(Eng. Henry VIII; June 28, 1491, Greenwich - January 28, 1547, London) - King of England from April 22, 1509, son and heir of King Henry VII, the second English monarch from the Tudor dynasty. With the consent of the Roman Catholic Church, the English kings were also called "Lords of Ireland", but in 1541, at the request of Henry VIII, who was excommunicated from the Catholic Church, the Irish Parliament gave him the title "King of Ireland".
Henry VIII (Henry VIII). Hans Holbein (Hans Holbein the Younger)

Henry VIII was married six times.
His wives, each of whom was backed by a certain political or religious faction, were sometimes forced to make changes in their political or religious views.

Henry VIII. Portrait by Hans Holbein the Younger, c. 1536-37


Catherine of Aragon (Spanish Catalina de Aragón y Castilla; Catalina de Trastámara y Trastámara, English Catherine of Aragon, also spelled Katherine or Katharine; December 16, 1485 - January 7, 1536) was the youngest daughter of the founders of the Spanish state, King Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile , first wife of King Henry VIII of England.
The portrait of his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, is a pretty woman's face, rather strong-willed, parting her hair hidden under a light brown cap; downcast eyes.
Brown dress, matching decoration - beads around the neck.
Catherine of Aragon, Dowager Princess of Wales. Portrait by Michel Sittow, 1503

Catherine of Aragon arrived in England in 1501. She was 16 years old, and she was to become the wife of Crown Prince Arthur - the son of King Henry VII. Thus, the king wanted to protect himself from France and raise the authority of England among European states.
Arthur at the time of marriage was only 14 years old. He was a sickly, consumptive youth. And a year after the wedding, he died without leaving an heir.

Catherine remained in England as a young widow, but in fact as a hostage, because by that moment her father had not yet managed to pay her dowry in full, and besides, it seems that he was not going to pay. She lived in such uncertainty for the next eight years.
She saw salvation in renunciation of the worldly bustle and turning to God (she had nothing but the title of dowager princess, a small allowance and a retinue exclusively consisting of Spanish nobles who came with her. She was a burden both for King Henry VII of England and for her father, King Ferdinand.Her mother, the brave Queen Isabella, has died.
By the age of twenty, she indulged in severe asceticism - constant fasting and masses. One of the courtiers, fearing for her life, wrote to the Pope. And from him immediately came the order: to stop self-torture, since it could be life-threatening.
In fact, the same state considerations as during the marriage of Catherine and Arthur contributed to the marriage of Henry, the youngest son of the King of England, and now the heir, to Catherine, who was six years older than the groom. Negotiations regarding their marriage began during the life of Henry VII and continued after his death. Catherine became Queen of England two months after Henry VIII's accession to the throne. However, before the wedding, Henry had to get permission from the Pope - Julius. Church law forbade such marriages, but the Pope gave the English king special permission, largely because Catherine and Arthur never actually became husband and wife.
Official portrait of Catherine of Aragon, Queen of England. Unknown artist, ca. 1525

Due to Catherine's lack of surviving sons, Henry insisted, after 24 years of marriage, on a divorce (more precisely, annulment) in 1533. He never received the consent of either the Pope or Catherine. It was decided that from that moment on, the power of the Pope did not extend to England. Henry declared himself the head of the Church (since 1534), and the marriage with Catherine was invalid.
This step was one of the causes of Henry's conflict with the Pope, the break with the Roman Catholic Church and the reformation in England.

Mary I Tudor (1516-1558) - Queen of England from 1553, the eldest daughter of Henry VIII from his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. Also known as Bloody Mary (or Bloody Mary, English Bloody Mary), Catholic Mary.
Anthony Mor. Mary I of England

Master John. Portrait of Mary I, 1544


In May 1533, Henry married Anne Boleyn (eng. Anne Boleyn, also spelling Bullen was used; c. 1507 - May 19, 1536, London) - the second wife (from January 25, 1533 until execution) of King Henry VIII of England. Mother of Elizabeth I.
Portrait of Anne Boleyn. Author unknown, 1534

Anne Boleyn was Henry's unapproachable lover for a long time, refusing to become his mistress. She was crowned on June 1, 1533, and in September of the same year she gave birth to his daughter Elizabeth, instead of the son expected by the king.

Elizabeth I (September 7, 1533 - March 24, 1603), Queen Bess - Queen of England and Queen of Ireland from November 17, 1558, the last of the Tudor dynasty. She succeeded to the throne after the death of her sister, Queen Mary I.
William Scrots. Elizabeth I as a Princess (Elizabeth, daughter of Henry and Anne Boleyn, future Queen Elizabeth I)

The reign of Elizabeth is sometimes called the "golden age of England", both in connection with the flourishing of culture (the so-called "Elizabethians": Shakespeare, Marlowe, Bacon, etc.), and with the increased importance of England on the world stage (the defeat of the Invincible Armada, Drake, Reilly, East India Company).
Portrait of Elizabeth I of England, c. 1575. Author unknown


Anne Boleyn's subsequent pregnancies ended unsuccessfully. Soon Anna lost her husband's love, was accused of adultery and beheaded in the Tower in May 1536.
Anne Boleyn. Portrait by an unknown artist, ca. 1533-36

Love letter from Henry VIII to his future second wife, Anne Boleyn, in French, believed to be January 1528.
This letter was kept in the Vatican for five centuries, it was first exhibited in the British Library in London.
"From now on, my heart will belong only to you."
“The expression of your affection for me is so strong, and the beautiful words of your message are so cordial that I am simply obliged to respect, love and serve you forever,” the king writes. “For my part, I am ready, if possible, to surpass you in loyalty and desire please you."
The letter ends with the signature: "G. loves A.B." And
the initials of the beloved enclosed in a heart.

Jane Seymour (c. 1508 - 1537). She was a lady-in-waiting to Anne Boleyn. Heinrich married her a week after the execution of his previous wife. She died a few days later of childbed fever. The mother of Henry's only surviving son, Edward VI (English Edward VI, October 12, 1537 - July 6, 1553) - King of England and Ireland from January 28, 1547). In honor of the birth of the prince, an amnesty was declared for thieves and pickpockets, the cannons in the Tower fired two thousand volleys.
Portrait of Jane Seymour by Hans Holbein the Younger, c. 1536-37

Portrait of Edward VI. Works by Hans Eworth, 1546


Anna of Cleves (1515-1557). Daughter of Johann III of Cleves, sister of the reigning Duke of Cleves. Marriage with her was one of the ways to seal the alliance of Henry, Francis I and the German Protestant princes. As a prerequisite for marriage, Heinrich wished to see the portrait of the bride, for which Hans Holbein Jr. was sent to Kleve. Heinrich liked the portrait, the engagement took place in absentia. But the bride who arrived in England (unlike her portrait) categorically did not like Henry. Although the marriage was concluded in January 1540, Henry immediately began to look for a way to get rid of his unloved wife. As a result, already in June 1540, the marriage was annulled; the reason was the pre-existing engagement of Anna with the Duke of Lorraine. In addition, Heinrich stated that the actual marriage relationship between him and Anna did not work out. Anna remained in England as "the king's sister" and survived both Henry and all his other wives. This marriage was arranged by Thomas Cromwell, for which he lost his head.
Anna Klevskaya. Portrait by Hans Holbein the Younger, 1539

Anna Klevskaya. Portrait by Bartholomeus Brain the Elder, early 1540s


Catherine Howard Niece of the mighty Duke of Norfolk, cousin of Anne Boleyn. Henry married her in July 1540 out of passionate love. It soon became clear that Catherine had a lover before marriage (Francis Derem) and was cheating on Heinrich with Thomas Culpepper. The guilty were executed, after which, on February 13, 1542, the queen herself ascended the scaffold.
Portrait of Catherine Howard. Hans Holbein the Younger


Catherine Parr (eng. Catherine Parr, born c. 1512 - d. September 5, 1548) - the sixth and last wife of King Henry VIII of England. Of all the queens of England, she was in the largest number of marriages - in addition to Henry, she had three more husbands). By the time of her marriage to Henry (1543), she had already been widowed twice. She was a staunch Protestant and did a lot for Heinrich's new turn to Protestantism. After Henry's death, she married Thomas Seymour, brother of Jane Seymour.
Portrait of Catherine Parr (Catherine Parr). Master John, ca. 1545. National Portrait Gallery in London

Portrait of Catherine Parr. William Scrots, ca. 1545

Great Britain historically occupies a special place in Europe. Separated from continental Europe by the sea, Foggy Albion, while remaining part of the Old World, at the same time has many cardinal differences from its neighbors.

