Henry VIII in the film and television drama
When it comes to the marriage of kings, we tend to misunderstand that the "three wives and four concubines" of Eastern monarchs are also normal in the West. In fact, the monarchs of Christian countries, like the common people, are only allowed to have one wife. However, medieval England produced such a toss-up king, who had six weddings in his life and implemented the Reformation because of the "divorce", which was Henry VIII.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > shadow of first marriage</h1>
Henry VIII was born in 1419 in Greenwich, England, the youngest son of King Henry. Many of his brothers and sisters died prematurely, and Little Henry gained more favors. The king arranged for him to have first-class teachers who taught him Latin, French and Spanish. Henry the Sunshine not only learned to be attentive, but also often participated in the church's almsgiving activities, and even went hunting in the mountains and forests himself, distributing the prey to the attendants in the palace. As a child Henry thus harvested a large number of fans.
The luck of a laughing boy is never too bad. According to the rules of the nobility, Henry the Younger was supposed to be an otherworldly priest by generation. But the sudden death of his brother Arthur at the age of 15 meant that Henry, who was only 11 years old, was bound to take over the family's business and become crown prince.
Henry VIII of his youth
England's development was already small at that time, and the administration of Henry's father and son did indeed take Britain a few steps closer to becoming a strong country. But since the state was inevitably adopting a realist policy during the period of ascension, Henry the Younger himself was the first to fall prey to political marriage. As early as the year of his brother's death, his father, Henry VII, asked Henry jr. to marry his brother's wife, Princess Catherine of Spain.
Henry VII the Elder
This was done both to win over Spain and deepen cooperation and alliances with it, and to win the favor of the Catholic Pope. However, Catherine could actually terminate the marriage by declaring the marriage null and void because she and Arthur did not have to force the younger son and the widow together. And according to the wishes of Henry Jr. and Catherine, neither of them was willing to continue the marriage. However, after the handover of the two royal families, Henry finally came together with Catherine, and this unfortunate marriage became the nightmare of Henry's life.
Henry and the first Empress Catherine
<h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" > second and second marriages</h1>
There was a saying in the Bible that "he who marries a sister-in-law will not have offspring," and this saying was fulfilled in Henry. Catherine conceived Henry eight times, but eventually gave birth to only her daughter Mary, and the rest of the children either died prematurely or miscarried. Britain had just ended the Red and White Wars of the Roses, and Henry feared that if there was no male heir to the throne, it might once again trigger dynastic civil unrest. At this time, the shrewd female aide-de-camp Anne Boleyn seduced Henry with beauty and conceived him.
Anne Boleyn in the film and television drama
Seeing that a royal scandal was about to arise, Henry rushed to the Pope of Rome to apply for a "decent breakup" with Catherine. At that time, Spain was a great empire with power in Western Europe, and the pope not only had to accept the military protection of the Kingdom of Spain, but also received Spain's "capital help" from time to time.
Pope Clemenceau naturally refused Henry's request, believing that Catherine was already pregnant with an heir for him, and that Henry's divorce application itself was illegitimate according to the biblical provisions for divorce, "unless you are for sexual immorality, you may not divorce your wife."
Pope
In order not to let the scandal continue to ferment, Henry chose to grant the illegitimate son a legal inheritance by secretly marrying. At the same time, Henry went so far as to seek to break away from the jurisdiction of the Catholic Church and set up the highest institution of the Church in England in order not to be infringed upon by royal orthodoxy. Such an idea seemed inconceivable at the time, but Henry fought for a divorce.
Henry's conversion to the Church of England will not be discussed in detail, but in short, he succeeded in using the Reformed Church to give the Archbishop of England the same authority as the Pope. In this way, the Bishop of England also facilitated the "orthodox" divorce ceremony for Henry.
Westminster Abbey: The religious centre of Great Britain
However, man is not as good as heaven. Henry, after tossing and turning, still did not get the son he had in mind. Anne, the "little third" who took the throne by opportunism, only gave birth to a daughter Elizabeth for Henry, who is the queen of the world-famous generation in the future. However, Henry was already blinded by desire at this time, and he still insisted on supporting the crown prince. Therefore, the marriage he "dreamed of" also ended abruptly.
