King of England Henry 8 is one of the most famous and perhaps the most controversial rulers in the history of this country. On the one hand, he greatly strengthened power, contributed to the strengthening of the state, but it was the years of his rule that were marked by executions, intrigues, and the restructuring of the religious and social system.
General characteristics of the reign
The 16th century was a time of strengthening the power of the center in England. The predecessor of this king made a lot of efforts in order to provide support for his authority. In part, he succeeded, but the need for continued reform was obvious. This was also explained by the fact that the state did not quite recover from the bloody civil war, which became a serious crisis. In these conditions, the new king of England Henry 8 ascended the throne.
His main and primary task was to provide a social base for his power. At first, he supported Catholicism, the pope, and the Austrian Habsburgs by marrying the aunt of Emperor Charles V. However, he very soon changed his policy. Needing the internal support of the English nobility, he took extremely radical measures, namely the confiscation of monastery property and land, which laid the foundation for the reformation in the country.
The family crisis and the break with Rome
The first wife of Henry 8 was the aunt of the emperor of the Austrian and Spanish Habsburgs. She was several years older than him and did not give him male offspring. This was the reason for the king’s desire to marry again: the country needed an heir to the throne. An important role was also played by the personality factor: the ruler fell quite in love with the queen's maid of honor, who demanded legal marriage. All of the above reasons led to the fact that he asked the Pope for permission to divorce. However, the latter refused, largely due to the influence of Charles V, who, of course, was not interested in the divorce of the English monarch from his blood relative. Then the king went to an open break with Rome, declaring himself the head of the church. He divorced his wife and remarried.
Second marriage
The new wife of Henry 8, Anna became the queen, but this union ended tragically for her. At first there was agreement between the spouses, but the fact is that very soon the king found a new favorite, whom he later married and who gave birth to him the long-awaited heir. Just a few years later, the young queen was accused of adultery and executed at the Tower. Her daughter Elizabeth subsequently became Queen of England, and it was during her reign that Anna Boleyn was completely rehabilitated.
Next marriage
The third wife of the king was Jane Seymour, who came from a noble noble family. The monarch was carried away by her back in the years of his marriage with Anna. He already began to openly look after her, which caused his wife's anger and indignation. Immediately after her execution, he married his new favorite, proclaiming her the new queen. The wife of Henry 8, unlike her predecessor, had a quiet and calm disposition and did not interfere in the affairs of politics and management. Only once she stood up for the participants of the Pious pilgrimage, the uprising that occurred due to the break of the monarch with the Catholic Church. She was gentle, pious, and sympathized with the disgraced Princess Mary. Everyone at the court liked the young queen, and only the Protestants were unhappy, fearing that she would approve of the monarch's policy on reformation. However, Jane Seymour only cared about giving birth to her husband's heir, which she did, but she herself died from a maternal fever a few days later. She remained the beloved wife of the ruler, who bequeathed to bury himself next to her.
Broken marriage
The fourth wife of Henry 8 was the daughter of the Duke of Cleves. She was a Protestant, and therefore the adherents of the new religion counted on this marriage, hoping that the new queen would support them. The engagement took place in advance, and according to the descriptions of the king's close associates, the new bride was his good choice. Anna Klevskaya won the favor of the ambassadors who assured their ruler that he had made a worthy choice. The monarch himself decided in advance to find out what his future wife, who had already arrived in the country, was. Soon, under the guise of a private person, the monarch also arrived there. He talked with the princess for several hours, but remained very unhappy with her. He brought down all his anger at the ambassador who arranged this marriage. After some time, the lawyers, despite the fact that the prenuptial agreement was already signed, were able to terminate the engagement. Anna Klevskaya remained in the country in the position of the beloved sister of the king, who gave her generous content and even visited her, being able to find a common language with her.
Next marriage
The wife of Henry 8, the fifth in a row, was a cousin of the second wife of the king. The same fate befell her, although at first the marriage seemed successful. The young Queen Catherine Howard turned out to be a kind, but very simple-minded woman. So, she admitted to the court of her former favorites. In addition, her uncle had many enemies who sought to undermine his influence at court. Soon there was evidence against the young woman, it turned out that she had been engaged before. She was accused of marital infidelity, which then amounted to a state crime. She was arrested and executed at the Tower.