Henry VIII as a young man, in the year of accession to the throne (1509). Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

Among these differences is the Anglican Church - a Christian denomination, formed not only and not so much as a result of religious discussions, but because of the stormy temperament and ambitions of King Henry VIII.

Born in 1491, the youngest son Henry VII was to become not a monarch, but a priest. From a young age, he studied theology, attended up to six masses a day, and even wrote treatises on religious topics himself.

His father's plans for the prince changed dramatically in 1502 when Henry's elder brother died. Arthur.

An 11-year-old boy who was preparing to devote his life to the service of God, from now on had to prepare for governing the state.

Moreover, Henry VII announced to his son that he would marry ... the widow of his brother, the Spanish princess Catherine of Aragon. The king at all costs wanted to strengthen ties with Spain, and even the death of his eldest son just a few months after the wedding did not change his intentions.

Moreover, the widowed king wanted to marry Catherine himself, but the Spaniards opposed this.

For the young prince, the world has turned upside down. Just yesterday he was five minutes away a priest, bound by a vow of celibacy, and today he is already five minutes away the king with his lawful wife.

Defender of the Faith

The prince, crowned under the name of Henry VIII, ascended the throne at the age of 17. During the first years of his reign, he was under the influence of the bishop Richard Fox and archbishop William Wareham.

Catherine of Aragon. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

In the early years of the reign of Henry VIII, it seemed that the position of the Catholic Church in England was unshakable, and the winds of the Reformation, gaining strength on the continent, would not affect the English.

The young king remained devout, attending Mass several times a day, and in 1521, inspired by another of his mentor, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, wrote the book "In Defense of the Seven Sacraments", in which he spoke in defense of the Catholic Church from church reformers.

For this book, the Pope Leo X honored Henry VIII with the title "Defender of the Faith".

But the further, the more the king changed. He tasted the charms of secular power, joined the various joys of earthly, and not spiritual life, and soon he began to be annoyed by various restrictions and obstacles that arose because of the broad rights of the clergy, for which the main ruler was not the King of England, but the Pope.

Dad forbids!

In his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, he had several children, but all the boys died in infancy, only daughter Maria survived.

The English king did not want to agree that “everything is the will of God”, and decided that the most correct way out of the situation would be to change the queen.

Moreover, he had already picked up the “successor” - the son of Henry VIII was supposed to give birth to a favorite

Ann Bolein. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

The theological school of youth was not in vain: the king declared that the reason for his lack of sons was the illegality of his first marriage. Henry VIII argued that marrying a brother's widow did not fit into the canons, and that marriage needed the permission of the Pope, which was not received. And if there was no permission, then the marriage should be annulled.

But all the arguments of the king were shattered by the decision of Pope Clement VII, who refused to annul the marriage of Henry VIII with Catherine of Aragon.

Revolution from above

The legitimate queen and her supporters celebrated the victory, and Henry VIII was furious. Why is the fate of the English royal dynasty decided by some Roman saint? Why should he, the king, depend on the opinion of a monk?

Yes, the pious boy turned into an imperious and resolute monarch, who was ready to go ahead to the desired goal.

The ecclesiastical reformers, who up to that time had not had much influence in England, raised their heads. Still, they got a unique chance to change their position in the country.

In 1529, Henry VIII convened the English Parliament, already from him seeking a solution to the issue of annulment of marriage. A split was revealed in parliament - the supporters of Rome and the adherents of the Reformation stood each on their own. But the king clearly understood for himself who he could rely on further, and who would become his worst enemy.

The first victim of the king's struggle was his former mentor and adviser. Thomas Wolsey, an ardent supporter of Catholicism, who was accused of treason. Wolsey was threatened with a scaffold, but he, unlike others, was lucky to a certain extent - he died a natural death before the trial.

And Henry VIII decided to cut the Gordian knot, accused all the English clergy of treason at once. The king said that the loyalty of the priests to Rome in the current situation is nothing more than an attempt on the royal power.

In 1532, a law was passed in England forbidding English subjects to submit to the authority of foreign sovereigns, including the Pope. On the basis of this law, hundreds of influential supporters of Catholicism went to prison and to the chopping block.

In the same year, 1532, the chief priest of England, the Archbishop of Canterbury, became Thomas Cranmer, an open supporter of Protestantism. He fulfilled the desire of Henry VIII and in the church court annulled the marriage of the king, after which he married Anne Boleyn.

Pope Clement VII excommunicated the English king from the church, which only angered Henry VIII and pushed him to further action.

In 1534, perhaps the main document of the English Reformation, the Act of Supremacy, was adopted. According to him, the head of the English Church was not the Pope, but the ruling monarch. The pope in England no longer influenced anything.

In order to break the resistance of opponents, Henry VIII attacked the monasteries, closing them and confiscating the land. At the same time, Cranmer and his supporters carried out reforms in the spirit of Protestantism within the church itself, ruthlessly suppressing opponents.

One wife, two wife, three wife...

Alas, the main goal for which the king went ahead, regardless of anything, was not achieved - Anna Boleyn gave birth to him not a son, but a daughter named Elizabeth.

Henry VIII was terribly disappointed. In addition, Anna turned out to be very wayward, allowing herself much more than, according to her husband, the queen could afford.

Jane Seymour. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

Very soon, the king found himself a new passion, a maid of honor. But if, getting rid of the first wife, Henry VIII showed a certain humanism, then he acted cruelly with Anna, who disappointed him - accused of state and adultery, the second wife of the king was beheaded.

After that, Henry VIII went into all serious trouble, by the end of his life bringing the number of his wives to six, two of whom he divorced, and executed two more for treason.

At the same time, the king, who started the church reform for political reasons, was not a firm supporter of Protestantism, so the policy towards the church underwent changes depending on what religious views the next wife had.

Henry VIII got his way - Jane Seymour bore him a son. But the king never found out that he had failed to prevent the extinction of the dynasty. The only son of Henry VIII, who ascended the throne at the age of nine under the name of Edward VI, died at the age of 15, having managed, however, to pass a number of laws that strengthened the position of Protestantism.

The Golden Age of Queen Elizabeth

After the death of Edward VI, Mary, the daughter of Catherine of Aragon, rejected by Henry VIII, became Queen of England. A zealous Catholic who hated her father, she was determined to roll back all the reforms of Henry VIII and return England to the fold of Catholicism.

The main reformer of the English church, Thomas Cranmer, who refused to renounce his beliefs, was burned at the stake by order of the queen. Many of his supporters also paid with their lives for their beliefs. Mary I went down in history as Maria Bloody.

Perhaps the counter-reformation she started would have been brought to an end, but after five years of reign, she died during one of the epidemics.

The heir to the throne was Elizabeth I - the daughter of Anne Boleyn, whose birth so disappointed her father Henry VIII.

Not having great sympathy for her father, the queen nevertheless decided to strengthen her power on the basis of church reforms initiated under Henry VIII.

The 35-year reign of Elizabeth I, which is called the "golden age of England", finally sealed the victory of supporters of the Anglican Church.

To this day, the head of the church in England is the reigning monarch - thanks to the passionate temperament and determination of Henry VIII.

