Henry VIII (28 June 1491 – 28 January 1547) was King of England from 1509 until his death in 1547.

Henry is best known for his six marriages, and, in particular, his efforts to have his first marriage
(to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disagreement with Pope Clement VII on the question of such an
annulment led Henry to initiate the English Reformation, separating the Church of England from papal
authority. He appointed himself the Supreme Head of the Church of England and dissolved convents
and monasteries, for which he was excommunicated. Henry is also known as "the father of the Royal
Navy," as he invested heavily in the navy, increasing its size from a few to more than 50 ships, and
established the Navy Board.
Domestically, Henry is known for his radical changes to the English Constitution, ushering in the theory
of the divine right of kings. He also greatly expanded royal power during his reign. He frequently used
charges of treason and heresy to quell dissent, and those accused were often executed without a formal
trial by means of bills of attainder. He achieved many of his political aims through the work of his chief
ministers, some of whom were banished or executed when they fell out of his favour. Thomas
Wolsey, Thomas More, Thomas Cromwell, Richard Rich, and Thomas Cranmer all figured prominently
in his administration.
Henry was an extravagant spender, using the proceeds from the dissolution of the monasteries and acts
of the Reformation Parliament. He also converted the money that was formerly paid to Rome into royal
revenue. Despite the money from these sources, he was continually on the verge of financial ruin due to
his personal extravagance, as well as his numerous costly and largely unsuccessful wars, particularly
with King Francis I of France, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, James V of Scotland and the Scottish
regency under the Earl of Arran and Mary of Guise. At home, he oversaw the legal union of England
and Wales with the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542, and he was the first English monarch to rule as
King of Ireland following the Crown of Ireland Act 1542.
Henry's contemporaries considered him an attractive, educated, and accomplished king. He has been
described as "one of the most charismatic rulers to sit on the English throne".[1] He was an author and
composer. As he aged, however, he became severely obese and his health suffered, contributing to his
death in 1547. He is frequently characterised in his later life as a lustful, egotistical, harsh and insecure
king.[2] He was succeeded by his son Edward VI.
Born 28 June 1491 at the Palace of Placentia in Greenwich, Kent, Henry Tudor was the third child and
second son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York.[3] Of the young Henry's six (or seven) siblings, only
three – Arthur, Prince of Wales; Margaret; and Mary – survived infancy.[4] He was baptised by Richard
Fox, the Bishop of Exeter, at a church of the Observant Franciscans close to the palace.[5] 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 at age three,
and was made a Knight of the Bath soon after. The day after the ceremony he was created Duke of
York and a month or so later made Warden of the Scottish Marches. In May 1495, he was appointed to
the Order of the Garter. The reason for all the appointments to a small child was so his father could
keep personal control of lucrative positions and not share them with established families.[5] Henry was
given a first-rate education from leading tutors, becoming fluent in Latin and French, and learning at
least some Italian.[6][7] Not much is known about his early life – save for his appointments – because he
was not expected to become king.[5] In November 1501, Henry also played a considerable part in the
ceremonies surrounding his brother's marriage to Catherine of Aragon, the youngest surviving child of
King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile.[8] As Duke of York, Henry used the arms of
his father as king, differenced by a label of three points ermine. He was further honoured, on 9 February
1506, by Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I who made him a Knight of the Golden Fleece.[9]
In 1502, Arthur died at the age of 15, possibly of sweating sickness,[10] just 20 weeks after his marriage
to Catherine.[11] Arthur's death thrust all his duties upon his younger brother, the 10-year-old Henry. After
a little debate, Henry became the new Duke of Cornwall in October 1502, and the new Prince of
Wales and Earl of Chester in February 1503.[12] Henry VII gave the boy few tasks. Young Henry was
strictly supervised and did not appear in public. As a result, he ascended the throne "untrained in the
exacting art of kingship".[13]
Henry VII renewed his efforts to seal a marital alliance between England and Spain, by offering his
second son in marriage to Arthur's widow Catherine.[11] Both Isabella and Henry VII were keen on the
idea, which had arisen very shortly after Arthur's death.[14] On 23 June 1503, a treaty was signed for their
marriage, and they were betrothed two days later.[15] A papal dispensation was only needed for the
"impediment 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 instead to obtain a dispensation
for "affinity", which took account of the possibility of consummation.[15] Cohabitation was not possible
because Henry was too young.[14] Isabella's death in 1504, and the ensuing problems of succession
in Castile, complicated matters. Her father preferred her to stay in England, but Henry VII's relations with
Ferdinand had deteriorated.[16] Catherine was therefore 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 in England indefinitely. Devout, she began to
believe that it was God's will that she marry the prince despite his opposition.[17]

