The Reformation of Henry VIII.

Introduction: In 1534 Henry passed the Act of Supremacy which made him the Head of the Church. This later changed in England called the Reformation (a 16th century movement for the change of abuses in the Roman Church ending establishment of the reformed and Protestant Churches). This essay will explain this.

The Six Wives

Henry’s first wife was Catherine of Aragon who originally came from Spain, well educated and the youngest daughter of Ferdinand and Isaballa of Castile. But due to the failure of many miscarriages and only bearing one child, a daughter, Mary I (later known as Bloody Mary). Of which he wanted a male heir to obtain the throne; he wished to annul his marriage to Catherine which led eventually to England break with Roman Catholic Church. The English Church was the Catholic Church until the Reformation of the 16th Century: after Henry failed to obtain a divorce form Catherine of Aragon he repudiated papal supremacy, bringing the Church under the Control of the Crown.

The Pope, leading to the break with the Roman Catholic Church opposed his divorce form Catherine.

Anne Boleyn was Henry’s second wife but after just three years of marriage she was later accused of adultery and treason. She was then executed on the 4th May 1536. But Anne did have a daughter with Henry, Elizabeth I. Just after the day Anne was beheaded; Jane Seymour was betrothed to Henry, ten days later they were married. Jane later gave birth to Edward in 12th October but giving birth to him she died 12 days after, leaving Henry in deep depression. It was more of a political reason that three years later he was married to Anne of Cleves just to make the Henry’s alliance strong enough to stand against the French and the Spanish. They were married for six months although their marriage was never consummated. At the age of nineteen Catherine Howard became Anne of Cleves lady- in- waiting. After three weeks from his divorce from Anne he married her. Two years after their marriage Henry divorced her after hearing rumours of another lover. Henry’s last wife was Catherine Parr and the only surviving wife of Henry’s. They married in 12th July 1543 but Henry later died in January 28th 1547. She then married Thomas Seymour, Jane’s brother, in 1547.

The Real Reformation of England

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The Real Reformation of England

As you already know, Henry VIII first wife was Catherine of Aragon. But originally Henry wasn’t destined to be king, his older brother Arthur was. And Arthur was first married to Catherine. But Arthur died and this was an important political union and a number of problems ensued. Unfortunately, church law prohibited for his brother Henry to marry his widow. The Pope was asked for a dispensation, which was quickly granted. Peace between Spain and England were healed. Children were very important in political unions but Catherine was unable to provide for him a son. At this time no woman had ever ruled England and Henry didn’t really think highly of this prospect. He was convinced that the problem was Catherine's, so he sought to have the marriage annulled in order that he might marry someone new - someone who would produce male children.

Henry thought he had a very good argument for annulment, too. After all, he had married his brother's wife against church law, despite the dispensation. This argument might have worked, except for the fact that the pope had important political factors to consider as well. Catherine was the aunt of Charles V, at the time the Holy Roman Emperor whose armies at the time were in control of Italy.
Had Henry sent Catherine away as "unsuitable", Charles would have been outraged both at Henry and any pope who allowed it. So, the annulment that was request for political reasons was also denied for political reasons.

But Henry was not to be deterred; he conferred with Thomas Cramner, an academic who told Henry that he should be allowed to divorce and that Henry should also consult the English universities. Henry submitted his case to the theological faculties and most major universities agreed: the marriage was invalid and Henry should be free to marry someone new.

Although the motivation for this was obviously political, Henry's argument and its acceptance by others should be noted carefully. Henry did not simply assert that the marriage was invalid, but rather that it was invalid because it contradicted the Bible. prohibited a man from marrying his brother's widow. According to Henry's argument, the pope had no right to override God's laws - the Bible is absolute and only God can make exceptions. The pope is limited to making exceptions for church laws and customs, which, in turn, must not contradict the law of God.

Henry was quite happy to hear the answer he wanted, so in 1533 he sent Catherine away and soon thereafter married Anne Boleyn. In order to solidify his hold on power, Henry had Cramner named archbishop of Canterbury and forced all of the clergy in England to submit to him rather than the pope.

The final and decisive act came in 1534 when the English Parliament passed the Supremacy Act, making the English monarch the supreme head of the English church - not the pope. Anyone who opposed this move for religious reasons was also declared an opponent of the English monarch, thus a political traitor. One such person was Sir Thomas More, Lord Chancellor and humanist who declined to swear the required oath of allegiance to Henry and therefore executed in 1535. Four hundred years later, the Catholic Church declared him a saint.

There were many people in England who appreciated the break from Rome for purely religious reasons. They, however, were doomed to disappointment because Henry did very little to advance the cause of religious reform in England. On the contrary, he tried to keep the Church as closely aligned to traditional Catholic practices as possible. What Reform ideas did spread were due mostly to the efforts of Cramner.

Unfortunately for Henry, he also had to endure disappointment because he didn't get the son he wanted - although the surviving daughter from his first marriage, Mary Tudor, was declared by parliament as ineligible for the throne, they had to declare that the one daughter from the second marriage, Elizabeth, was the proper heir. It was not until one of his other four wives, Jane Seymour, produced a son that he finally got a male heir: Edward VI (1547-1553).

Because the English crown employed political authority to protect Protestant ideas and oppose Roman Catholicism, England became a haven for Protestants who had to flee political and religious persecution on the continent. Cramner invited those who not only needed protection, but who also were able to help him. In the end. English Protestantism had an important influence on the development of Continental Protestantism when people eventually returned home.

Conclusion

To end off this essay and conclude I think that, as Henry was a rich and persuasive man he was able to change some of England’s rules for his sake. And his only reason possibly to have this reformation and his many wives, was to have bondage between other countries and satisfy himself with a son and happy wife. “aaaaahhhhh, God bless him” ☺