And why did he have 6 wives? Who was Henry VIII? And why did he have 6 wives?

The Tudors The Tudors were a royal family who ruled England from 1485 until 1603. The first Tudor king was called Henry VII. He fought another king, Richard III, at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485. Richard was killed, Henry became king, and a new period of history began. Henry VII

The Tudors This is the Tudor family tree. It shows when people were born, when they died, who they married and how many children they had.

Henry VIII Henry VIII was king of England from 1509 until 1547. He was born in 1491, and was only 17 years and 10 months old when he became king. Henry composed music, which we can listen to at http://www.brims.co.uk/tudors/henry.html Henry VIII

A description of Henry, by an Italian called Giustinian His majesty is twenty-nine years old, and extremely handsome. Nature could not have done more for him. He is much handsomer than any other sovereign in Christendom; a great deal handsomer then the King of France; very fair, and his whole frame admirably proportioned. On hearing that Francis I (the King of France) wore a beard, he allowed his own to grow; and as it is reddish, he has now got a beard that looks like gold. He is very accomplished; a good musician; composes well; is a most capital horseman; a fine jouster; speaks good French, Latin and Spanish; is very religious; hears three masses daily when he hunts, and sometimes five on other days. He is very fond of hunting, and never takes his diversion without tiring 8 or 10 horses. He is extremely fond of tennis, at which game it is the prettiest thing in the world to see him play, his fair skin glowing through a shirt of the finest texture.

Look again at this picture of Henry. How would you describe him now Look again at this picture of Henry. How would you describe him now? Is he still young and handsome? Describe the expression on his face. How old do you think he is? What is Henry trying to tell us about himself in this portrait? How can you tell he is an important person? Do you think that Henry really looked like this? What sort of clothes is he wearing?

Henry and his wives In England, the crown is passed from the parent to the child when the parent dies. Henry was desperate to have a son to pass the crown on to. In order to have children, Henry had to find himself a wife. But he married not once, not twice, but SIX times!! Some of these wives died, some he divorced, some he had killed and one survived him. Let’s have a look at these wives in more detail.

Wife Number 1 Catherine of Aragon Henry married Catherine of Aragon in 1509. Catherine was a Spanish princess. They had one daughter, Mary, who later became Queen of England. Henry divorced Catherine. Mary What happened? Catherine of Aragon

Wife Number 2 Anne Boleyn Next, Henry fell for Anne Boleyn. Henry and Anne were married in 1533 in secret – because Henry hadn’t got rid of his first wife yet! They had a daughter, Elizabeth, who also later became a Queen of England. Henry had Anne beheaded. Elizabeth What happened? Anne Boleyn

Wife Number 3 Jane Seymour After getting rid of Anne, Henry married Jane Seymour in 1536. Jane finally gave Henry the son he so wanted – Edward. Unfortunately, Edward died when he was just 16. Jane died after giving birth to Edward. Edward What happened? Jane Seymour

Wife Number 4 Anne of Cleves After Jane died, Henry sent a painter, Holbein, to Germany in 1540 to paint a picture of Anne of Cleves. He thought she looked very pretty, but when he saw her he hated her! He thought she was very ugly, and called her the “Flanders Mare”. They had no children. Henry divorced Anne. What happened? Anne of Cleves

Wife Number 5 Catherine Howard Next came Catherine Howard. She married Henry in 1540. They had no children, mainly because she didn’t like Henry and had lots of other boyfriends! Henry wasn’t very happy about this, and she was beheaded in 1542. What happened? Catherine Howard

Wife Number 6 Catherine Parr Henry married his final wife in 1543. She is supposed to have been very nice and kind, and Henry seems to have been quite happy with her. They had no children, but stayed married. Catherine Parr outlived Henry – he died in 1547, while she lived until 1548. What happened? Catherine Parr

One king. Six wives. Three children. WHY?