevented any more wars
and in 1520 he organized a meeting near Calais between Henry
and Francis I of Spain. Francis I became king of Spain in 1515
and the meeting was arranged to increase the bond of friendship
between the two kings following the Anglo-French treaty of
1518.
Francis I
Henry sailed in his warship Henri Grace a Dieu to France and
took virtually his entire court with him. The two rival kings
were determined to impress and outshine each other and set up
camps near Calais between the villages of Ardres and Guines.
Richly decorated tents were put up and there were elaborate
feasts, jousting and games. The tents and clothing were
decorated with jewels and contained so much cloth of gold that
the site of the meeting was named the Field of the Cloth of
Gold. Henry and Francis agreed in principal to an alliance
although within two years England and France were at war
again.
Field of the Cloth of
Gold
At 50 years old in 1541 Henry was named King of Ireland and
he wanted to extend his power to the rest of Britain by trying to
overcome Scotland. The Scottish king, James V, was Henry’s
nephew but he still supported the French and refused to sign a
peace treaty with England. Henry wanted James to break from
the Catholic Church as he had done and meet him in York.
When James V refused to do this and did not meet Henry in
York, Henry sent his troops into Scotland resulting in the Battle
of Solway Moss. The battle of Solway Moss took place in 1542
in the north of England and ended with Henry’s army beating
the Scots and James V dying three weeks later leaving two week
old Mary as queen.
Henry had worked out a new treaty with the Scots in 1543
in which his son Prince Edward would marry Queen Mary. This
was rejected by the Scots and Henry was furious. He sent an
army into Scotland and attacked the towns of Leith and
Edinburgh.
Henry was getting old and was in poor health but he
wanted one last attack on France. His army landed at Calais in
July 1544 and by September he had captured Boulogne. In 1545
France and Scotland both took revenge and sent their armies to
attack England. First the Scots defeated the English army at
Ancrum Moor, and then in the summer of 1545 a French fleet
tried to attack Portsmouth but ended up landing at Bembridge on
the Isle of Wight where they were defeated and forced to retreat.
The French attack was known as the Battle of the Solent as it
took place in the Solent Channel between Hampshire and the
Isle of Wight. A combination of strong winds and tides and
Henry’s powerful navy stopped the fleet from advancing. The
battle was inconclusive, although Henry did suffer after he
watched his favourite ship, the Mary Rose sink after tilting in
the gales.
Henry made peace with France in June 1546. The
agreement entitled Henry to keep Boulogne for eight years and
receive a pension of 95,000 crowns for the duration of his
lifetime. His battles and wars had cost a lot of lives and a
considerable amount of money.
The Break with Rome and English Reformation
England was a Roman Catholic country when Henry first
became king. The head of the church was Pope Clement VII and
Henry was a devout Catholic. At the beginning of Henry’s reign
Martin Luther, a German monk, had protested against corruption
within the Catholic Church and started a religious movement
called the Reformation which led to the start of the Protestant
faith. Henry defended the Catholic faith and after writing a book
in 1521 attacking Martin Luther he was given the title ‘Defender
of the Faith’ by the Pope. Some people in England though
disliked the Catholic faith. They thought that many priests were
greedy and ignorant and hated having to pay taxes to the local
priests.
Henry turned against the Catholic Church when the Pope
would not grant him a divorce from Catherine of Aragon so that
he could marry Anne Boleyn. Henry was furious with the Pope
for not agreeing the divorce as he was desperate for an heir, and
so turned to Parliament to decide the divorce. The result was a
series of acts that brought about the English Reformation and
the break with Rome. Henry thought that if he controlled the
Church of England, he could give himself a divorce.
In 1532, Henry demanded that priests swear loyalty to him
as ‘Supreme Head of the English Church’. Henry’s Lord
Chancellor, Thomas More, refused to agree with this and
resigned. Henry appointed Thomas Cromwell as his new Lord
Chancellor and also appointed Thomas Cranmer as the new
Archbishop of Canterbury. Thomas Cranmer was a quiet and
loyal scholar who was interested in reforming the church. In
1533, Cranmer decreed that Henry’s marriage to Catherine
never legally existed and he crowned Anne queen.
Thomas Cromwell was an efficient minister and in 1534
he encouraged Parliament to pass a series of laws which would
break Henry from the Catholic Church. One law stopped the
payment of taxes to the Pope and another law stated that Anne
was the rightful queen and her children would succeed to the
throne (Act of Succession). Parliament also passed the Act of
Supremacy in 1534 which recognised Henry as Supreme Head
of the Church of England. All important people had to swear an
oath accepting this or they would be executed. Thomas More
and John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester, were both beheaded for
not swearing the oath.
Another effect of the English Protestant Reformation was
the dissolution of monasteries in which Roman Catholic abbeys,
monasteries and convents across England, Wales and Ireland
were closed down. They were mostly sold off to nobles who
supported the king and raised lots of money for the state. One of
Henry’s closest friends was given Titchfield Abbey in
Hampshire in 1537 and renamed it Place House.
A ruin of a monastery
The dissolution of the monasteries had a huge effect on the
English people as some nuns and monks had run schools, cared
for the poor and sick and provided hospitality for travellers,
especially in the north of England. People were angry and many
protests took place. The first protests took place in Lancashire in
October 1536 and spread to Cumbria and Yorkshire. The
rebellion was called the ‘Pilgrimage of Grace’ and was led by
Robert Aske who wanted the power of the Pope and the
monasteries restored. Henry promised to pardon the rebels if
they stopped protesting, although nearly 200 rebels were
executed and Aske was hung in chains from the walls of York
Castle and left to die.
In 1539 Henry ordered Cromwell to organize the printing
of the Bible in English and ordered every church to buy one. By
1543 Henry had ordered Parliament to pass a law forbidding
women, apprentices and labourers to read the Bible.
First English Bible