by Danielle Friedl

Created on: November 15, 2008

Imagine if you will, the stereotypical image of King Henry VIII. A rather large, regal gentleman with a litany of wives and bastard babies to lie in his wake. Imagine feasting at his table and what do you suppose you would find? Of course the first image has to be turkey legs as large as the sovereign himself! A feast fit for a king! Indeed.

The image of King Henry VIII doesn't seem to fit that of Showtime's The Tudors, however that may be the only resemblance of truth that exists in the entire series, save the fact that he actually did petition the Pope to divorce from Catherine of Aragon to marry Anne Boleyn. It's impossible to know all that went on behind closed doors in Henry's castle but it does happen to be historical fact that his sister Margaret didn't marry his trusted friend and then later die childless. His sister Mary did. But she didn't die. She gave birth to history! By blurring the facts The Tudors has basically altered history by completely avoiding the birth of Queen Jane, who would be Queen for a mere nine days upon Henry's son Edward's death.

Going back to the image of Henry we all see him as a robust, stoutly man who clearly never missed a meal. What most people don't realize is that Henry was quite the catch in his youth. He was a muscular, handsome man by all accounts. An unfortunate accident while riding during his marriage to Anne Boleyn angered a previous injury and caused him to be less active in riding and jousting. This, coupled with his diet, led to the figure of the man we all see as King Henry VII.

The diet of those of privilege consisted mainly of high protein meals. Deer, boar, quail anything they could hunt was fair game and always on the table. They ate white breads made from wheat flour while the lower classes ate whole wheat breads. Because those of nobility preferred high protein diets they did not eat many vegetables. The lower classes ate them because they grew them on their land it was likely all they had to eat. Oranges, apricots and grapes or any other fruit imported was considered food for nobles. Only the poor ate the fruits that could be locally grown, like apples, pears and cherries.

Sadly, the myths of Tudor feasts don't seem to be made up. Tudor meals were, indeed, high in meat content and consisted of only those things that could be attained by the wealthy. Even the act of dining on seafood was reserved only for those who could afford fishing or those who poached from them. If you happen to catch a vegetable or two while watching The Tudors then you know you've been duped. But then according to this series there never was a fight for power when Mary I came to the throne because Lady Jane Grey never existed!

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