Henry VIII: Overated and Oversexed? Essay

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.

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.

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.

| Wolsey drew up a treaty of universal peace, which united Europe against the Ottoman Empire, committed the

Catherine Parr married Henry in July of 1543 and served more as a nurse than a wife due to Henry’s advanced age. The very next year Henry left her as regent so he could campaign in France. She was able to rule freely during this regency. She handled the logistics of Henry’s campaign and signed five royal proclamations during this time. After Henry died she reigned as Queen until Edward assumed the throne.

There are many views of historians that open a debate to whether or not Henry VI’s legacy was an evil inheritance. (The follies of the last seven years made sure the next reign would be burdened) Historian G.R Elton therefore clearly believes that Henry’s legacy was an evil inheritance. Contrary to this J.J Scarisbrick evidently maintains an opposing view to G.R Elton and strongly see’s Henry’s legacy in a positive light and not as an evil inheritance (he had survived pretenders, excommunication, rebellion and threat of invasion). Historian D.Loades however has a more balanced approach whereby he considers both the negative and positive aspects of Henry’s legacy by one suggesting that (his succession act would all become operative would

“The mercy that was quick in us but late/ By your own counsel is suppressed and killed. / You must not dare, for shame, to talk of mercy,” (2.2.85-87). In Shakespeare’s Henry V, King Henry V, uses multiple personas towards certain people to gain the French throne. He justifies his right to the French throne by his descent from French royalty through the female line. Henry is still being seen as his young self and uses role play to prove that he is worthy of the French throne. Henry’s role playing is for the purpose of gaining the French throne. Henry manipulates his soldiers and opponents for his selfish want of the throne. Henry uses different personas while giving speeches and physically disguising himself to gain the French throne.

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

One of Luther’s and Henry VIII’s differences were their reasons for religious change. In the German states, Martin Luther realized that the priests were often unqualified, immoral, and corrupted. Due to his lack of assurance of salvation, he felt that salvation could not be achieved through good works or payments, but through justification by faith alone. Since Pope Leo X created an indulgence system to finance the new St. Peter’s Basilica and Johann Tetzel collected the indulgences, he wrote the 95 Theses to indicate the pope’s abuses of power. The churches also had large sums of money and still had absenteeism. The church officials constantly neglected their duties and delegated their responsibilities to others that were unqualified. In contrast to the churches in the German States, the English Church was in healthy condition during the 16th century. They had traditional beliefs that received the loyalty of the people and a well-educated clergy. Also, Christianity was widely-accepted through England. Initially, Henry VIII was against the Reformation. Differing from Luther’s motives, Henry VIII’s motive for religious change stemmed from his personal desire for a son and his love for Anne Boleyn. In 1509, he married Catherine of Aragon, who failed to produce a male heir. He wanted an annulment of his marriage in favor of political stability in England, a future ruler, and love for someone else. Both of their motives stemmed from the actions of the papacy because of the church’s need for support and wealth.

supposed to be engaged to Nym at some point in time, but ran off with

one that he just couldn't get passed. Henry wanted an annulment with Catharine of Aragon, but

William Penn once said, “Kings in this world should imitate God, their mercy should be above their works." This would clearly be the best case scenario for a king, but King Henry VIII acted directly opposite to this quote. Henry was a man hungry for power and willing to hurt whoever stood in his way, he proved this by his extensive history with women.

Born the second son of a royal family, Henry Tudor lived a very interesting life. His future was intended to be the head of the Roman Catholic Church and that fate ended with the death of his brother, Prince Arthur. Henry’s majestic life was full of sports, women, and faith. The young King acceded his father to the throne, married six women, and began the English Reformation when he broke away from the Roman Catholic Church and created his own religion.

If you had to show Shakespeare’s Anne Bullen around Avenues mall, which places would you take her to and why?

Henry V is a wise and loyal king, changing from a wild youth to a mature king. He is described to be an intelligent, thoughtful and an efficient statesman. He thinks carefully whether to invade France or not which represents his responsible character. King Henry gives a very strong speech which gave courage and confidence to his army that they could win the battle. This character describes him to be a king of great ability to fight and having good administrative skills. Throughout the play Henry’s nature is religious, merciful and compassionate.