This post is an attempt to present a historical narrative in a simple and digestible form, to "pack, pack" the history of the Tudors for all Russian-speaking compatriots who will have to take the new English Citizenship Exam 2013+

To write this article, I read various fiction books (Henry Morton, Oleg Perfilyev) and historical books on Britain in various editions, and also watched a great many documentaries and feature films. And I will tell you, dear readers, the best way for yourself memorizing historical figures I consider terrain matching, the castle in which the person lived and the image - outfits, occupation, character of this person So, it won't be boring - let's dive into history!

Henry VII Tudor and Elizabeth of York are the parents of Henry VIII.

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In the entire history of the English crown, the most famous king was Henry VIII with his six wives! Why was he so popular? Henry VIII was married six times. The fate of his spouse is memorized by English schoolchildren with the help of the mnemonic phrase "divorced - executed - died - divorced - executed - survived." From the first three marriages he had 10 children, of whom only three survived - Mary from the first marriage, Elizabeth from the second and Edward from the third. All of them subsequently reigned. Henry's last three marriages were childless.

Henry VIII (1) by Hans Holbein the Younger

Henry VIII was married six times. The fate of his spouse is memorized by English schoolchildren with the help of the mnemonic phrase "divorced - executed - died - divorced - executed - survived." From the first three marriages he had 10 children, of whom only three survived - Mary from the first marriage, Elizabeth from the second and Edward from the third. All of them subsequently reigned. Henry's last three marriages were childless.

His first wife, Catherine of Aragon, was the youngest daughter of the Spanish king Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile. As a sixteen-year-old princess, she came to England and became the wife of Crown Prince Arthur, son of King Henry VII. By that time, the prince was only 14 years old. Arthur was very sickly, suffered from consumption, and a year after the wedding he died, leaving Catherine a young widow and without an heir. Henry VIII married his brother Arthur's wife Catherine of Aragon for state reasons (she was six years older than Henry). According to Catholic laws, such marriages were prohibited, and Henry VIII had to ask permission from the Pope. Catherine gave birth to six children, five of them died, only one daughter Mary I Tudor survived. Henry VIII blamed Catherine for the death of his heirs, although the fault lay with his family, of the seven children of his father Henry VII, three also died in infancy, Princesses Margaret and Mary died in childhood, and Prince Arthur barely lived to adolescence.

Henry VIII was madly disappointed and could not imagine that his daughter - a woman - would be the heir to the throne! He certainly decided to divorce Catherine, intending to get heirs from another woman. At that time, he was already flirting with Betsy Blount and Mary Carrie (Anne Boleyn's sister). The Pope did not give consent to the divorce, Catherine of Aragon herself was also against it. Then he decided to give a damn about the opinion of the Pope, founded his Anglican Church, proclaiming himself the head, closed all the monasteries and confiscated their property, thereby replenishing the state treasury.

Having married Anne Boleyn, who did not want to be his mistress, like her sister Mary, and kept an impregnable fortress, Henry VIII expected heirs. But all of Anna's pregnancies ended unsuccessfully. In 1533, she bore him a daughter, Elizabeth I, instead of the long-awaited heir son. And again, Henry VIII was extremely disappointed and decided by hook or by crook to get rid of Anna, but this time in a more insidious way. With the help of accomplices, he accused Anna of treason, namely, treason against the king himself. Anne Boleyn was beheaded in 1536 in the Tower.

About Hever Castle It is known that in 1462 it was bought by Geoffrey Boleyn, Anna's great-great-grandfather, and the Boleyn family had been equipping their family nest for two centuries.

Soon Henry VIII married Jane Seymour, the maid of honor of Anne Boleyn, she gave birth to his long-awaited son, Edward VI, but she herself died in puerperal fever. Henry VIII could not get enough of his son, he jumped around him like a little boy, idolized him like a divine angel. Three years after the death of his third wife, Henry VIII remained unmarried, believing that his mission of producing a crown prince had been accomplished. But the tense international situation forced him to marry again. Henry VIII sent marriage proposals to Mary of Guise, Christina of Milan and Mary of Habsburg, but the proposals of the English king were politely rejected. The reputation of Henry VIII in Europe was too negative. Because of the fear of being beheaded, the girls did not want to marry him.

To seal the alliance with Francis I and the German Protestant princes, Henry VIII married the German princess Anna of Cleves according to the portrait of the great Holbein, whose image made a charming impression on Henry VIII. But upon personal acquaintance, he was extremely disappointed, and in the same 1540 the marriage was royally annulled. Anna of Cleves continued to live in England at Richmond Castle as "the King's sister".

Fifth wife Catherine Howard Immediately after the divorce, Henry VIII married for the fifth time out of passionate love a young nineteen-year-old beauty Catherine Howard, cousin of Anne Boleyn, and was extremely happy with her. He fluttered like a butterfly, indulging in the bliss of love. But the news of her betrayal, like a butt on the head, irrevocably overshadowed his elated state of euphoria and bliss. Two years after her marriage, Catherine was, like Anne Boleyn, beheaded on the scaffold in the Tower for treason to the king. Henry VIII was inconsolably worried about her loss ...

Sixth wife Catherine Parr

The sixth wife survived Henry VIII himself. By the time of her marriage to the king, Catherine Parr had already been widowed twice, and after the death of Henry VIII, she remarried Thomas Seymour, brother of Jane Seymour. The hereditary son of Henry VIII, as his father dreamed, immediately ascended the throne at the age of nine under the tutelage of the Duke of Somerset, an uncle by his mother Jane Seymour, but Edward VI did not reign for long, as he died of tuberculosis at the age of 16. Against the wishes of King Henry VIII, the female era of rule began. Edward VI was succeeded by Mary I or "Bloody Mary", the eldest daughter of Henry VIII, and then by Elizabeth I, his second daughter by Anne Boleyn, who reigned for 45 years. The reign of Elizabeth I went down in history as the "golden age of England", in connection with the flourishing of the culture of the Renaissance.

Small but perfect in appearance, Hever Castle was Anne Boleyn's childhood home, although it was later given to Henry VIII's fourth wife Anne of Cleves as part of their annulment agreement. In 1903, it was bought and restored by the American millionaire William Waldorf Astor, who also added gardens and a lake to the castle.

Read more about the royal castles of Britain here http://www.website/users/milendia_solomarina/post225342434/

William the Conqueror ordered the construction of a castle at Warwick in 1068, but the wooden fence and walls had nothing to do with the towered stone fortress that the castle is today. In the 15th century, when Richard Neville owned it, the castle was used to capture King Edward IV.

Under the Tudors, the Boleyns also owned Blickling Hall, the Norfolk manor house of the Earls of Buckinghamshire, famous for its ancient library and exemplary garden.



Tourists visiting Blickling Hall are told that every anniversary of Anne Boleyn's execution, her decapitated ghost is seen here. The belief that the unfortunate queen was born in Blickling has no basis. Her father, Thomas Boleyn, left Blickling shortly before she was born.

And 200 years later, the Boleyn family added a Tudor-style house to the internal architecture of Hever Castle. This place keeps the memory of the history of the English monarchy, love adventures and palace intrigues. There is a special spirit of antiquity and grandeur here. The history of the castle is closely intertwined with the Boleyn family. The castle was purchased by the great-great-grandfather of Anne Boleyn, second wife of King Henry VIII (1491-1547). Anna spent her childhood here. Here the young beauty was courted by Henry VIII, and it was from here that she was later taken to the gloomy Tower, by order of her husband.

When Anna got bored with the windy king and Henry gave Anna for "adultery and treason" on trial, which sentenced the unfortunate woman to death. (beheaded in the Tower on May 19, 1536) - Hever Castle was transferred to the control of the king.

From 1557 until 1903, Hever Castle had many different owners. By the beginning of the last century, it was abandoned and uninhabited, but since 1903 it began a different, happy story - it was restored to its former glory. William Waldorf Astor, a wealthy American who bought the estate in 1903, carefully recreated all the grandeur of this remarkable place for the history of England.

