The Wives and Children of King Henry VIII
King Henry VIII had SIX Wives throughout his lifetime. From those Six Wives he had Three legitimate children take the throne, and Two children that did not get the chance to ascend.
When he chose his wife, there were certain roles that the Queen needed to play. The roles that needed to be played, however, were different for the Queen and the Other Women that he wanted by him as well.
This information piece is going to tell you about the roles the Queen’s and the Other Women had to play as King Henry VIIÂ Women.
The specific relevant content for this request, if necessary, delimited with characters: Being one of the wives of King Henry VIII meant that you needed to get his attention and keep him happy to keep him interested in you. Henry had Six Wives that made him happy, until either the next one came along or ended up passing away.
The order of the Wives that entered and drifted through his life was Divorced, Beheaded, Passed in Childbirth, Divorced, Beheaded, and Out Lived him.
When someone wants to be Queen the important thing to do is gather all the information on what he liked and his personality. Women still loved him and flocked to him for his title. These women still followed the roles that were set for them, as the Queen of England.
Of course, they all tried to keep Henry happy and help him run the country, all while they were with him. The wives will be introduced in the order that they were married to him. The order of the Children that ruled after will be mentioned as well.
           Catherine of Aragon was his first wife 1509-1533.
She was Widow of his older brother, who had died early. Since Catherine never consummated the marriage when she was married to Henry’s brother on their wedding night, this was her defense for when Henry decided to divorce her in order to marry his second wife later in their marriage.
Catherine gave him a son, his name was Henry Duke of Cornwall, who only lasted a few weeks before he passed in 1511.
Later she would bear him a daughter that would be Mary Tudor of Greenwich.She would later take the throne and be known as Bloody Mary.Â
She also had miscarriages and still born throughout the marriage, thus putting a wedge between them.
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Catherine of Aragon was known to be a kind and gracious woman, even when Henry’s eye turned to Anne Boleyn.
She didn’t make a scene even when Henry was trying to divorce her to be with Anne. Catherine tried to argue her case saying that she was a virgin, pure and untouched before their marriage, and that she still loved him with all her heart.
When that didn’t work, Henry still went to the Pope to get the divorce.
The light shined a little bit on Catherine of Aragon, when the Pope refused the divorce request from the King. He declared that it was a good match, and that he will not permit them to get a divorce.
Anne Boleyn who wanted the King to be all hers so she could be Queen and have the power that came with it. So, she told Henry to switch the religion from Catholic to Protestant, that way the Pope would have no say in his marital affairs anymore.
           Catherine of Aragon was soon divorced from Henry VIII, and Anne Boleyn took over as the new Queen from 1533-1536.
With going through all the trouble just becoming Henry’s bride, things were about to get worse. Anne had already lived through the Pillage, and yet, being the Queen of a King that changed the rules to marry her was not viewed as the “Queen” by many.
When Queen Anne’s daughter Elizabeth was born, she would become be known as ‘The Vergin Queen’ later in her life. But when she was just a young child, she was seen as a Bastard Child.
Anne had to act like this had no effect in her mood and could not falter in front of those that wish to take her off the throne. If she did, she would have looked weak, and fall prey to her enemy’s assassination attempts. When she got pregnant again however, was about the time that Henry met his Third Wife.Â
Henry was caught with his mistress, a woman that only thought it a great honor to be working for the Queen as a hand maiden. When Anne saw Jane Seymour with Henry, she was so upset to the point where she lost the baby.
Not long after the miscarry, Anne Boleyn needed to pay her own executioner to beheaded.
This was done so Henry could marry Jane Seymour.
She wanted Henry to be happy at all costs, because of the way she was raised, ‘Bound to Obey and Serve’ (Walder 44).
In 1536 Henry got into a jousting accident and became very overweight as he got older.
Jane was the light of Henrys life who gave him a son, ‘Edward Tudor. In the end Jane ended up dying in childbirth. Leaving Henry to sink into despair after her death.Â
The court had to take it upon themselves and go out to find their King a new Queen for the country. Not only did King Henry VIII to pull him out of his depression. He also did it for the Diplomatic Alliance as well.Â
           The New Queen and Wife to be, was named Anne of Cleves 1540- 1540, who was known as ‘The Ugly Sister’ (Fraser1). She was used as a pawn and when there was to be no more need for the Marriage, Henry found the means to divorce her, but they stayed friends after.Â
           The next wife to be is number Five; Henry is now Fifty Years Old at this point in his life. He was also still dealing with the injury that he got in that jousting accident that had in the past.
Catherine Howard was Queen 1540-1541 and was said to be ‘A Jewel for Womanhood’ (Walder 58). She was also known as ‘The Bad Girl’ (Fraser 1), not being a woman of purity, and Catherine was labeled as an adulterer Henry had her beheaded. Â
           Catherine Parr was the Sixth and Last Wife of King Henry VIII. They were married July 1543, and she was just a wife that he needed in his old age. A companion that he wanted at the end of his lifetime.
She took care of him and his children. Catherine was unselfish with the Crown. When it was time for his children to take the throne, she left everything to them.
King Henry VIII was a man of many wants in life. When he wanted something or someone, he took it. He had Six Wives and every time he wanted a new wife, he always changed what was needed with the Rules and Laws in order to get it.
But in doing so, he brought into the World some of the most Famous Monarchs in England’s History.
Princess Mary was born February 18, 1516, and dies November 17, 1558. She was Catherine of Aragon’s daughter, and she was cast out when she refused to recognize the divorce of her mother and Henry.
Catherine Parr brought her back home at the end of his life when she was Twenty-seven Years Old; she was later known as Bloody Mary Queen of England and Irland July 1553.Â
She later became Queen of Spain as the wife of King Philip II in January 1556.
Anne Boleyn also had a daughter. Princess Elizabeth was Born September 7, 1533, and died March 4, 1603. She had quite the thirst for knowledge as well. When she was Queen, the time of her rule was called ‘The Golden Age’ and she ruled over England and Irland from November 17, 1558- March 24, 1603. Her Predecessor was Marry I and her successor was James I.
Prince Edwardwas King Henry VIII’s Last Child who was sent away with the threat of the Plague. Catherine Parrhad brought Henry’s children back together at the end of his life, and she made sure that they had gotten a good education and were properly taken care of.
           Being a wife of King Henry VIIIgave you a reputation of some sort, ‘The Betrayed Wife, The Temptress, The Good Woman, The Ugly Sister, The Bad Girl, and The Mother Figure’ (Fraser 1).
The Queens that King Henry VIII had picked, had people that both Hated and Loved the women that he took for his partners.
When Henry picked his First Three wives, it seemed to be for a form of love; but after Jane had passed after childbirth, he lost his way.
That was why his people in court needed to send his people out to find another woman to be his wife. He didn’t love or care for her though, because of the way she looked.
After his happy divorce of his Fourth Wife, his feelings about his Last Two Wives were different.
Being a King for so long, Henry had the power to do great things, but when he was married the woman would whisper in his ear and had a hand in running things.
Back then the role of the Queen was to help the King. Without the women that he took as his wife and the children he brought into this world, England and the world would be almost completely different from what it is today.
Works Cited
Eakins, Lara E. The Six Wives of Henry VIII. 1995-2014. 23 02 2014 <tudorhistory.org>.
Fraser, Antonia. The Wives of Henry VIII. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1993.
Walder, John. All Color Book of Henry VIII. London: Octopus Books Limited, 1973.
Weir, Alison. Henry VIII the King and His Court. New York: Random House Inc., 2001.
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