King of England Henry 8. Henry VIII Tudor. His wives and heirs

So, we are with you at the Cathedral of Saints Peter, Paul and Andrew in Peterborough (UK, Cambridgeshire).

In addition to the magnificent facade (the temple was built for 120 years at the beginning of the 12th century) and ancient interior decoration (massive columns, an organ at the top, a beautiful priest's pulpit, commemorative plates on the walls and on the floor, on the stele are the names of all the priests who served in it, starting with those who served before the construction of the temple) of historical interest is the grave of the first wife of Henry VIII Catherine of Aragon - the left side of the Cathedral, on the grave - flowers and a postcard on Christmas, remember!).

Nearby is an exhibition-stand from the history of England and the Cathedral (apparently permanent: two years ago it was in the same place), a portrait of Henry VIII - a strong figure in a royal costume with regalia, a face expanding downwards, a portrait of his first wife Catherine of Aragon - a sweet female a rather strong-willed face, parted in the middle of the hair hidden under a light brown cap; downcast eyes. Brown dress, matching decoration - beads around the neck.

CATHERINE OF ARAGONSKAYA

She was the youngest daughter of the founders of the Spanish state, King Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile, the first wife of King Henry VIII of England.
Catherine of Aragon arrived in England in 1501. She was 16 years old, and she was to become the wife of Crown Prince Arthur - the son of King Henry VII. Thus, the king wanted to protect himself from France and raise the authority of England among European states.
Arthur at the time of marriage was only 14 years old. He was a sickly, consumptive youth. And a year after the wedding, he died without leaving an heir, since he did not enter into an intimate relationship with his young wife.
Catherine remained in England as a young widow, but in fact as a hostage, because by that moment her father had not yet managed to pay her dowry in full, and besides, it seems that he was not going to pay. She lived in such uncertainty for the next eight years.
She saw salvation in renunciation of the worldly bustle and turning to God (she had nothing but the title of dowager princess, a small allowance and a retinue exclusively consisting of Spanish nobles who came with her. She was a burden both for King Henry VII of England and for her father, King Ferdinand.Her mother, the brave Queen Isabella, has died.
By the age of twenty, she indulged in severe asceticism - constant fasting and masses. One of the courtiers, fearing for her life, wrote to the Pope. And an order immediately came from him: to stop self-torture, since it could be life-threatening.

In fact, the same state considerations as during the marriage of Catherine and Arthur contributed to the marriage of Henry, the youngest son of the King of England, and now the heir, to Catherine, who was six years older than the groom. Negotiations regarding their marriage began during the life of Henry VII and continued after his death. Catherine became Queen of England two months after Henry VIII's accession to the throne. However, before the wedding, Henry had to get permission from the Pope - Julius. Church law forbade such marriages, but the Pope gave the English king special permission, largely because Catherine and Arthur never actually became husband and wife.
Due to Catherine's lack of surviving sons, Henry insisted, after 24 years of marriage, on a divorce (more precisely, annulment) in 1533. This step was one of the reasons for Henry's conflict with the Pope, a break with the Roman Catholic Church and the reformation in England.
In May 1533 Henry married Anna. He never received the consent of either the Pope or Catherine. It was decided that from that moment on, the power of the Pope did not extend to England. Henry declared himself the head of the Church (since 1534), and the marriage with Catherine was invalid.

The people loved Queen Catherine: when Henry decided to fight the French, he longed for the glory of an outstanding military leader, he left Catherine as regent. At this time, taking advantage of the absence of the king, the Scottish lords, led by James IV, invaded the territory of England. The Queen personally designed much of the defense plan. On September 9, 1513, the Scots were defeated in the hills near Flodden, King James himself was killed. Catherine was proud of this victory.
Catherine did not recognize this marriage. She continued to call herself queen and answered all threats that she was the legitimate wife of the king of England.
Catherine spent two more years in obscurity, spiteful critics continued to pester her, she was not allowed to see her daughter. However, despite all the troubles in her heart there was a place for love for her husband. She wrote to the Pope, imploring him not to forget Henry and Mary.

