The Life Of King Henry Viii English Literature Essay

King Henry VIII was born in 1491. Henry was the 3rd kid of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. He was seen as a promising immature prince due to his surpassing personality, and intelligence. Traditionally the first male inheritor of the royal household is successor to the thrown, but unluckily, the first Born ; Arthur died rather out of the blue at the immature age of 15. This sudden calamity has placed Henry as the unanticipated inheritor to the throne. King Henry VIII was looked upon as the perfect immature male monarch during his early reign ; he had received an outstanding sum of schooling, and he spoke many linguistic communications. Not merely did he fall under the class of an mind but as an jock every bit good. He was experienced and talented in jousting, hunting, tennis and archery. However, as Henry grew older history has shown bookmans a alteration in this one time beloved male monarch. King Henry VIII proved to govern tyrannically due to his thirst for blood, power, and a male inheritor to win him.

Throughout Henry ‘s reign, bloodshed seemed to hold been a typical method for this male monarch to work out his jobs. Equally shortly as he succeeded his male parent ‘s place, Henry made his grade as a King who would non allow anyone stand in his manner by groundlessly bear downing his male parent ‘s two unpopular curate ‘s Sir Richard Empson, and Edmund Dudley with Treason. The two curates were executed in 1510. Another controversial and wholly unneeded decease ordered by Henry VIII was that of Cardinal Wolsey. Cardinal Wolsey was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer by King Henry VIII, they were really close friends. With that being said, Henry trusted Wolsey to convert the Catholic Pope that he should hold the divorce from his first married woman Catherine of Aragon. When Wolsey failed this of import undertaking, King Henry out of choler dismissed him of his responsibilities as Chancellor, and subsequently ordered his apprehension. It had been intended that Cardinal Wolsey be confined within the Tower of London, but during the traversing from York to London Wolsey died. If the decease of such a close friend, who supported this oppressive King in whatever he did is n’t bad plenty, he was besides responsible for the executing of two married womans. Henry ‘s 2nd married woman was charged with lese majesty, incest, and plotting to slay the male monarch. It was King Henry ‘s program to hold the offenses: “ be such as to animate non merely repugnance for Anne but besides understanding for Henry, and it must be something that would deserve divorce every bit good as decease. ” ( Weir 309 ) . King Henry ‘s 5th married woman Catherine Howard was besides put to decease with the charge of lese majesty and criminal conversation. When Catherine was arrested it should be remembered that Cranmer which was the male monarch ‘s advisor has no grounds beyond his ain decisions that she had committed criminal conversation ( Weir 448 ) . These kinds of things had become what has been described as: “ a platitude, and it has been suggested that this blood-thirstiness was a contemplation of Henry ‘s increasing age, power and jobs. ” ( Fraser 19 )

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Christians throughout Europe had been portion of the same Church for more than a thousand old ages. The Catholic Pope was considered caput of Christianity, this gave him enormous power. Christians in that clip period believed they can merely acquire to heaven by following the regulations and instructions of the Church. Martin Luther began the Protestant Reformation in Germany, his composing rapidly distribute to many parts of Europe ; King Henry VIII so countered his thoughts by printing The Defense of the Seven Sacraments. This book defended the seven sacraments which Martin Luther was so critical of. When the Pope had read the book, he gave Henry VIII a new rubric: Defender of the Faith. He was seen as the hero for some clip, but this rapidly changed. King Henry VIII decided to disassociate Queen Catherine when he realized she could non bring forth a boy. The King decided to take on a new Queen ; Anne Boleyn. He hoped Anne would be the reply to his supplications and would give him the boy that he so urgently longed for. But in disassociating Catherine, Henry had been required to do a split with the Roman Catholic Church, which had gone against King Henry ‘s wants and refused his petition for the divorce. In the procedure of King Henry VIII seeking to make absolute power by dividing from the Church he had dramatically transformed the Church in England. King Henry VIII had hoped that by restricting the power of the Catholic Pope it would do his opportunities of the divorce traveling through successful much easier. “ But if this did non work, the male monarch had been prepared to take entire control of the Church in England so he could obtain a divorce without the permission of the Catholic Pope ” ( Worth 64 ) . King Henry VIII had imprisoned legion citizens who did non back up the Reformation or the male monarch ‘s new place as caput of the Church. Some were even sent to the scaffold, including two good recognized work forces through out England ; Bishop John Fisher, and Sir Thomas More. “ The decease of two distinguished work forces such as More and Fisher sent daze moving ridges through out England and Europe. Some of Henry ‘s topics who had supported the Reformation now began to inquire if the male monarch had become a tyrant ” ( Worth, 75 ) .

