Henry II And The 19th Century

The seventeenth century saw the evolution of two new types of government mainly because of the instability that was caused by religious wars. One type of government was a constitutional monarchy in which rulers were confined to the laws of the state, giving the people some liberties, best exemplified by William and Mary during the Stuart monarchial rule. Constitutional monarchy was successful in mainly in England because of the Magna Carta, which kept the king’s power in check. The other type was absolute monarchy, in which the king has power over everything, shown by the French under Louis XIV. Although these two

After reading Machiavelli’s The Prince and watching Shakespeare’s Henry V in class, one begins to notice similarities between the authors’ idea of what a “perfect king” should be. The patterns between the ideal ruler of Shakespeare and the ideal ruler of Machiavelli can be seen in numerous instances throughout this story. For the duration of this essay, I will compare the similarities in both pieces to give the reader a better understanding of how Shakespeare devised his view of what a “perfect king” should be.

People gain power through acts of honor, effective leaders take action and help others on the other hand some lie to attain power and use it to benefit themselves and their cores. King Henry the fourth written by Shakespeare revolutionized the way in which play are written and presented through iambic pentameter allowing the play to consistently have ten syllables per line allowing the play to run smoother. A few good men directed by Rob Reiner in 1992 presents a story of injustice as Marines are wrongly accused of murder through lies and politics. Through each character we see how politics affect some aspect of their lives, through various false accusations truths begin to emerge causing great disruption to the hierarchy.

The Success of Henry VII in Improving Royal Finances Henry VII was a political realist, he knew he needed a good financial base from which to run the country, but on a more personal note, he also saw the need to create a strong financial situation upon which to secure his reign and dynasty. As Caroline Rodgers states 'Henry was acutely aware of the importance of strong finances if he was to remain safely on the throne.' However, it has often been said of Henry, 'No man has ascended to the throne with such a lack of financial experience and resources as Henry VII.' S. B. Chrimes.

     Both men had a common ability to see the goodness in other men as royal

King Henry VIII was an important figure in helping to kick start the Reformation in England, even though it was not his intent. His break with the Papacy and his constantly changing ideas on how the new Church of England should be run gave the Protestants the foothold they needed to gain popularity in Europe. Although his intentions were purely politically motivated, he started a change in the way the layman viewed the church and how it should be run.

Henry II (1133 - 1189) was the grandson of Henry I, but only became king after having invaded England in 1153 and forcing his second cousin, King Stephen to make him heir. He was only able to invade due to his marriage with Eleanor of Aquitaine, as it made him Lord of Aquitaine and gave him more power and influence in France. His succession to the throne in 1154 made him commander of an empire which stretched from northern Scotland to south-western Europe. He made various significant changes to the empire during his rule. He controlled the power of the Church and set in place various legal reforms which became the basis for the legal system still used today. He was known for being ruthless and having a very bad temper, which were some of the

Henry VIII was a king of England from 1509 to 1547. He kept his power because he was able to reciprocate some of the suggestions that Niccoló Machiavelli expressed in his book, “The Prince.” Although there were many similarities in how Henry VIII ruled England and what Machiavelli explains in “The Prince,” Henry VIII did deviate from Machiavelli’s tips.

The Restoration of Strong Government Under Henry VII Henry VII’s relations with the nobility are controversial, but views of his success are subjective. When discussing degrees of success, there must be criteria on which to judge the subject. In this case ‘restoration of strong government’ can be measured by a close study of what Henry VII set out to achieve and whether he fulfilled his aims. He appreciated the nobility’s importance in local governance and did not want to ‘crush’ them, but merely control and limit their power, preventing rebellion and civil war. This essay examines the level of success Henry had in implementing his methods.

In this governing style, the King had absolute power of everything. There were 3 main government positions: noble, ministers, and secretaries. All of these positions were hand picked by the king. The king and these government officials ruled from the royal court; the location of central governmental machinery, and the place where powerful subjects had offices for themselves and their clients. The king had absolute power in everything including important things like formulation of foreign policy, making of war, secular power against religious authority, and the levying of taxes.

This group of legal officials who acted on the behalf of the king exerted royal authority over the law, bringing it further under his control. Brand comments on how Henry II restored the legal system, saying that he nationalised what had previously been a broken and localised system. This demonstrates how as king, Henry II extended royal authority successfully over the legal system, which allowed him to restore his authority over the entire country as the legal system was at the centre of justice.

Shakespeare’s ‘King Henry IV Part I’ centres on a core theme of the conflict between order and disorder. Such conflict is brought to light by the use of many vehicles, including Hal’s inner conflict, the country’s political and social conflict, the conflict between the court world and the tavern world, and the conflicting moral values of characters from each of these worlds. This juxtaposition of certain values exists on many levels, and so is both a strikingly present and an underlying theme throughout the play. Through characterization Shakespeare explores moral conflict, and passage three is a prime example of Falstaff’s enduring moral disorder. By this stage in the play Hal has

King Henry VIII was one of the most powerful rulers in the fifteenth century, who had a very captivating life many people are not aware of. Most people know Henry VIII as a berserk king with too many wives, but there is more to Henry VIII than that. Many few people know about his life and what he truly contributed to our world. Henry VIII was an almighty leader in England who won’t soon be forgotten.

It was the dream of Henry VII for his eldest son, Arthur, to be king

Henry the Fifth has been noted as England’s best King throughout history. He was loved among the common people and nobles alike for his fairness, his effectiveness on the throne, his justness, and his ability to relate to people of all classes. The kings that reigned before him, especially his father King Henry IV and King John, provide a striking contrast to Hal’s attitude on the throne. Kings of the past had not experienced the life of the common people, and chose to lead their lives in the realm of the castle. As we witnessed in I Henry IV, Hal’s father even went as far to discuss this approach to ruling at length with Hal. Henry IV believed that a king was best admired and supplicated if he was kept