She lived in small room, whose windows overlooked the moat, filled with rotten water, and the neglected hunting park of Kimbolton. Her retinue consisted of three ladies-in-waiting, half a dozen maids, and a few devoted Spaniards looking after the household. In 1535, she fell ill, as it later became known, incurably.
On January 7, 1536, Catherine felt that she was dying. She managed to dictate a will, according to which she left all the money she had to her close associates. Daughters (eldest daughter of Henry VIII from marriage with Catherine of Aragon - Mary I Tudor
(1516-1558) - Queen of England since 1553, Also known as Bloody Mary (or Bloody Mary), Mary the Catholic. Not a single monument was erected to this queen in her homeland) she bequeathed her furs and a gold necklace, which was part of her dowry brought from Spain. She also wrote a farewell letter to Heinrich. In it, she asked him not to forget his daughter, reminded him of her legal title and said that she still loved him.

Henry VIII was married six times.
His wives, each of whom was backed by a particular political or religious faction, sometimes forced them to change their political or religious views.
In 1524, in the retinue of Catherine of Aragon, who was already rather tired of the king, the monarch noticed a new pretty face.

ANN BOLEIN -

Daughter of one of the king's dignitaries, Earl Thomas Boleyn. The engagement to her former fiancé, Lord Percy, is broken off and preparations are made for a new wedding.
In 1533, Henry married Anne Boleyn, in September their daughter Elizabeth was born. So, this passion of the king was worth the break with Rome, the elimination of Catholicism and its institutions in the country and the cooling of relations with Spain.
Only two years lasted love for Anne Boleyn. In his wife's retinue, Heinrich meets a new object of adoration - Jane Saymour. Possession of it becomes his goal for the near future. The wife, as luck would have it, does not give a divorce, it is worse for her. You have to understand that you can't command your heart. The king finds a way to gain freedom. If you do not disperse, then "remove" (in the modern language of criminal elements). The most convenient pretext is adultery. And "well-wishers", always ready to help their beloved king, begin to look for "evidence". At one of the balls, the queen drops her glove. She is raised and returned to her owner by Henry Noris, who is in love with her. The "Watching Eye" took note of this. Ease in communication with his brother, Lord Rochefort, provides a pretext for accusations of incest. Several more nobles are seen falling in love with the queen. One of them, Smytoks, promised to testify about adultery for a "moderate fee".
Apparently, Henry guessed that the church would not forgive him for a second divorce. In addition to divorce, only her death could free her from her former wife.
Henry called an executioner from France to execute his wife (the French succeeded in chopping off the head, because it was they who invented the guillotine - a device for quickly and painlessly chopping off the head). On May 15, 1536, the executioner cut off Anna's head not with an ax, but with a sharp and long sword, the first time. Anna did not suffer for long.
Her daughter Elizabeth was denied the right to inherit the throne.
Subsequently, the king, not without regret, remembered Anne Boleyn.

Recently published a love letter from Henry VIII to his future second wife Anne Boleyn, in French, believed to be January 1528.
This letter has been kept in the Vatican for five centuries, it will be exhibited for the first time in the British Library in London.

"From now on, my heart will belong only to you."
“The expression of your affection for me is so strong, and the beautiful words of your message are so cordial that I am simply obliged to respect, love and serve you forever,” the king writes. “For my part, I am ready, if possible, to surpass you in loyalty and desire please you."
The letter ends with the signature: "G. loves A.B." and
the initials of the beloved enclosed in a heart.

After Pope Clement VII refused to invalidate Henry VIII's marriage to Catherine of Aragon (in order to marry Anne Boleyn), the English monarch broke with the Vatican and eventually created the Church of England, independent of Rome.
The British monarch holds the title of Sovereign of the Church of England.