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Henry VIII has had 6 matrimonial personal businesss throughout his reign as male monarch of England. This was a large dirt during the clip of the Renaissance, seeing as divorce was uncommon. King Henry ‘s first married woman was originally his brother Arthur ‘s betrothed. King Henry ‘s ultimate end was to make a male inheritor to win him and in all the clip he was married to Katherine of Aragon, merely a girl was produced and legion abortive boies. This angered Henry, and along with the conniving Anne Boleyn who used lecherousness and her humor as her arm, King Henry was driven to disassociate this adult female of virtuousness. This separation was clearly an act of selfishness on King Henry ‘s portion ; he drove the church into the land for this divorce to take topographic point, due to his lecherousness for Anne Boleyn and compulsion with making a boy. Things merely got worse one time the King was married to Anne Boleyn. King Henry did non anticipate her to be so opinionative and involved with both his political and personal personal businesss. Bing a adult male with a love for absolute power, this displeased him and his involvement in her began to decline, and he turned his attending to Jane Seymour. While prosecuting Jane Seymour Henry began to go angered by Anne, non merely was she crabbed but she was non bring forthing a boy. Cromwell instantly devised a confederacy against Anne Boleyn which would finally let Henry VIII to non merely disassociate his new married woman, but to hold her killed. “ He and Cromwell without admiting the fact to each other, both knew that they were parties to a secret plan to make away with an guiltless adult female for the interest of expedience ” ( Weir 310 ) Anne Boleyn was beheaded on the charges of Treason, Adultery, Incest, and plotting to kill the male monarch. King Henry moved on to get married Jane Seymour, who gave him a boy, she died during kid birth, and handily pronounced her his true love and that in the event of his decease he should be buried beside her. The King subsequently decided it was clip for him to get married, simply for political addition he agreed to get married Anne of Cleves trusting their matrimony would “ set an terminal to the spiritual jobs of the German princedoms ” ( Weir 390 ) The King had ne’er seen her in individual, and had merely received portrayals which exaggerated her beauty. When they had eventually met, like an immature kid he was defeated with her animalism, and therefore the matrimony started off on a bad pes. This matrimony became annulled in 1540, with the alibi that the matrimony had non been consummated and she had a pre-contract with another adult male. Another failed matrimony did non halt Henry ; he proceeded to go enamored with the immature Katherine Howard. Katherine Howard was thought to be an airheaded and mercenary miss, merely interested in her ain personal personal businesss. This certainly did trouble oneself the commanding King Henry “ All he asked of her was that she give him more boies ” ( Weir 434 ) . Marrying a miss with such small experience backfired on King Henry VIII, when she committed criminal conversation with Thomas Culpepper, a member of the tribunal, every bit good as a favourite of the King. This led to her apprehension, and decease. Last but non least there was Catherine Parr, who was lucky plenty to remain married to Henry for four old ages until his decease in 1547. Five matrimonies with an exclusion of one were ended, some in decease due to this finical King ‘s lecherousness, demand for power, and finally to gestate a male inheritor.

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King Henry VIII had ruled England for 30 seven old ages as a autocrat, merely looking for personal addition. We see this through assorted events which have marked England everlastingly, throughout the reign of this cruel and oppressive King. This includes the many unneeded violent deaths, his matrimonies to six married womans which ended in decease, the failure to bring forth a male inheritor, or merely because he was non attracted to her. The 3rd manner turn outing the autocrat within King Henry would be the split from the Roman Catholic Church. Henry had an compulsion with power, and holding the Catholic Pope base in his manner to get married another adult female led him to do one of the biggest alterations in English History.

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