The shadow of Anne Boleyn, with whose name the history of Hever Castle is connected, does not frighten its visitors - after all, her childhood and youth passed here ...

The luminous ghost of the Lady with her head in her hands is usually observed in the Tower, where Anne Boleyn, Marquis of Pembroke and Queen of England, was executed "for treason" to the most despotic and cruel King Henry VIII in English history, who replaced one after another "in the interests of the state" six wives.
At the court of the English King Henry VIII Tudor, Anna was also considered smart, fashionable, very attractive and seductive, although she was not a beauty. Young Anne was engaged to a friend of childhood games, Henry Percy ... But the king (not without the help of the powerful court figure Lord Howard, who "part-time" was Anna's uncle and fought for the king's influence by any means) turned his attention to her, so Lord Percy was married on the other ... (it’s not to Sir Percy’s credit, it should be noted that at Anna’s trial he was silent like a fish and trembled like a hare’s tail - and he was among the Judges!

It is not customary to reject the attention of kings, but in response, the proud Anna set her own condition: only the crown - she does not agree to anything less! And the already married Henry VIII divorced Catherine of Aragon, accusing her of being unable to give birth to a male heir. But Anna Boleyn also gave birth to a girl (although this girl later became Queen Elizabeth I, who glorified the country for 45 years of her reign, which was called the “golden age” of England), and the voluptuous king had already outlined a new victim - Jane Seymour, so Anna was accused of marital treason, sent to Khiver, and from there to the Tower, where they were executed in 1536 by beheading with a sword. The day after the execution, Henry married Jane Seymour.

Of course, to be absolutely honest, the name of another of the Boleyn family "shines" in English history - this is Mary, Anna's older sister, who also happened to be a royal mistress for two years before the whole tragic intrigue with Anna. This position weighed heavily on her, she was married to the courtier William Carey ... But powerful relatives, and relatives in general - remember Lord Howard - are not known to be chosen. And this "loving uncle" did not spare three nieces to satisfy his political ambitions!

And Mary's name is even more associated with Hever Castle, because it is known that she loved Hever very much and happily moved away from the court here, raised her two children here (some believed that these were royal offspring, but she never tried to prove it). The lady was interesting! With joy, she “transferred” the role of the royal mistress, and when she suddenly became a widow, she married for love a poor nobleman. Parents abandoned their "unreasonable" daughter, due to which she had to leave Hever before he was taken from the Boleyns, and on a small estate, in the wilderness, she safely lived to old age, giving birth to two more children to her second husband, and raising all four with him .

After the death of Anna of Klevskaya, for almost 350 years, several owners changed at Khiver Castle. By the beginning of the 20th century, it fell into complete decline. So in 1903 it was bought by American millionaire William Waldorf Astor.

He returned the castle to its former grandeur and beauty, restored not only the castle itself, but also the park that surrounded it, and the lake, investing many millions of US dollars in this event. The result was worth the effort!

remember again: King Henry, who ruled the country for 37 long years, was born on June 28, 1491 in Greenwich. He was the third child of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York and for this reason could not claim succession to the throne. The whole purpose of his life was to, by all means, produce an heir to the throne.
By all rights, the kingdom should have passed to his older brother Arthur, who was married to the Spanish princess Catherine of Aragon.

Catherine of Aragon (1485-1536). Daughter of Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile. She was married to Arthur, the elder brother of Henry VIII. Having been widowed (1502), she remained in England, expecting either an impending or an upset marriage with Henry. Henry VIII married Catherine immediately after his accession to the throne in 1509. The first years of marriage were happy, but all the children of young spouses were either born dead or died in infancy. Mary (1516-1558) was the only surviving offspring.
By refusing to acknowledge the dissolution of her marriage, Catherine condemned herself to exile, being transported from castle to castle several times. She died in January 1536.

However, Arthur suddenly died. At the insistence of his father, who believed that the marriage of his son and Catherine of Aragon was the best way to strengthen the alliance between England and Spain, he married a widowed princess. The fact that the bride was six years older than the groom did not bother anyone. Yes, in fact, neither Heinrich nor Catherine had a choice.

The young man, whom Catherine of Aragon married on a serene June day in 1509, was handsome, charming and full of energy. And hardly anyone could have guessed what his wayward habit of pursuing only his own goals would lead to.

Young Henry VIII

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Now for the details, Repetition is the mother of learning, again:

Henry VIII Tudor(Eng. Henry VIII; June 28, 1491, Greenwich - January 28, 1547, London) - King of England from April 22, 1509, son and heir of King Henry VII, the second English monarch from the Tudor dynasty. With the consent of the Roman Catholic Church, the English kings were also called "Lords of Ireland", but in 1541, at the request of the excommunicated Henry VIII, the Irish Parliament gave him the title "King of Ireland".

Educated and gifted, Henry ruled as a representative of European absolutism, by the end of his reign he severely persecuted his real and imaginary political opponents. In later years, he suffered from excess weight and other health problems.
The divorce of Henry VIII from his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, led to the excommunication of the king from the Catholic Church and a series of church reforms in England, when the Anglican Church separated from the Roman Catholic Church. In addition, the constant change of spouses and favorites of the king and the church reformation turned out to be a serious arena for political struggle and led to a number of executions of political figures, among which was, for example, Thomas More.

After the death in 1509 of Henry VII, it must be said, a rather stingy king, the eighteen-year-old Henry VIII took his place. At this point, he completely ceased to limit himself. The first years of his reign passed in an atmosphere of court festivities and military adventures. The two million pounds sterling taken from the royal treasury melted away with catastrophic rapidity. The young king enjoyed wealth and power, spending his time in non-stop entertainment. A well-educated and versatile person, Henry VIII at first aroused hope among people oriented towards humanistic ideals.

Catherine of Aragon
Catherine also counted on marital happiness with him. In contrast to the stormy temperament of the king, she was distinguished by a calm disposition, strictly observed religious precepts and preferred not to interfere in anything. Surprisingly, despite the differences in character, their marriage lasted 24 years. Heinrich, because of his amorousness, could not remain faithful for a long time.

A great admirer of female beauty, he constantly changed the objects of his passion, until he finally settled on the court lady Anne Boleyn, who did not want to hear about simple cohabitation and demanded marriage. The king needed to decide on something - either part with a young charming girl or divorce his wife. He chose the second option.
However, it was not so easy to get a divorce in those days, and even the monarch. Here not only ethical and religious principles came into force, but also the interests of high politics. The matter was complicated by the fact that Anne Boleyn, in fact, was nothing compared to the Spanish princess. In order to have a more or less suitable reason for a divorce, the king had to think carefully. At first, he explained his desire to divorce by the fact that he wanted to have an heir, and marriage with Catherine brought him only a sickly daughter, Maria

Daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon - Mary I Tudor the Bloody

But this argument did not work, and Heinrich came up with another. He suddenly remembered after so many years of marriage that he had committed a great sin by marrying his brother's widow. The king began to prove with fervor and with references to church sources that he could not continue to commit this sin. But the Pope, fearing to quarrel with the rulers of Catholic countries, did not approve of the divorce. This only strengthened Henry in his intention to follow his own whims. Since Rome does not give consent to a divorce, then he is not a decree for him.

Divorce from Catherine of Aragon

From that time began the famous movement in the history of England and throughout the Christian world, which historians consider the beginning of the Reformation. Henry, spurred on by the restless Anne Boleyn, decided to break with Rome and declared himself head of the English Church. The obedient English hierarchs obeyed his will, seeing this as a benefit for themselves. It must be said that the Pope was not loved in England because of the large extortions that burdened the local church. The accommodating parliament put the king at the head of the English church, thus solving two problems: firstly, it was no longer necessary to send tribute to Rome, and secondly, the monarch could freely arrange his personal life.

