The history of King Henry VIII Tudor and his 6 wives for almost 550 years has been of interest not only to historians, but also to people of art. And this is not surprising, since even without any adjustments it is in no way inferior to the plots of the most popular soap operas.
Many books have been written on the subject of the monarch’s numerous marriages and dozens of films have been shot. However, not all of them are true, so you will probably find it interesting to read documented facts that shed light on the relationship between Henry VIII Tudor, his wives and heirs, and why the king could not find a woman who could make him become an exemplary family man.
First marriage
Henry 8 reigned on the English throne after the death of his father at the age of 17 years. He entered into his first marriage shortly before. Moreover, this marriage was not only not out of love, but even its expediency from the point of view of strengthening the position of England in Europe cast doubt on the father of the young king and on his advisers.
The wife of the future king was Catherine of Aragon - the Spanish infante, who, moreover, was the widow of Henry's older brother - Arthur. She was older than her husband and their marriage was opposed by the Catholic Church, which considers them close relatives. In order to obtain the permission of the pope, Catherine even had to swear that, despite the fact that she was married to the Prince of Wales, she remained a virgin. Based on these testimonies, the first marital union of the Spanish infantry was declared invalid.
Lack of heir
Having become king, young Henry completely obeyed his wife in matters of foreign policy. At the same time, the queen was most concerned about the interests of her native Spain. At the same time, everyone expected from Catherine the birth of an heir, but she only gave birth to dead children, or they died immediately after birth.
Finally, in 1516, 7 years after the wedding, the queen became the mother of a healthy girl, who was named Maria. Under the marriage contract of Catherine and Henry, in the absence of a couple of sons, the throne was supposed to go to the daughter. However, the king was even afraid of the thought that a woman would be on the throne of England. He continued to hope that Catherine would give him a son, but the Queen’s next and last pregnancy ended in the birth of another dead boy, which made the dynastic crisis a real threat.
Extramarital affairs
While the queen unsuccessfully tried to become the mother of the heir to the throne and constantly went pregnant or moved away from difficult birth, Henry sought solace on the side. The most famous of his mistresses at that time were Bessie Blount, who gave birth to the king the son of Fitzroy, and Maria Boleyn.
It is interesting that in 1925 the first boy was given the title of Duke of Richmond and His Majesty did not even hide that he was the father of this child, while he did not recognize the children from his second mistress, although everyone was sure that they were not born without his participation.
Ann Bolein
According to historians, all the wives of Henry 8 Tudor in varying degrees, loved this extraordinary man. However, he did not idolize any of them, and subsequently hated them like Anna Boleyn.
The girl was the younger sister of his mistress Mary, but was distinguished by exceptional ambition. She received an excellent education in Brussels and Paris and shone at court. Noticing signs of attention from the king, she met him with pleasure for intellectual conversations, but was in no hurry to accept his courtship.
Perhaps the reason for her inaccessibility was the fate of her sister, who became the concubine of Henry, and then was rejected and forgotten by him. Failure only kindled the king's love ardor. To gain her favor, he offered Anna the role of the wife of Henry 8 Tudor, although he already had a legal spouse.
Divorce
Obtaining the status of the wife of Henry 8 Tudor was an honor for any girl, and Anna could not help but appreciate the sacrifice that Henry made for her. She inspired him in every possible way and set him up against the pope, who refused to divorce the king and Catherine of Aragon.
As a result of long negotiations with the pontiff, the latter agreed that an investigation be held. The judges were to decide on the annulment of the marriage of Henry VIII with the Spanish infante, as sinful, if it is proved that he was concluded between relatives.
The trial did not produce results, so the angry king and his advisers found a way out: Parliament passed laws according to which the pope's power no longer extended to the territory of England. Moreover, in 1534 the whole Catholic world shuddered when they learned that the Act of Suprematism was signed in London. In this document, Henry VIII was proclaimed the head of the English Church, which meant a complete break with Rome.
Second marriage
In the status of the wife of Henry 8 Tudor, Anna Boleyn appeared before the people after her wedding in January 1533. This happened immediately after the king’s first marriage was annulled. At the beginning of the summer of that year she was crowned, and in September she gave birth to a daughter, who later was to become Elizabeth the First - one of the most famous monarchs in world history.
The birth of his second daughter upset Heinrich, and since subsequent pregnancies ended with the birth of dead children, he felt disappointed and soon began to look for a reason to get rid of annoyed Anna. Soon the woman was accused of witchcraft and treason, arrested and imprisoned in the Tower. After the trial, at which she vowed that she did not seek her husband's love with the help of spells and had no lovers, she was nevertheless executed and buried in an anonymous grave.
Jane Seymour
This maid of honor, who took the vacant seat of the wife of Henry 8 Tudor, became his mistress even before the previous wife of the monarch was sent to the chopping block. Unlike Catherine of Aragon and Anna Boleyn, she was illiterate, but her appearance exactly corresponded to the canons of beauty of that time. The Seymour family in every possible way encouraged Jane's extramarital affair with the king, hoping to strengthen his position at court.
In late spring 1533, almost immediately after the execution of Queen Anne, Henry and Jane got married, but the girl was not crowned, as her husband doubted whether she could give birth to an heir. After 4 years, Seymour gave Henry the long-awaited legitimate son, but she died a few days later from a maternal fever.
Anna Klevskaya
Although England already had an heir to the throne, after the death of Joan Seymour, ambassadors were sent to many European capitals. They were ordered to find candidates for the role of the wife of Henry 8 Tudor. Portraits of girls from royal families had to be brought to London for the king to choose his bride. As it turned out, no one was eager to give his daughter as a wife to a man who had two canceled marriages behind him and who executed the mother of his child.
With great difficulty, the ambassadors managed to persuade the Duke Wilhelm of Cleves to extradite his sister Anna to Henry. At the end of 1539, the princess arrived in Calais, where she met with the groom. The king was disappointed, since the bride did not at all look like a girl from the portrait that was sent to him. He returned to London in a rage and sent anger at the courtiers, who were embracing him "Flemish mare."
Nevertheless, he had to marry, but he declared publicly that he did not touch his wife. Despite this, Anna Klevskaya won universal love at court and became a good stepmother for the three children of the king. Soon, Henry decided to annul the bark. The queen did not resist, especially since her husband invited her to live in the palace as his "beloved sister."
Catherine Howard
By the year 1540, the King of England, Henry VIII Tudor, and his wives became a byword throughout Europe. He could no longer hope to find a spouse among the girls from the august families, so he turned his eyes to the maid of honor of his fourth wife. Among them, he especially liked Catherine Howard, whom he married.
At first, the marriage seemed happy, and Henry seemed to be 20 years younger. But the young wife was an anemone, and soon young people appeared in her retinue with whom she was friends before becoming a queen. Upon learning of the infidelity of his wife, Henry ordered her executed in front of the crowd.
Catherine Parr
This woman happened to write the last chapter of the novel "Henry VIII and his six wives." At the time when the king proposed to her, she twice became a widow, and she was 31 years old. The king was over 50, and he told Lady Catherine that he hoped that she would be his comfort in old age. The new wife of Henry made friends with the daughter of her husband Elizabeth and took up the education of his son Edward. The marriage lasted 4 years and ended with the death of the monarch.
Now you know some interesting facts about the events in which the main characters were the English king Henry VIII and his six wives. Fortunately, today everyone is free to marry as many times as he wants, and for this you do not need to chop heads or plunge an entire country into the abyss of religious and civil wars.