The last wife of the king was Catherine Parr. She turned out to be a very smart woman. She showed remarkable diplomacy, trying to enlist the support of relatives and close friends of her husband. And she did it. She developed a very good, almost friendly relationship with Princess Elizabeth. She also managed to win over the heir, little Edward, although at first he was extremely averse to his new stepmother. And only with the eldest daughter of the king, Maria, did not develop friendly relations. The monarch was still extremely suspicious and repeatedly tried to arrest his wife, but each time he postponed his decision. Perhaps this was also due to the fact that his health was rapidly deteriorating. So, Catherine Parr was the only wife of the king, who escaped death and survived him.
Family Life Assessment
Similar crises of the king's family life became the object of close attention of scientists, historians, writers and composers. Many sought the cause of this behavior in the character of the king. In fact, the monarch's temper was hot-tempered and cool. However, it is also certain that such crises were the result of a fierce court struggle for power, when each group sought to maintain its influence and position. Therefore, Henry 8 and his 6 wives became the subject of close study of specialists. There is no doubt that the cause of such problems should also be sought in the domestic political crisis, which was associated with the reformation, a break with the Catholic Church and a change in foreign policy. Many consider the king’s family life not only in the context of changes in his character, but also in a broader sense, namely in the framework of the confrontation between the Catholic and Protestant parties at the royal court. Thus, the reign of Henry 8, in addition to strengthening the power of the center, was marked by serious domestic political complications.
Successors of the Ruler
After the death of the monarch, his son Edward 6 began to rule , who was distinguished by extremely poor health. In fact, under him the regents were his relatives, representatives of the Protestant party. Therefore, for some time the positions of her adherents remained solid, but soon the young monarch passed away and the daughter of Henry 8 from his first wife took the throne. She was a Catholic and during the reign began to restore the position of the Roman church. At this time, the Protestants were persecuted, many were unhappy with the policies of the new queen, who married the Spanish monarch of the Catholic faith. However, after her death, Protestant nobles elevated the other daughter of the late monarch to the throne. Her mother was Anna Boleyn, but this did not hinder the choice. The fact is that Elizabeth supported the supporters of the new faith. During the years of her reign, the position of the Church of England strengthened. Moreover, she passed a law according to which a new creed became state. Under her, the final formation of the socio-political system that began to take shape under her two successors took place.
Period value
In the history of England, this era played a decisive role. In these few decades, the royal apparatus was formed, based on the new nobility, which received land confiscated from monasteries. This nobility became the pillar of the English throne. The rulers, starting with Henry 8, created that system of administrative management, which formed the basis of the socio-political system of the state. In addition, during the reign of Elizabeth I , English culture flourished. The Queen herself patronized poets, writers, and cultural figures. Under it, a national English theater was formed, which subsequently received world fame.
During the reign of this queen, England expanded its sphere of influence. A vivid example is the round-the-world trip of F. Drake. Diplomatic relations with Russia were also established. The era of the reign of this queen is one of the leading places in the history not only of England, but of the entire early new European time in general.
Images in the culture
Henry 8, his wives and closest successors became an object for the artistic creation of writers, composers, directors. One of the most famous novels about this time is the work of M. Twain “The Prince and the Pauper”, where the main character is the king’s son, who accidentally swapped places with a poor boy who is very similar to him. The value of the novel lies in the fact that in it the English reality of the 16th century is very vividly and expressively described. The novel by the writer D. Playdy "The Sixth Wife of Henry 8" is famous. This composition is distinguished by a dynamic and intriguing plot, interesting characters and an original composition.
In music
In classical music, these images also found expression. For example, the composition of the Italian composer G. Donizetti “Anna Boleyn” is world famous. The same author owns an opera about Elizabeth, which is no less popular. It is significant that the Italian composer became interested in the plot from English history. This indicates the great popularity of these stories in European culture.
To the cinema
The reign of the dynasty attracts modern filmmakers. An example is the film “Another of the Boleyn Clan”, which occupies a prominent place in the cinema. The famous English series dedicated to the years of her reign. All the characters in it are real; for example, the heroine of one of the first episodes is Catherine of Aragon. "The Tudors" has become a very famous series, which clearly demonstrates the public's interest in the era under consideration. One of the most famous films is the film “Elizabeth. Golden age". The era of the reign of this queen is very colorfully recreated in it. The reason for this interest is that the time studied was transitional in the history of England and European history as a whole. It was then that the institution of royal power and the national identity of states and countries were formed.