Anne Boleyn was executed in May 1536 in the Tower (the towers of the fortress were a state prison), where she was kept. After the execution, her body was hastily buried in the chapel of St. Peter, in the Tower. But the soul of the unfortunate queen did not calm down. Since then, her ghost appears regularly for several centuries at regular intervals, sometimes at the head of a procession heading to the chapel of St. Peter, sometimes alone in different places in the old fortress: at the place where the execution took place ...

JANE SAYMOUR

In September 1535, while traveling through the country, the King and Queen stopped at Wulfhall, the Seymours' hereditary domain. It was there that Henry first paid close attention to the owner's daughter, Lady Jane Seymour. She was the complete opposite of Anna, both in appearance and in character: a blond, pale, calm and modest girl. If everyone compared Anna to a witch - she was thin, dark-haired and black-eyed, and besides, impudent and capricious, then Jane looked more like a bright angel, the embodiment of peace and humility.

Jane was educated just enough to be able to read and write. The main emphasis in the education of girls from noble families in the 16th century was placed on traditional women's activities, such as needlework and housekeeping.

She first appeared at court as a lady-in-waiting to Catherine of Aragon in the mid-1520s. Her older brother, Edward Seymour, by that time had already achieved some success in the career of a courtier: as a child, he served as a page in the retinue of the "French Queen" Mary Tudor, and upon his return to England, he held various positions under the king and Cardinal Wolsey.

Following the annulment of Catherine's marriage and Henry's marriage to Anne Boleyn in 1533, Jane and her sister Elizabeth moved into the new queen's staff.

Lady Jane's brothers, Thomas and Edward, on the contrary, were brought up at the king's court from childhood (they were pages), and subsequently occupied various lucrative positions. Therefore, there was nothing surprising in the fact that from the mid-1520s, their sister Jane was adopted as a lady-in-waiting to Queen Catherine of Aragon.

After Anne Boleyn became queen, Lady Jane passed "at the disposal" of the new lady.
On Christmas Day 1533, the King gave gifts to several ladies-in-waiting, Lady Seymour among those honored.

After Anne Boleyn "disappointed" the king - instead of the desired son she gave birth to a girl (the future Elizabeth I), relations between Henry and the queen began to noticeably worsen. Moreover, Anna was intolerant, quick-tempered and ambitious. Having made many enemies at court, the queen gradually turned Henry and Henry away from herself. The years 1534 and 1535 were spent in family scandals, stormy showdowns and the vain expectation of another queen's pregnancy.

It was at this time, in 1535, that the king became interested in the modest maid of honor Seymour. She was the complete opposite of Anna: blond, pale, very quiet and in agreement with everyone. If Anna was compared with a witch, and even with a witch - she was thin, dark-haired and black-eyed, then Jane looked much more like a bright angel.

The King marries Jane Cymour. The royal wedding of 1536 was unusually modest. In the spring of 1537, Jane informed Henry of her pregnancy. The king surrounded his wife with unprecedented care and fulfilled all her requirements and whims.

The heir was born healthy, handsome and similar to both spouses. But only Jane was not destined to rejoice ...
For two days the young queen suffered in childbirth. I had to choose - mother or child. Doctors, knowing the explosive nature of the sovereign, were even afraid to hint about it. "Save the child. I can get as many women as I like,” was the decisive and calm answer.
Jane died of puerperal fever. According to Henry VIII, Jane Seymour was his most beloved wife. Before his death, he bequeathed to bury himself next to her.

Known is the portrait of Jane Saymour, the third wife of King Henry VIII Tudor of England (years of her life: c. 1508/1509 - October 24, 1537) by Hans Holbein the Younger, c. 1536-37
The famous ballad of the English group The Rolling Stones "Lady Jane" is dedicated to Jane Seymour and is based on the letters of King Henry VIII. The song also mentions Anna Boleyn (lady Ann) and Mary Boleyn (Mary). Each of the three women has their own verse.