After Cardinal Wolsey could not resolve the issue of Henry's divorce from Catherine of Aragon, it was Anna who hired theologians who proved that the king was the lord of both the state and the church, and was responsible only to God, and not to the Pope in Rome (this was the beginning of the detachment the English Church from Rome and the creation of the Anglican Church). After the papal power was expelled from England, Henry in 1533 married Anne Boleyn, who for a long time was Henry's impregnable lover, refusing to become his mistress .. His former wife Catherine of Aragon lived in prison until 1536 and died quietly. .

Anne Boleyn in Taur before her execution.

What is the real reason for the speedy execution of Anne Boleyn? First of all, Anna gave birth to the king's daughter (by the way, the future Queen of England - Elizabeth I), and not the son he longed for, and after that had two more unsuccessful pregnancies. In addition, her character completely deteriorated - Anna allowed herself to interfere in political affairs and publicly made remarks to the king.

Thomas Sackville, cousin of Anne Boleyn, owned Knole House from 1566. Over the course of several centuries, the manor was rebuilt and expanded several times. Knowle House is based on Tudor architecture. This house has 365 rooms and 52 staircases.

Knowle House among all the noble estates of England is notable for the good preservation of the interiors of the 17th century. Almost all the walls of this amazing palace are decorated with brushes by Gainsborough, Van Dyck, Reynolds, and also Kneller. Knowle House is one of the most visited attractions in the UK.

But there was another reason: Heinrich fell in love with Jane Seymour, whom he married the day after Anna's execution. He was not even embarrassed by the fact that the girl belonged to a simple family.

Jane Seymour

As for Jane, it is unlikely that she could love Heinrich as a man. At this time, he was already a flabby, monstrously thick subject suffering from shortness of breath. But Jane was so afraid of him that she did not dare to think about betrayal.

To the immeasurable happiness of the king, she bore him a son, Prince Edward. This alone could ensure her safety for the rest of her life, out of love for his son, Heinrich would not dare to encroach on his mother, but fate would have decreed otherwise. For two days the young queen suffered in childbirth. In the end, the doctors came to the conclusion: it was necessary to choose - a mother or a child, however, knowing the terrible character of the sovereign, they were afraid to even hint about it. Fortunately for them, the king understood everything himself. "Save the child. I can get as many women as I like,” was his resolute and calm order. The third wife died in childbirth, and her husband was not at all saddened by this.

Portrait of King Edward VI, "Prince of Wales" the only surviving son of Henry VIII.

Very sickly from childhood, Edward took a detailed interest in all state affairs. He was well educated: he knew Latin, Greek and French, translated from Greek. He died of tuberculosis at the age of 16 after a long illness.

The next, fourth marriage of the English monarch, which he entered into just over two years after the death of Jane Seymour, could be called a comedy played out after a tragedy. This time, Henry decided to take as his wife not a subject, but a princess of one of the most influential houses in Europe. He was not guided by any political considerations, he was simply looking for a wife to his taste, for which he surrounded himself with portraits of different princesses, comparing and choosing in absentia.

The most interesting thing is that in 1537 the French ambassador at the court of Henry VIII received clear instructions - under no circumstances should any of the daughters of the French king be promised to the “English monster”. Following the example of France, Spain and Portugal also refused to marry their princesses to Henry. Rumors that the king was killing his wives spread like the plague.

Heinrich, who had become rather stout and flabby by the age of 48, besides suffering from a fistula in his leg, still remained greedy for female charms and did not leave the thought of marriage. His next wife was the German princess Anna of Cleves.

Anna Klevskaya

It should be said that the process of matchmaking took place in a very original way. Six weeks after the death of Jane Seymour, Henry offered his hand and heart to the widow, the Duchess of Longueville - the future mother of Mary Stuart. But the duchess did not agree, as she intended to marry the Scottish king. Then the first adviser, Thomas Cromwell, proposed the candidacy of Anna of Cleves, thinking that marrying a German princess would lead to an alliance between England and the German states. Heinrich, in order to find out what his future wife looked like, sent Hans Holbein, one of the greatest artists of that time, to her. Holbein liked the princess for her modesty and quiet nature, but he realized that a perverse, cruel, already aging king was unlikely to suit a girl if he depicted her as she really was. And then he drew Anna, embellishing her features a little. Seeing this portrait, Heinrich was inspired and sent ambassadors with a proposal, which was accepted by the German court.

When the king, burning with love, first met the girl, he was severely disappointed, and even thought about whether he should execute the artist? The difference between the portrait and reality was simply striking. A gloomy girl appeared before the king, small, with eyes wide open in surprise, and perhaps in fear, without elegant manners and dressed in a common German dress.

Anna Klevskaya

Anna's fate could have been sad, no one loved her in a foreign country, she was lonely and was waiting for salvation only from heaven, but then the king fell in love again very handy for her. One fine day, Anna was invited to visit Richmond, supposedly her failing health required a change in climate. The girl left, and a few days later she found out that she was no longer queen. Anna did not hide her joy. Of course, the royal servants reported everything to their master. Heinrich was angry, but, nevertheless, he did not inflict a severe reprisal on her, as this could lead to war with Germany. Anna of Klevskaya, who received a palace in Richmond and a huge salary, outlived both her husband, with whom she had been married for only six months, and all his wives.

Immediately after the divorce, in July 1540, Henry married, out of passionate love, Catherine Howard, a girl of noble birth, but of dubious behavior.

After the wedding, the king seemed to be 20 years younger - tournaments, balls and other entertainment resumed at the court, to which Henry lost interest after the execution of Anne Boleyn. The aged monarch adored his young wife - she was incredibly kind, simple-hearted, sincerely loved gifts and rejoiced at them like a child. Heinrich called his Kate "a rose without thorns." However, the young queen was in no hurry to fulfill her main duty - with the birth of royal heirs. In addition, she showed extreme negligence in her actions. As soon as her crowned husband left on business to the north of the country, her former gentleman again began to court her, which the frivolous girl was extremely pleased with. At court, this, of course, did not go unnoticed, and Catherine's enemies immediately took advantage of her weakness. When Heinrich was informed upon his return that his naive Kate was not such a "rose" at all, he was simply taken aback. The reaction of the king was quite unexpected: instead of the usual anger - tears and complaints. Their meaning boiled down to the fact that fate did not give him a happy family life, and all his women either cheat, or die, or are simply disgusting. After weeping to his heart's content, Heinrich, after a brief reflection, made the only right decision, as it seemed to him. In February 1542, Lady Howard was executed.

After this incident, Henry VIII, in order to protect himself from being deceived by his future wife, promulgated a decree commanding everyone and everyone, if they knew about any sins of the royal wife before marriage, to immediately report it to the king, and the maidens to confess in advance .

Leeds Castle, near Maidstone in Kent, was a favorite residence of royalty from King Edward I to King Henry VIII. The rare black swans that inhabit its moat were allegedly given to Winston Churchill, who in turn donated them to the castle.

For the sixth time, Henry VIII married Catherine Parr, a pretty woman who had already been widowed twice, the first time when she was only sixteen years old.

As soon as her second husband died, the king offered her his hand and heart, from which the poor woman was horrified. And although she had many admirers, it was dangerous and useless to resist. So, at the age of 31, Catherine Parr became the wife of the English monarch. It was the happiest of the wives of Henry VIII. From the first days of her life together with the king, Catherine tried to create for him an atmosphere of peace and homeliness. The special position of this woman was enjoyed by the daughter of the executed Anne Boleyn, Princess Elizabeth, with whom she struck up a strong friendship.

Princess Elizabeth

They corresponded animatedly and often had philosophical conversations. The new queen did not interfere in political affairs, but hoped to reason with the king on religious issues, sincerely wishing that Henry would stop on the teachings of Luther, for which she almost paid with her head. The king several times decided to arrest Catherine, and each time he refused this step.

In the last years of his life, Henry was especially suspicious and cruel, everyone suffered from this, and when he died on January 26, 1547, the courtiers did not dare to believe it. Many thought that the bloody king only pretended to be dead and listened to what they were saying about him in order to get out of bed to take revenge on the talkers for insolence and rebelliousness. And only when the first signs of decomposition of the body appeared, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that the formidable monarch would not bring harm to anyone else.

