Henry VIII (1491-1547) was not born to be king, however he remains one of the most well-known British monarchs of all time. A second-born son to Henry VII and Elizabeth of York, Henry was originally raised for a position within the Church while his older brother Arthur was groomed to be the ruler of England. Destiny, however, took a different path and a 10 year old Henry would find himself preparing to be his father's accessor, becoming a man who would leave in his wake six wives, a religious reformation and a line of brutality that have become his legacy.
Henry VIII was born June 28, 1491 in Greenwich Palace. His older brother Arthur, older sister Margaret and younger sister Mary were the only siblings that survived past infancy. Henry was given a high-quality royal education provided by the only the best tutors. He became fluent in Spanish, Latin and French and was very interested in theology. It was assumed that as younger brother to the future king Henry would persue a career in the Church.
In an effort to align England and Spain Henry VII had betrothed Arthur to the King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella's youngest daughter Catherine. Their marriage would be short-lived, however when Arthur suddenly died in 1502, leaving a young widow behind and Henry next in line for the throne. Still wishing to remain on good terms with Spain Henry VII offered to marry Catherine to Henry, stating that because of their age it was very unlikely that Catherine and Arthur had consummated the marriage. After a push for papal dispensation from Catherine's mother Henry and Catherine were betrothed, but not married because of Henry's young age.
By the time Henry had come of age to marry Henry VII was no longer interested in an alliance with Spain and tried to renig the betrothal. When Henry VII died on April 21, 1509 a 17-year old Henry VIII made it clear that he was indeed going to marry Catherine. They were coronated in a joint ceremony on June 24, 1509, a mere 4 days before Henry's 18th birthday. Catherine was 23.
After the birth and subsequent early death of Catherine and Henry's son Prince Henry, Catherine gave birth to their only surviving child, Mary. Catherine would go on to have several stillbirths and miscarriages until she was approximately 33 years old and approaching the point at which it would no longer be possible for her to conceive. As time went on Henry became increasingly frustrated with Catherine's inability to produce a male heir, and as she reached the point where conception was impossible Henry's eye began to wander. It landed on Anne Boleyn.
Anne's sister Mary was one of a few known mistresses that the king kept. Elizabeth Blount was the only known mistress to give Henry a son, who was named Henry FitzRoy, Duke of Richmond. Determined not to be just another one of the king's mistresses, Anne rejected his advances unless he promised to marry her. In return, a young and fertile Anne, vowed to give Henry what he desired most - a son.
The King's Great Matter was a series of events that eventually led to the annulment of Henry and Catherine's marriage, illegitimizing Mary and separating England from the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church. Henry read in Leviticus that taking your brother's wife would result in a childless marriage. The lack of a son in their 24 year marriage convinced Henry that Catherine had lied - her marriage with Arthur must have been consummated. Thus marrying her meant Henry had committed a sin against God and would not be given a son as long as he remained married to her.
Henry sought an annulment from the Pope. Catherine begged for help from her nephew Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor. The final decision of the Pope was dragged on for years until both Henry and Anne could stand it no more. After a trip to Calais to seek approval from the the French King in support of their marriage Anne became pregnant. Henry immediately split from Rome, made himself the head of the Church of England and simply granted himself an annulment. He wed Anne in a private ceremony in January 1533.
When Anne delivered a girl, the future Queen Elizabeth I, in September 1533 Henry was disappointed. Anne promised to give him a son and in a matter of months she was pregnant again. After a miscarriage Henry was all but done with Anne and looking for a way out of his marriage without having to go back to Catherine. A beautiful, young attendant of Anne's, Jane Seymour, was beginning to capture the affections of Henry and he became desperate to get rid of Anne. After another miscarriage that was reported to be a boy Henry had had enough. He ordered his men to come up with enough evidence to have Anne arrested and put to trial.
Anne was falsely accused and convicted of incest and adultery, crimes punishable by death. Henry had an expert swordsman come in from France as to give Anne a quicker, more humane death instead of facing the axe, that often required more than one strike to do the deed. Ten days later Henry and Jane Seymour were married. Jane finally gave Henry his heart's desire - a son. With Mary and Elizabeth proclaimed illegitimate Edward was now the soul heir of Henry's throne. Sadly Jane died two weeks after giving birth and a bereaved Henry would not marry again for several years.
On July 1, 1543 Henry signed the Treaty of Greenwich. In doing so he had alligned himself with the Scots by betrothing his young son Edward to the infant Scottish Queen Mary I. Scotland was a fairly weak country in terms of military defense and were therefore not in a good place to do any bargaining. However when Henry put the stipulation on Scotland that they turn Mary over to England to be raised as a Protestant English Queen the Catholic Scots rejected the offer. By December of that year Scotland had alligned themselves with France for protection and sent Mary to the French court, betrothed her to the Dauphin of France and had her raised as a proper Catholic French Queen instead. Needless to say Henry was angry at this betrayal. In April 1544 Henry sent Edward's uncle to Scotland with explicit instructions to burn or take everything in his path, and leave a permanent reminder of their disloyalty to England.
In the meantime Henry had married and divorced Anne of Cleves, married and beheaded Kathryn Howard for adultery and finally married Katherine Parr who would be Henry's widow. Years of pain from an ulcerated leg and an inability to participate in the sports that he loved, like jousting and hunting, put a lot of weight and strain on Henry's body. He spent his last years primarily sedentary. He continued to rule with an iron fist, handing out political executions rather than participating in arbitration. In Henry's kingdom you were either completely forgiven or you were dead - there were no in betweens and the King's mind was never swayed.
Katherine Parr took charge of Henry's younger children, Elizabeth and Edward, overseeing their upbringing and education. She brought all three children to Henry for Christmas in an attempt to reunite their bond. To that end Henry created the Third Act of Succession, which put Mary and Elizabeth back in line for the throne after Edward and his heirs.
What brought Henry to his death is ultimately unknown. It's speculated that he either had syphilis or even diabetes - both would be realistic due to his lifestyle. Henry VIII died January 28, 1542, leaving a nine-year old Edward VI on the throne of England. The Protestant reform he began would be carried on by Edward and eventually realized by his daughter Elizabeth. His daughter Mary would prove to be as cruel as her father in her quick decisions to execute anyone who got in her way. Henry VIII was the 2nd monarch from the House of Tudor - his three children would be the last.