ANNA KLEVSKAYA

In Europe, the monarch, so cold-bloodedly getting rid of his wives, began to be afraid.
In 1539, Henry VIII met his "beloved", Princess Anna of Cleves, from a portrait. The daughter of the Duke of Cleves - Johann III and Maria von Geldern - was born on September 22, 1515, in Düsseldorf.
The portrait of Anna, painted by the great artist Holbein, made an excellent impression on the 48-year-old Heinrich. He was not embarrassed by the fact that his chosen one was not for a long time betrothed to the Duke of Lorraine - according to English law, a new marriage could not be considered legitimate.

On September 4, 1539, the marriage contract was signed. At the very beginning of 1540, Anna arrived in England. The first meeting of the bride and groom took place in Rochester, where Henry arrived as a private person.

One look at Anna was enough - the king was disappointed. Instead of the pale and graceful beauty that Holbein portrayed, Heinrich was confronted by a large, massive woman with rather rough features. Straightforward Henry took out all his anger on Cromwell, who allegedly "slipped him a hefty Flemish mare."
The original was quite disappointing. Probably, it was not Anna's appearance that was repulsive at all, but her stiffness, inability to stay in society, the cut of her clothes, unusual for the king's eyes, and the lack of proper grace.
"Where did you find this scarecrow? Send her back immediately! ”He got angry at Cromwell (the Protestant party, led by the favorite and first minister of the king, Thomas Cromwell, found the bride for the king). "It's impossible, Your Majesty! If you break the marriage contract, Europe may declare war on England."
Anna did not like Heinrich either, besides, she heard rumors about the ruined Anne Boleyn even in Kleve.
Heinrich resigned himself, but he could not fulfill his conjugal duty. For six months, the Princess of Cleves lived in England - her husband did not honor her with his attention.
Anna was a kind stepmother to both Prince Edward and Princesses Betsy and Mary.
She got used to the English court: she fell in love with music and dancing, got herself dogs and parrots.
The divorce of the spouses went, surprisingly, calmly. Anna, having judged everything sensibly and sorted out all the pros and cons, gathered the Privy Council to give an answer to the divorce proposal.
Heinrich left Anna in his family - as a "sister". This was dictated by a number of circumstances: Anna of Klevskaya fell in love with the children of the king, a number of courtiers found her an extremely amiable and pleasant woman. Heinrich did not want to come into conflict with Anna's brother, the Duke of Berg-Julig-Cleve, who was one of the most influential rulers of Germany. And Anna herself sincerely fell in love with her new homeland.

Henry proclaimed Anna his "sister" and thus she remained the most noble lady after the new queen and princesses Mary and Betsy. Anna received generous gifts from the king: the castles of Richmond and Hever, as well as a solid annual income.

The correspondence between Heinrich and Anna suggests that the former spouses lived very friendly. The king always signed his messages "Loving Brother Heinrich".

The instigator of this marriage, Thomas Cromwell, was arrested and placed in the Tower. He lived only to testify in the divorce case - on June 28, 1540, he was executed on charges of treason and heresy.
Anna did not remarry. She survived both Henry VIII and his son Edward VI. Anna von Cleve died on July 16, 1557 in London.

Anna of Cleves was buried in Westminster Abbey.

KATE HOWARD

In July 1540, Henry married 19-year-old Kate Howard. The wedding was modest.
After the wedding, Henry seemed to be 20 years younger - tournaments, balls and other entertainment resumed at the court, to which Henry remained indifferent after the execution of Anne Boleyn. He adored his young wife - she was incredibly kind, simple-minded, sincerely loved gifts and rejoiced at them like a child. Heinrich called Kate "a rose without thorns."
However, young Howard was extremely careless in her actions - Kate took all her "friends of youth" to the court, and they knew too much about the queen's life before marriage. In addition, Kate renewed her relationship with Francis Dirham, whom she made her personal secretary.
Then another gentleman from the "past life" appeared at the court - Thomas Kelpeper (Kate's distant relative on the maternal side, whom she once wanted to marry).