Early reign

Eighteen-year-old Henry VIII after his coronation in 1509

Henry VII died on 21 April 1509, and the 17-year-old Henry succeeded him as king. Soon after his
father's burial on 10 May, Henry suddenly declared that he would indeed marry Catherine, leaving
unresolved several issues concerning the papal dispensation and a missing part of the marriage portion.
[15][18]
 The new king maintained that it had been his father's dying wish that he marry Catherine.[17] Whether
or not this was true, it was certainly convenient. Emperor Maximilian I had been attempting to marry his
granddaughter (and Catherine's niece) Eleanor to Henry; she had now been jilted.[19] Henry's wedding to
Catherine was kept low-key and was held at the friar's church in Greenwich on 11 June 1509.[18] On 23
June 1509, Henry led the now 23-year-old Catherine from the Tower of London to Westminster
Abbey for their coronation, which took place the following day.[20] It was a grand affair: the king's passage
was lined with tapestries and laid with fine cloth.[20] Following the ceremony, there was a grand banquet
in Westminster Hall.[21] As Catherine wrote to her father, "our time is spent in continuous festival".[18]
Two days after his coronation, Henry arrested his father's two most unpopular ministers, Sir Richard
Empson and Edmund Dudley. They were charged with high treason and were executed in 1510.
Politically-motivated executions would remain one of Henry's primary tactics for dealing with those who
stood in his way.[3] Henry also returned to the public some of the money supposedly extorted by the two
ministers.[22] By contrast, Henry's view of the House of York – potential rival claimants for the throne –
was more moderate than his father's had been. Several who had been imprisoned by his father,
including the Marquess of Dorset, were pardoned.[23] Others (most notably Edmund de la Pole) went
unreconciled; de la Pole was eventually beheaded in 1513, an execution prompted by his
brother Richard siding against the king.[24]
Soon after, Catherine conceived, but the child, a girl, was stillborn on 31 January 1510. About four
months later, Catherine again became pregnant.[25] 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 festivities were
held,[26] including a two-day joust known as the Westminster Tournament. However, the child died seven
weeks later.[25] Catherine had two stillborn sons in 1513 and 1515, but gave birth in February 1516 to a
girl, Mary. Relations between Henry and Catherine had been strained, but they eased slightly after
Mary's birth.[27]
Although Henry's marriage to Catherine has since been described as "unusually good",[28] it is known
that Henry took mistresses. It was revealed in 1510 that Henry had been conducting an affair with one
of the sisters of Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, either Elizabeth or Anne Hastings, Countess
of Huntingdon.[29] The most significant mistress for about three years, starting in 1516, was Elizabeth
Blount.[27] Blount is one of only two completely undisputed mistresses, considered by some to be few for
a virile young king.[30][31] Exactly how many Henry had is disputed: David Loades believes Henry had
mistresses "only to a very limited extent",[31] whilst Alison Weir believes there were numerous other
affairs.[32] There is no evidence that Catherine protested, and in 1518 she fell pregnant again with
another girl, who was also stillborn.[27] Blount gave birth in June 1519 to Henry's illegitimate son, Henry
FitzRoy.[27] The young boy was made Duke of Richmond in June 1525 in what some thought was one
step on the path to his eventual legitimisation.[33] In 1533, FitzRoy married Mary Howard, but died
childless three years later.[34] At the time of Richmond's death in June 1536, Parliament was enacting
the Second Succession Act, which could have allowed him to become king.[35]