Henry and the Anne family
<h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" > third and third marriages</h1>
After Henry made an unorthodox scandal, his mind naturally became more and more crazy. Because Anne did not give birth to a baby boy, the mad king began to plan to find the next "prey".
A woman who rises to power by seduction rather than love should understand that men's love for her seems to be warm, but it is also fleeting. Soon after, Henry found a substitute for Anne, a young literary woman who knew how to guess his mind, Jane Seamus.
Since then, Henry's love for Anne has been constantly cooling, and Anne also understands her fate, so she boldly debauchers. The empathetic Henry couldn't stand that Anne was "out there", and when he found evidence of Annie's adultery with five men, he was so angry that he almost went crazy. The king eventually personally participated in the trial of Anne, who ruled that Anne was sentenced to death for adultery, while her "acquaintances" were sentenced to car splitting and later commuted to beheading.
Glamorous Anne Boleyn
I wonder if God is angry about it. Henry announced his imminent marriage to Seamus the day after his old wife's death, and legislated that Elizabeth and his eldest daughter Mary were illegitimate daughters, depriving them of the right to inherit. Sadly, Seamus did not disappoint Henry's expectations by giving birth to a son, Edward (future Edward VI). However, she herself died of puerperal fever after giving birth.
Jane Seamus
<h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" > fourth and last three marriages</h1>
The king, who had experienced the anger of killing his wife and the pain of losing his wife, seemed to have something mentally wrong. Even historians cannot explain Henry's ensuing fourth marriage. Some people judged that Henry was anxious to remarry in order to have the next male heir, in case Edward Jr. died prematurely. But according to common sense, Henry really did not need to marry again, because he had already offended most of the people around him by frequently destroying marriages.
The obstinate king finally returned to the original point. This time, he heeded the advice of those around him and chose a "political marriage" that he had been hurt by. In 1540, Henry married another Anne of the Holy Roman Empire. But it wasn't long before Henry tried to escape because he couldn't stand the acne scars on The New Anne's face and his poor figure.
The fourth queen Anne in the film and television drama
Later in the year of their marriage, Henry married a new queen, the cousin of the executed Empress Anne Boleyn and another Catherine (the queen's name was coincidental). But How could Catherine, who was young and beautiful, with such a fat and fierce greasy old man, satisfy her pursuit and yearning for love? Eventually, word of Catherine's infidelity reached Henry's ears. She was soon ordered to be executed, but she was only 22 years old at the time.
Greasy old age Henry
Fortunately, Henry's last marriage was with a mature widow, Parr, a wise lady who was always able to soften Henry's stubborn heart with her characteristic tenderness and tolerance. Under her influence, Henry eventually reconciles with his two daughters, Mary and Elizabeth. Although the old king was still getting more and more irritable, the great woman was willing to risk her life to argue with him and urge him to carry out the right policies. In 1536, Henry finally had an accident at a tournament and died shortly after, ending his tragic life.
The king's six queens (in order from left to right, top to bottom)
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > Wen Shijun said</h1>
If Henry, who is in a bad mood, looks back on the past, he will surely regret his willfulness and stubbornness. His "worried" son Edward survived healthily, while his daughters were treated coldly because they did not receive his favor. Originally a loving and enthusiastic erudite young man, he was led astray by a series of conceited, maverick, and unethical behavior. In terms of political merit, Henry was undoubtedly a fruitful king who helped free England from the religious influence of the European continent and successfully annexed Wales during his tenure. However, from the perspective of the most basic morality of being a man, he is extremely terrible and corrupt. Should the life of a king be considered a tragedy or a comedy?
< h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > resources</h1>
Qian Chengdan: A General History of Britain, Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences Press, 2013.
Allison: Henry VIII: The King and the Court, Oxford University Press, 2010.
(Author: Haoran Wenshi Porcelain Country Garbage Dump)
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