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Henry VIII
Ellen Labrecque
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H8 was born 28 June 1491. His parents were H7 and Elizabeth of York. The War of the Roses was a long series of battles between House of Lancaster (red rose) and House of York (white rose). Both families had a claim to the throne bc descended from sons of Edward III (1327-1377). 1485 Henry of Lancaster defeated and killed Richard III, head of Yorks, at the Battle of Bosworth Field. H7 married Elizabeth of York, Richard's niece, uniting the teo families in the House of Tudor.
Henry was agood looking boy with red hair. Keen reader and scholar, he could speak French, Latin and Italian, as well as English. He had an older brother, Arthur, who, in 1501, was married to Catherine of Aragon, but he died six months later. Henry7 wanted to preserve the alliance, so agreement that H8 wd marry Catherine (who was six years older than him), when he grew up.
H7 died when H8 17. He married Catherine, and they had a son, but he died 2 months old, then a daughter, Mary. He decided to divorce her since no son, but the Pope refused to allow divorce. H had parliament make him head of the English church, and then grant his divorce from Catherine.
1533 he married Anne Boleyn. She gave birth to a girl, Elizabeth.
1536 H thrown heavily from horse in a jousting accident. Neverthe same afterwards - constant headaches, cruel and angry all the time. And he began to really eat. Thirteen meals a day left him fat and unhealthy.
1536 had AB beheaded, and married Jane Seymour.
H8 had inherited equivalent of £400 million from his father, but by 1536 he'd managed to spend it all. Dissolution of the Monasteries handed all Catholicconvents, cathedrals and monasteries over to H8.
1537 JS gave birth to a son, Edward, but then, days later, died of an infection. He wanted 'an heir and a spare' so married Anne of Cleves. Having contracted the marriage sight unseen, he decide she wasn't pretty enough. (At this stage H weighed over 300 lbs.) He got rid of her and married Catherine Howard. But then he discovered that she was writing love letters to another courtier. Off with her head!
Final marriage to Catherine Parr, who was more of a nurse than a wife.
Excuted approx 70,000 people during his lifetime.
Died 1547. Son, Edward, became E VI at age of 9. He died at 15. Mary then became the first Queen to rule England, but only for 5 years. Then Eliz I who became queen in 1558 at age of 25, and ruled until her death in 1603.
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