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Who was Henry VIII?

Born: 28 June 1491 at Greenwich Palace
Father: King Henry VII
Mother: Elizabeth of York
Reigned: 1509 - 1547
Died: 28 January 1547

The young Prince Henry, the second son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York was born on 28 June 1491 at Greenwich.

Henry had a very spoilt childhood as you might expect of a Royal Prince. So spoiled was he that he even had his own ‘whipping boy’ who was punished every time Henry did something wrong!

After his elder brother died, Henry became next in line to be King. His father died in 1509 and the young Prince became King just before his 18th birthday.

Henry was vigorous and hansome. He was an incredible athelete and loved jousting and hunting.

He was very clever also, he was good at latin, maths, astronomy, cosmology and music.

This is a description of Henry by someone who saw him in 1509:

"His Majesty is the hansomest potentate I ever set eyes on; above the usual height, with an extremely fine calf to his leg, his complextion fair and bright, with auburn hair, combed straight and short in the French fashion, and a round face so very beautiful that it would become a pretty woman, his throat was rather long and thick"

And later:

"He is very fond of hunting, and never takes his diversion without tiring eight or ten horses which he causes to be stationed beforehand along the line of country he means to take, and when one is tired he mounts another, and before he gets home they are all exhausted. 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."

He must have been an incredible man in his youth.

Here is a description of the clothes he wore:

"His fingers were one mass of jewelled rings, and around his neck he wore a gold collar from which hung a diamond as big as a walnut. His clothes were magnificent to match, sumptious silks, cloth of gold, satins, coloured feathers and of course jewells and precious metals sprinked everywhere."

A Fine Musician

Henry was famous for his love of music. He was a keen musician, composer and singer. It is said that he owned:

• 10 trombones,
• 14 trumpets,
• 5 bagpipes,
• 76 recorders and
• 78 flutes!

He composed many pieces of music, one  was called
‘Helas Madame’ and he is said to have written a famous tune called ‘Greensleeves’ (although most historians now don’t think he did).
(Click on their names to hear them!)

Well Educated and Sporting

He was a very well educated man, he spoke 4 languages, wrote poetry, and knew a lot about religion.

He was excellent at many sports. It is said that he could use a bow and arrow better than any man in England. (Perhaps no other man dared to beat him).

He was famous for wrestling and loved hunting stags in the forests which still covered most of England. He played a game very like tennis.

A Terrible and Cruel King

But he was also a terrible and cruel King. He executed (had killed) anyone who disagreed with him (including two of his wives!)

When he became King the country was Catholic and was controlled by the Pope in Rome. When the Pope wouldn’t let Henry get divorced from his first wife, Henry made himself head of the church in England instead and gave himself the divorce he wanted.

Later Henry closed all the Monasteries and Nunneries in England and took all the money from the Monks and Nuns. He literally threw all of them out onto the streets to beg and gave their Monasteries to his friends for fine houses.

This time was called the Reformation. (Find out more.....)

This happened with Titchfield Abbey (in Titchfield, Fareham, Hampshire) which was given to Thomas Wriothesley, one of Henrys closest friends in 1537 and renamed Place House. William Shakespeare and Queen Elizabeth I are said to have visited there in later years.

Key Events in Henry's Life

1509 - Death of Henry VII - Henry VIII becomes King aged 17
1509 - 7 June married Catherine of Aragon
1515 - Great tournament ground built at Greenwich by King Henry VIII.
1516 - Queen Mary I (Bloody Mary) (1516 - 1558) born in Greenwich.
1533 - Henry marries Anne Boleyn in secret (25 January)
1533 - 7 September Queen Elizabeth I (1533 -1603) born in Greenwich.
1534 - Act of Supremacy - Henry becomes head of the Church of England
1536 - Anne Boleyn executed
1536 - Henry marries Jane Seymour
1536 - Act of Union between England & Wales
1537 - Birth of Henry's only living son - Edward VI
1537 - Death of Jane Seymour
1540 - Henry marries Anne of Cleves - divorced 6 months later.
1540 - Henry marries Katherine Howard
1542 - Katherine Howard put to death for treason
1543 - Henry marries Kathryn Parr

By the time Henry died, everyone was completely terrified of him.

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