Painter Hans Holbein, Portrait of Jane Seymour, (c. 1536-1537),

Jane Seymour (c. 1508 - 1537). She was a lady-in-waiting to Anne Boleyn. Heinrich married her a week after the execution of his previous wife. She died a year later from childbed fever. Mother of Henry's only surviving son, Edward VI. In honor of the birth of the prince, an amnesty was declared for thieves and pickpockets, the cannons in the Tower fired two thousand volleys.

Anna of Cleves (Anne Cleves), (1515-1557). Daughter of Johann III of Cleves, sister of the reigning Duke of Cleves. Marriage with her was one of the ways to seal the alliance of Henry, Francis I and the German Protestant princes. As a prerequisite for marriage, Heinrich wished to see the portrait of the bride, for which Hans Holbein Jr. was sent to Kleve. Heinrich liked the portrait, the engagement took place in absentia. But the bride who arrived in England (unlike her portrait) categorically did not like Henry. Although the marriage was concluded in January 1540, Henry immediately began to look for a way to get rid of his unloved wife. As a result, already in June 1540, the marriage was annulled - the pre-existing engagement of Anna with the Duke of Lorraine became the reason. In addition, Heinrich stated that the actual marriage relationship between him and Anna did not work out. Anna remained in England as "the king's sister" and survived both Henry and all his other wives. This marriage was arranged by Thomas Cromwell, for which he lost his head.

Catherine Howard (1521-1542) Niece of the mighty Duke of Norfolk, cousin of Anne Boleyn. Henry married her in July 1540 out of passionate love. It soon became clear that Catherine had a lover before marriage (Francis Durham) and was cheating on Henry with Thomas Culpepper. The guilty were executed, after which, on February 13, 1542, the queen herself ascended the scaffold.

Catherine Parr

Catherine Parr (ca. 1512 - 1548). By the time of her marriage to Henry (1543), she had already been widowed twice. At the age of 52, Henry married Katherine Parr. Heinrich was already old and sick, so Catherine was not so much a wife for him as a nurse. She was kind to him and his children. It was she who persuaded Henry to return his first daughter Maria to the court. Catherine Parr was a staunch Protestant and did much to promote Henry's new turn towards Protestantism. She was a reformer, he was a conservative, which gave rise to endless religious disputes between spouses. For her views, Henry ordered her to be arrested, but saw her in tears, had mercy and canceled the arrest order, after which Catherine never entered into a dispute with the king. Four years after her marriage to Catherine, Henry VIII died, and she married Thomas Seymour, brother of Jane Seymour, but died in childbirth the following year, 1548. In 1782, the forgotten grave of Catherine Parr was discovered in the chapel of Sandy Castle. 234 years after the death of the queen, her coffin was opened. Eyewitnesses testified to the incredible safety of the body, Catherine's skin did not even lose its natural color. It was then that the queen's lock was cut off, which on January 15, 2008 was put up for auction in London at the Bonhams international auction.

Henry died on January 28, 1547. His coffin, on his way to Winndsor for burial, was opened at night, and in the morning his remains were found licked by dogs, which contemporaries regarded as divine punishment for defiling church customs.

Henry VIII from 1525 built his own Hampton Court. Cardinal Wolsey founded this palace in 1514, inspired by the layout of Italian Renaissance palazzos, and the king brought elements of gloomy medieval architecture into architecture, and built a large tennis hall (it is called the oldest tennis court in the world), its curious feature is a maze of area in 60 acres.
Over the next century and a half, Hampton Court remained the main country residence of all English monarchs. King Wilhelm III found the palace not up to modern tastes and suggested to Christopher Wren that it be refurbished in the then fashionable Baroque style.

A large-scale reconstruction of the palace began in 1689, but five years later, when only the southern facade was redone, the king lost interest in this project. In 1702, he fell off a horse at Hampton Court, fell ill and soon died, after which the redevelopment of the residence was curtailed (individual work continued until 1737)

George II was the last king to live in the palace. By the beginning of the 19th century, Hampton Court fell into disrepair, but in the era of romanticism, the chambers of Henry VIII were renovated, and Queen Victoria opened the palace to the general public.

Tall, broad-shouldered Heinrich knew how to suppress any rebellion about his wealth and luxury of receptions were legendary .... He loved hunting, horseback riding and all kinds of tournaments, he was a gambler, he especially liked to play dice. Henry was the first truly erudite king. He had a huge library, and he personally wrote annotations for many books. He wrote pamphlets and lectures, music and plays. His reforms, including church ones, are inconsistent, until the end of his days he could not decide on his religious views, thanks to which he remains one of the most mysterious figures of the European Middle Ages.

Syon House- the old mansion of the Dukes of Northumberland, according to legend, as a sign of God's anger at the reformer king Henry VIII, the coffin with his body, being left for the night in the ruined briggit abbey, opened by itself. The next morning, his body was found gnawed by dogs.
After Henry's death, Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, became regent, and began building a country residence in Syon, Syon House, based on Italian models. A few years later, he fell into disgrace, and the palace was completed by the new owner, John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland. It was here that the crown was offered to his unfortunate daughter-in-law, Lady Jane Grey.

After an unsuccessful attempt by Mary Tudor to return the Sion Manor to the Brigittes, the Percy family, an English branch of the ancient Brabant house, settled in the palace. For some time, the Duke of Somerset received Anna Stewart, who had quarreled with her sister, at Sion House, and here the future queen had a dead child.

In the middle of the 16th century, Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, the uncle and adviser of the young Edward VI, built his city residence on the site of the modern Somerset House building. Pretty soon, the wayward duke fell into disgrace, and Somerset House was seized into the state treasury. Under Mary Tudor, her sister Elizabeth lived here, and in the 17th century, the spouses of Kings James I, Charles I and Charles II. One of them, Anne of Denmark, invited the famous Inigo Jones to redevelop the palace, as a result of which it was temporarily renamed Denmark House. Jones died in this palace in 1652.
Union of Henry VIII with Anne Boleyn was not accepted by the public, but life together was bright, allowing you to experience the whole range of feelings from love to hate ...

Anne Boleyn turned out to be not as accommodating and patient as the rejected Spaniard - Anna was demanding, ambitious and managed to turn very many against herself. The king, fulfilling the whims of his wife, expelled and executed all Anna's opponents: one way or another, even Henry's friends & Cardinal Wolsey and the philosopher Thomas More became victims of repression.

In September 1533, Anna gave birth to a girl, the future great Queen Elizabeth I. But at that moment, nothing foreshadowed the brilliant future of the newborn princess. Heinrich was disappointed.

Portrait with Armada (1588, unknown artist)
The reign of Elizabeth is sometimes called the "golden age of England", both in connection with the flourishing of culture (the so-called "Elizabethians": Shakespeare, Marlowe, Bacon, etc.), and with the increased importance of England on the world stage (the defeat of the Invincible Armada, Drake, Reilly, East India Company).

Elizabeth 1 (September 7, 1533 - March 24, 1603) was the daughter of the unfortunate Anne Boleyn. After the execution of her mother, the despotic and cruel Henry VIII declared little Elizabeth illegitimate, forbade calling her a princess and kept her away from the capital at the Hatfield estate. However, the fact that Elizabeth was in disgrace benefited her in a certain sense, saving her from the ceremonial fuss and intrigues of the royal court. She could devote more time to education, she was taught by teachers sent from Cambridge. From childhood, she showed great zeal for the sciences, brilliant abilities and an excellent memory. Elizabeth was especially successful in languages: French, Italian, Latin and Greek. It was not about superficial knowledge. Latin, for example, she learned to such an extent that she wrote and spoke fluently in this classical language. Knowledge of languages ​​allowed her subsequently to do without translators when meeting with foreign ambassadors. In 1544, when she was eleven years old, Elizabeth sent a letter to her stepmother Catherine Parr, written in Italian.