However, the young woman had enemies at court (or rather, they were the enemies of her influential uncle Norfolk...
The innocence of the young "rose" began to irritate the elderly king.
When Heinrich was informed that his naive Kate was not such a "rose" at all, he was simply confused. The reaction of the king was quite unexpected - instead of the usual anger, there were tears and complaints. The meaning of the complaints boiled down to the fact that fate did not give him a happy family life, and all his women either cheat, or die, or are simply disgusting.
In early February 1542, Lady Howard was transferred to the Tower, and two days later she was beheaded in front of a curious crowd. The young woman met her death in a state of deep shock - she had to be carried to the place of execution.
After the execution, the body of Lady Kate was buried next to the remains of Anne Boleyn, another executed queen, who, by the way, was also a relative of the Howards.

Feeling in my heart that I am unloved,
Henry the Eighth executed his wives.

KATERINA PARR

Henry's sixth wife is Katherine Parr, daughter of a baronet, widow of the elderly Lord Edward Borough. Young Kat Parr was only 14 or 15 years old when she was married in 1526 to an elderly, sixty-three-year-old lord. Family life spouse was quite happy. Moreover, Catherine managed to become a true friend for the children of Lord Borough, who were almost twice as old as their stepmother. However, in 1529 Lady Borough became a widow.
In 1530, the young widow received a new marriage proposal. It came from John Neville, Lord Latimer, a widower. Accepting this offer, Lady Catherine moved to her husband in Snape Castle. Here she again found herself in the role of a stepmother - Latimer had a daughter, Margaret, from her first marriage.
In the second half of the 1530s, the Latimers were often at the court of the king, and Henry VIII treated this couple very friendly.

After the execution of his fifth wife, Catherine Howard, Henry increasingly drew attention to the smart and friendly Lady Latimer. She was already thirty-one years old, which by the standards of the 16th century was not considered the age of youth, however, the king himself was far from young.

Lord Latimer at that time was already seriously ill and, alas, there was no hope of recovery. When he died in 1543, the king began to aggressively court Lady Latimer.
Lady Latimer's first reaction to the King's offer to be his "comfort in old age" was fright. However, Heinrich did not abandon his intention to marry Catherine and, in the end, she gave her consent.

On July 12, 1543, the wedding took place in the royal chapel of Hampton Court. The wedding was played in Windsor.
From the very first days of his living together with Heinrich, Catherine tried to create conditions for a normal family life for him. Princess Elizabeth, the daughter of the executed Anne Boleyn, enjoyed her special disposition.
A strong friendship developed between the stepmother and stepdaughter - they corresponded actively and often had philosophical conversations.
Clever and energetic, Catherine skillfully neutralizes the court intrigues weaving against her. Despite the increased suspicion of her husband, Katerina throughout the four years of marriage does not give him a reason for discontent.
In 1545 - 1546, the king's health deteriorated so much that he could no longer fully engage in solving state problems. However, the suspiciousness and suspicion of the king, on the contrary, began to acquire a threatening character. Catherine was several times, as they say, on the verge of death: the queen had influential enemies, and, in the end, the king could believe them, and not his wife. The king several times decided to arrest Catherine, and each time he refused this step. The reason for the royal disfavor was mainly the radical Protestantism of Catherine, who was carried away by the ideas of Luther. January 28, 1547, at two o'clock in the morning, Henry VIII died. And in May of the same year, the Queen Dowager married Thomas Seymour, sibling Jane Seymour.

Who knows, perhaps Henry VIII served as a prototype for the character of Charles Perrault's fairy tale "Bluebeard" (Perrault wrote it down in the 17th century in France, the name of the hero is Gilles de Ré.
The last wife of Bluebeard does not have a name in the fairy tale, but her older sister's name is Anna)?..

"Once upon a time there was a man who had beautiful houses both in the city and in the countryside, dishes, gold and silver, furniture all embroidered and gilded carriages from top to bottom. But, unfortunately, this man had a blue beard ..."

