Henry VIIIHenry VIII

The Creation of the Anglican ChurchThe Creation of the Anglican Church

Henry VIII...Henry VIII...• Becomes King at age 18

– BUT only after his brother Arthur died unexpectedly

• Was a devout Catholic– Detested Luther

• “A great limb of the Devil”

– Strongly supported the pope and went on record stating the importance of marriage

• Pope gave Henry a special title– “Defender of the Faith”

• Goal: Produce as many male heirs as possible to avoid another Civil War

• Split from the Catholic Church to establish the Anglican Church – “Church of England”

Catherine of AragonCatherine of Aragon• Henry’s 1st Wife

– Brother’s Widow

• Married for political reasons NOT love, but both would fall in love– Daughter of King Ferdinand and Queen

Isabella • 4 of 5 babies died in infancy

– Only surviving child was Mary• Henry produces a bastard son

– Henry FitzRoy • Henry falls in love with another women

– Anne Boleyn• “Your wife I can not be, and your mistress

I will not be”

• Henry becomes convinced Catherine could not have more children– He wants a divorce / Catherine refused

Catherine of Aragon

Mary

AKA: Bloody Mary

Political Needs v Religious LoyaltiesPolitical Needs v Religious Loyalties

• Henry’s political needs (To produce as many male heirs as possible) were ultimately more important then his religious loyalties

• Eventually Henry will ask the Church to end his marriage with Catherine of Aragon

• Problem: Church doesn’t recognize divorce

The Divorce ProcessThe Divorce ProcessThomas WolseyThomas Wolsey

• Argued that it was wrong for Henry to have married his brother’s widow– The pope refused because of

political issues

– Wolsey also secretly disproved and was slow in arranging the divorce because he wanted to be pope someday

• Wolsey was arrested but died before he could be executed

Thomas Wolsey

Chief Minister to King Henry

The Divorce ProcessThe Divorce ProcessThomas CranmerThomas Cranmer

• Suggested divorce question be submitted for debate by the English university professors– Professors gave a favorable verdict

• Supported Henry's efforts to check power of the pope and to become head of Church of England

Thomas Cranmer

Archbishop of Canterbury

The Divorce ProcessThe Divorce ProcessThomas Cromwell

• Trusted adviser – Responsible for civil and

religious affairs

• Architect of Acts of Supremacy and Dissolution of the Monasteries

• Pushed Henry VIII to marry Anne Cleves

• Ultimately, he would fall out of favor with Henry and was beheaded

King sought Parliament’s HelpKing sought Parliament’s Help

• Parliament limits power of the church by ending canon law– Canon Law: church laws

without royal approval

• Parliament OK’d divorce and marriage to Anne Boleyn

Acts of SupremacyActs of Supremacy• Popes authority ended

• Created Church of England– Kings is head of the Church

• Led to the beheading of Sir Thomas More

• Results:– Strengthened King because he won control of

Church of England– Parliament gained power because never before

had a ruler asked Parliament to act on such issues

The Fate of The Fate of Sir Thomas MoreSir Thomas More

• More refused to take an oath supporting the Act of Supremacy

• Henry ordered More to beheaded

• More: “I die the king’s good servant, but God’s first”

Closing of the MonasteriesClosing of the Monasteries• Henry closed all

monasteries and seized their wealth and lands– Land = 1/3 of land in Europe

• Dramatically increased royal power and enriched Henry

• Henry sold much of this land to nobles and the middle class– Result: Provided a solid

base of support for Church of England

Anne BoleynAnne Boleyn• 2nd wife• Insisted on marriage

– Wanted to protect herself

• Soon after they marry Henry loses interest

• Anne fails to produce an heir– Does give birth to Elizabeth

• Henry starts falling in love with another women– Wants out of marriage– Anne says – No – Wants to protect Elizabeth’s

future

• Accused of witchcraft and beheaded Anne Boleyn Elizabeth

Jane SeymorJane Seymor• 3rd Wife• Henry’s true love

– A perfect relationship

• Jane provides Henry with his long waited heir - Edward

• However, Jane dies from complications of the birth

• Henry mourns her until the end of his life Jane Seymor Edward

Anne ClevesAnne Cleves• 4th Wife• A marriage based on nothing but

politics– Henry’s advisors tell him that Anne

was extremely beautiful

• Henry found her extremely ugly and believed her to smell

• Anne was only Queen of England for only a few months – Henry did not believed he could

produce children with her – By all accounts the marriage was

never consummated

• Henry divorced Anne – Anne believed it to be a great idea

Catherine HowardCatherine Howard• 5th Wife• Henry believes her to be a

virgin– She is NOT

• Henry is extremely attracted to Catherine– She is young and known for her

good looks

• Catherine gets caught cheating and her lie is exposed

• Beheaded because of adultery

Catherine ParrCatherine Parr• 6th Wife• Henry asks Catherine to be marry

him– She declines but says that she will

be his mistress

• Henry will not take “no” for an answer and they marry

• Catherine was more a nurse and friend to Henry than a wife

• They both grew to care for one another

• The only wife to out live Henry the 8th

Church of England Church of England v v

Catholic ChurchCatholic Church• Does close the monasteries

– More political than religious

• Very few differences– Insisted that English priests

make no changes in Catholic rituals, beliefs, and practices

• England will go back and forth– Edward: Protestant– Mary: Catholic– Elizabeth: Protestant