Catherine Parr - Elizabeth's beloved stepmother

By the end of the same year, she had finished translating from French one of the essays of Queen Margaret of Navarre, and soon translated into Latin, French and Italian the psalms composed by Catherine. In the same year, she was able to do lengthy annotations of the works of Plato, Thomas More, Erasmus of Rotterdam. Already as an adult, she loved to read Seneca in the original and, when melancholy attacked her, she could spend hours translating into English the works of this erudite Roman. Since childhood, the book has become a familiar companion of Elizabeth, and this is reflected in her portrait stored in Windsor Castle, painted during her studies.

Towards the end of his reign, Henry restored Elizabeth to the throne, appointing her to reign after her son Edward VI and older sister Mary. In 1549, Thomas Seymour, asking for the hand of Elizabeth. was accused of minting counterfeit coins and beheaded.

Edward VI Portrait by Hans Eworth

Thomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of Sudley

Mary I portrait by Antonis More

Mary I enters London...

But the most difficult time in the life of Elizabeth came when her older sister Mary, a Catholic, named Bloody Mary, ascended the throne. In January 1554, during the Protestant uprising led by Thomas White, Elizabeth was hastily brought to London and imprisoned in the Tower.

In St. James Prison (John Everett Millais, 1879).

For two months, while the investigation was going on, the princess was in prison. She was then exiled to Woodstock under strict supervision. In the autumn of 1555 Mary allowed her sister to return to Hatfield.
From that time on, there was again talk that she should be married off. However, Elizabeth stubbornly refused and insisted on being left alone.

Elizabeth I c 1558-60

In November 1558, Queen Mary (Bloody Mary) died. Before her death, she reluctantly announced her younger sister as her heiress (nearly killing Elizabeth 1 in the Tower). Her long reign began. The unfortunate fate during the reign of her father and sister developed in Elizabeth a firmness of character and judgment, which novice rulers rarely possess. She did not want to break ties with the papacy, nor offend the king of Spain.

Only the tough policy of Pope Paul IV, who declared the youngest daughter of Henry VIII illegitimate, finally pushed Elizabeth away from Catholicism. The Queen herself disliked outward forms of pure Protestantism. However, her minister Cecile convinced Elizabeth that it would be in the interests of her policy to stick with the reformed church.

Hatfield Palace The most significant example of a Jacobian aristocratic residence that has survived to this day was founded in 1497 by Cardinal John Morton. During the years of the Reformation, it was seized from the church by Henry VIII, who settled his children here - the future monarchs Edward VI and Elizabeth I. Many things of Elizabeth are preserved in the palace - a pair of gloves, silk stockings, a family tree (up to Adam and Eve) and an "ermine » portrait of the queen by the miniaturist Hilliard.

Indeed, the higher you climb, the harder it is to fall. But bright personalities always remain in history, becoming a source of inspiration.

The Six Wives of Henry VIII

Henry VIII has long attracted the attention of historians. This is due to his difficult life with six women who at one time or another were his queens.

Henry VIII is very well researched by historians. The story of Henry VIII is fascinating because he was married six times in his life. Listed below are brief biographies of all of his six wives.

1. Catherine of Aragon

Catherine of Aragon was a Spanish princess, the daughter of King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile. Initially, she was married to Henry's brother Arthur, who died almost immediately after the wedding, leaving Henry as heir to the English throne. To maintain a friendly alliance with Spain, Henry married Catherine. His father, Henry VII, on the eve of his death, managed to quickly organize this marriage, which was concluded after his death, in 1509. Henry VIII was not yet eighteen years old, while Catherine was twenty-three years old.

Although Catherine was married to Henry for about 20 years, she gave birth to only one girl, Mary, who later became known as Bloody Mary because of the many Protestants she killed during her reign. However, Catherine had many miscarriages and stillborn children over the years. Since Henry VIII needed a son to succeed him, and his advisors believed that Catherine was past the age of childbearing, Henry tried to convince her to become a nun. Catherine refused, and after two years of arguing with the Pope about a divorce, in 1532 Henry appointed Thomas Cranmer as the new Archbishop of Canterbury, who declared their marriage annulled. Catherine was excommunicated from the court, while depriving her of her daughter. She is said to have died of a broken heart four years later.

Disagreements with the Pope had other important consequences. The new Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, was an ardent supporter of Protestantism. In 1534, the Act of Supremacy was passed by Parliament, proclaiming the king head of the English Church. The Pope no longer had any power in England. Monasteries were closed and church lands confiscated. The Bible became available in the native English language.

2. Anne Boleyn

Anne Boleyn was an Englishwoman of noble birth. She spent some time in France and returned to England in the 1520s. She was the maid of honor of Catherine of Aragon and flatly refused to become another mistress of Henry (as, for example, her sister Maria). She had a very strong character, and, in the end, persuaded Henry to divorce Catherine and marry her, which happened in 1533.

Shortly after they married, Anne gave birth to Elizabeth (later to become Queen Elizabeth I). After the birth of their second daughter, their relationship with Heinrich began to deteriorate, and after she gave birth to his dead son, Heinrich became convinced that because of his divorce from Catherine, God considered this marriage of his wrong, and cursed him, not giving him son.

Henry accused Anna of high treason (of adultery with some courtiers and even with her own brother). False accusations were made against her, after which she was imprisoned in the Tower of London, and in 1536 she was executed by the sword.

3. Jane Seymour

Many historians believe that Jane was Henry's favorite wife. She bore him the desired male heir (who later became King Edward VI), and in the end, bequeathed to be buried next to her. She was also of noble birth and one of Anne Boleyn's ladies-in-waiting. He married Jane Seymour eleven days after Anne Boleyn's execution. Unlike Anna, she was very quiet, calm and gentle.

In 1537, at Hampton Court, Jane gave birth to an heir son. Unfortunately, twelve days later she died due to an unsuccessful delivery. Henry's heart was broken, and Jane Seymour was buried at Windsor Castle, where Henry later joined her.

4. Anna Klevskaya

Henry was still in mourning for Jane Seymour when Thomas Cromwell, his prime minister, persuaded him to marry Anne of Cleves, which would give him an alliance with Germany, since Anne's father was the Duke of Cleves. Since Henry did not want to marry an ugly woman, he sent the painter Holbein the Younger to the court of the duke to paint her portrait so that Henry could at least see what she looked like. It was this portrait that convinced Henry VIII to marry her. However, upon Anna's arrival in England, Henry saw how different she was from the portrait. He found her ugly and insulted her by saying that she looked like a horse! ( “a great Flanders mare” - a hefty Flemish mare).

Heinrich was very unhappy with her and quickly arranged for a divorce, to which they both amicably agreed. Their marriage lasted only six months, but Anna of Cleves still remained at court as the “King’s sister,” and died in her bed in 1557, outliving Henry by ten years.

5. Catherine Howard

Catherine Howard was an Englishwoman born into a noble family and was the first cousin of Anne Boleyn. She was driven to this marriage by her own ambitions, as well as the pressure of her influential family. When she, in 1540, married Henry, she was only nineteen years old, while he was already about fifty. King Henry VIII, no longer a young man, was rather obese, and could not heal from an old wound in his leg that caused him pain - in this state he could hardly be a romantic ideal for a young woman. They say that during the time that Henry spent with Catherine, he seemed to rejuvenate, and he called her his “rose without thorns”.

However, soon Catherine began to play tricks with young courtiers and, in the end, was caught and put on trial for treason. In 1542, she was beheaded with an ax in Tower Meadow (Tower Green - the territory of the Tower of London).

6. Catherine Parr

Catherine was a well-educated lady and an excellent writer, with a sharp mind and strong morals. Henry married Catherine in 1543 because he needed someone to take care of him in his old age. She became Henry's faithful companion and nanny. She also reunited Henry with his three children, who all returned to court.

After Henry's death (1547), she married Jane Seymour's brother Thomas, and died in 1548. Catherine Parr was a queen who survived all the court intrigues, the bad mood of the king and the general harshness of court life.

Well, I've looked at everything. four seasons historical series "The Tudors", my goal was to see Natalie Dormer in the role Anne Boleyn- the second of the six wives of the king of the despot Henry VIII, but after watching this long series, I achieved more, I learned about thirty years of bloody history of England, and it was very interesting and informative, despite the fact that some historical information was distorted, the main facts remain true. The action of the series takes place in Medieval England beginning with 1518 and ending with events 1547(date of death of the English king Henry VIII).

Compared to the reign of the cruel Henry VIII, the events of the Game of Thrones series will seem like just a children's fairy tale.

By the time of meeting Anne Boleyn the king was already married to Catherine of Aragon (played by Maria Doyle Kennedy), the widow of her older brother. Catherine widowed at the age 16 years and did not have time to lose by that time virginity because she is married to 15 year old Arthur only had time to visit for a few months. At 24, Catherine married 18-year-old Henry VIII. The cherished dream of the young king was the birth of a son-heir, but unfortunately Catherine dead children were born, and some, seemingly healthy, did not live long, and only one of her many births gave the spouses a daughter - the future queen Mary I- went down in history as Maria bloody(an important role in the cruelty of which her father played Henry). For 16 years marriage, the king showed a love interest in his wife Catherine while having many mistresses.

Catherine of Aragon she turned a blind eye to all the adventures of her husband, she was patient and accommodating. One of the mistresses Henry – Bessie Blount gave birth to a son to the king, after which she was forgotten anyway for the sake of a new favorite - Mary Boleyn- sisters Anne Boleyn. Maria was dissolute and short-sighted, she quickly got bored with the king, and then Henry laid eyes on her sister - graceful, educated and flirtatious Anna (Natalie Dormer). At Anna Boleyn there was an excellent upbringing, according to the description of contemporaries of that time, this woman did not have undeniable beauty, but she drove many men crazy and the reason for this was her sharp mind, refined manners, grace and beauty of fashionable and expensive outfits.

Ann Bolein (Natalie Dormer) was known as a real fashionista and charmer. Henry VIII offered to become Anna his favorite and only mistress, but Anna She said that she could only love her future husband and would marry a virgin. Most likely, the seductress was cunning, because she spent a long time at the court of the French king, and frivolous customs reigned there, but in order to achieve her goal Anne Boleyn it was not difficult to pretend to be a chaste coquette. King so inflamed by the actions of this person that he decided to divorce his lawful wife. It should be noted that it was almost impossible to do this and the divorce proceedings dragged on for not a single year, and all this time Ann Bolein it pushed away, then drew closer to itself the ardent king.

In the end, not having received consent to divorce from the Pope, the king with the filing Anna declared himself supreme head of the church England, that is, broke with Rome and changed his faith from Catholic to Protestant. All this led to the division of the country into two camps, all the people objectionable to the king were executed, among them was his friend Thomas More. Why am I leading all this? Yes to that image Anne Boleyn very often earlier they romanticized and presented her simply as a victim of the king, but in fact she was a very prudent and cruel woman, she clearly went to her goal over the corpses of her enemies, she interfered in matters of national importance, contradicted the despotic king, threw reproaches at him, then there, having become the queen and wife of Henry 8, she revealed her true face and was no longer as careful as before. Everything could have turned out differently for her if she had given birth to a son to the king, but a daughter was born - the future great queen - Elizabeth I.

Next at Anne Boleyn followed by 2 miscarriages, after which the king finally became furious and decided to get rid of his annoying wife in a cruel way - he accused her of treason. The case was completely fabricated - the queen Anna was accused not only of having love affairs with the men of the court, but also of having an incestuous relationship with her brother.

AND May 19, 1526 Henry 8's wife Anne Boleyn(Natalie Dormer) was beheaded, she stayed queen for a little less than three years. For her execution Calais an experienced swordsman was discharged, who painlessly took his victim's life. By the way, the rest were less fortunate, and were executed over the course of four seasons of the series "The Tudors" a lot of people. Could Anna avoid this death? Yes, she could, but most likely she did not realize that everything had already been lost, that the king was already longing for caresses and the long-awaited son from the new queen, which she had become Anna's lady-in-waiting - Jane Seymour (played by Annabelle Wallis).

Henry VIII, his third wife Jane Seymour, daughter Mary and in the background one of his mistresses.

Jane was the exact opposite of her predecessor. Anna- she was shy, kind and did not delve into the affairs of the state, but she did not manage to be the wife of the king for long, because after giving birth to the king Henry VIII long-awaited son Edward- she died from puerperal fever.

The fourth wife of the loving king was Anna of Cleves (portrayed by Joss Stone), because the Heinrich because of the sad fate of his previous wives, it was very difficult to find a new wife for himself, he married an agreed chosen one at the persuasion of his associates, who showed the king a portrait of the future bride. But as it turned out, the portrait did not reflect reality, and it is possible that Anna Klevskaya the 49-year-old king simply didn’t like it, who by that time had already had enough wives and mistresses so that his sexual functions began to fade.

Catherine Howard stands behind and watches the execution of her lady-in-waiting, the queen is in line for the chopping block.

Divorced from his fourth wife, Henry began to search for the fifth. It should be noted that Anna Klevskaya she got off very lightly and, moreover, remained on friendly terms with the king, and all thanks to her kind and complaisant character. That is, we conclude that if you didn’t weave intrigues at the medieval court, it was quite possible to save your head and die from prickly heat (a disease that raged in the Middle Ages and claimed tens of thousands of people), plague, typhoid, or puerperal fever. fifth wife king became Catherine Howard(played Tamzin Merchant) is a dissolute and short-sighted young woman. She cheated on the king after her wedding with his page, to which there were numerous witnesses, and if in a case with Anne Boleyn the facts were far-fetched, because if Anna and had some sins, then skillfully concealed them, then the young Katherine Howard acted very recklessly. IN 1542 Catherine Howard was executed.

Tamzin Merchant - could have become Daenerys Targaryen - she even starred in the pilot episode, but by the will of the directors and fate - now Emilia Clarke plays the Stormborn.

And last the sixth wife of the king was Catherine Parr (played by Joely Richardson). Interestingly, out of the six wives of the king, three were Catherine, and two Annami. So here it is Catherine Parr was at the time of marriage with Heinrich already twice a widow and became the wife of the king in 31 year but she was still beautiful and very pretty. Catherine Parr was several times on the verge of death, as she had many enemies. Meanwhile, the insanity of the king progressed towards old age, Henry became very suspicious and suspicious, many executions were carried out throughout the country, and the last queen could also be accused of heresy. After all, the king decided to return to the Catholic faith again, and his wife was a Protestant. But in 1547 the king died. He was at that moment 55 years- it seems to be a little, but the health of the monarch was undermined. In his mature years, the king injured his leg while hunting, the wound festered and did not heal, perhaps the bone was crushed and the leg periodically festered, as bone fragments came out. Due to problems with his leg, the king could no longer pay enough attention to physical exercises, he began to eat a lot and move little, as a result he became obese and died.

Jonathan Rhys Meyers- He did an amazing job with the role. And though hardly a king Henry VIII looked like him, but that's not so important. The main thing is that the actor managed to convey the character of the medieval king - despotic, unbalanced, passionate and most importantly dangerous! In the final series Jonathan made up, and before us appeared and really tired, disappointed in the life of the sick king. All four seasons Jonathan Rhys Meyers was different, because events developed over the course of 30 years both the character and the views of the king changed, and the actor showed all this perfectly.

Natalie Dormer- She did an amazing job with the role. She got used to the role, and now Anne Boleyn many will be able to imagine just such a treacherous, prudent and undoubtedly very seductive and attractive queen, who laid down her lovely head within the walls of the Tower. Nude Natalie Dormer for GQ magazine photos