Heinrich and his wives:
By The king "s Singer" s Greensleeves ... A ballad written by Henry VIII for his second wife, Anne Boleyn
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmOb5H8kL30&feature=share
http://elkipalki.net/author/lavinia/2009-02-19/

Photo: "mysterious" woman... amazing Hans Holbein.
Portrait of a Lady 1535-40
Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, Ohio
Portraits of Henry VIII and his (Family)
JANE SAYMOUR?

On January 28, 1547, King Henry VIII Tudor of England died at Whitehall Palace. Much can be said about the reign of this sovereign. But he is known to the general public mainly due to his numerous marriages (Henry VIII had six wives). Many researchers believe that the main reason for the divorces and executions of wives objectionable to Henry was the desire to keep the throne of England for the young Tudor dynasty. Be that as it may, this desire of Henry VIII was granted: on October 12, 1537, his long-awaited son and heir, Edward, was born. His mother was Henry's third wife, Jane Seymour.

Edward VI - the unfulfilled hope of the dynasty

To have an heir to the dynasty was one of the most cherished desires of Henry VIII. Only his third wife, who died shortly after giving birth, was able to realize this dream. The newborn prince became a real joy not only for parents, but for the whole of England, because he guaranteed peace and stability in the state.

The question of Edward's health is still controversial. Some researchers say that he was a sickly child from birth. Others - that he had good health, despite the diseases common at that time, which he did not escape.

When Henry VIII died, Edward was only 9 years old. For several years before the death of Henry VIII, peace and tranquility reigned in the royal family. Moreover, leaving a will, the king did not forget to mention his daughters in it. Henry pointed out that in the absence of Edward's heirs, the next ruler of England was to be Mary and her heirs, and after her, Elizabeth and her heirs.

The guardian of the little king was appointed maternal uncle, Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset. The boy received an excellent education. He knew French, Greek and Latin, was interested in state affairs and was a staunch Protestant. During the short period of his reign, a Protestant catechism was written, the Book of Prayers was republished, and some reforms of Protestant worship were carried out.

A lot of intrigue was woven around the young king. His uncle, the Duke of Somerset, who had taken care of him, was deposed in 1551 by the Earl of Warwick, who later became the Duke of Northumberland. Somerset was temporarily imprisoned, and when he got out of it, he immediately tried to regain the favor of the king. However, his opponent by that time was already very strong and, as a result, the Duke of Somerset was executed allegedly for participating in illegal meetings.

The Duke of Northumberland had very far-reaching plans. He managed to persuade the young king to bequeath the throne to Jane Grey, who was the great-granddaughter of Henry VII. The duke planned to marry this young lady to his son, thus founding a new dynasty. At the same time, neither Northumberland nor the king was in the least concerned about the presence of two older sisters in Edward, who were the granddaughters of the founder of the dynasty and who, accordingly, had much more rights to the throne than Jane Gray. The eldest of Henry VIII's daughters, Mary, was a fierce Catholic. It was this fact that forced the young king, unlike his sister, who adhered to the Protestant faith, to bequeath the throne to Jane. Three days after signing the will, Edward VI suddenly fell ill. His guardian, for one reason known to him, removed the doctors from the king, sending a healer in their place.

Edward VI, the hope of the Tudors, died before his 16th birthday. Jane Gray was declared queen. Alas, the English people did not agree with the decision of their young king. The new queen lasted only nine days on the throne. She, along with the ambitious Duke of Northumberland, was accused of treason, arrested and executed. And the eldest daughter of Henry VIII, Mary, ascended the throne.

Mary the Bloody

On February 18, 1516, the King of England Henry VIII Tudor and his first wife Catherine of Aragon had another child, which became a great joy, because little Mary was their first healthy child who did not die immediately after birth. Although Maria was a girl, her birth gave hope that Catherine would be able to give birth to a long-awaited son.

The little princess was surrounded by a magnificent retinue. And by the end of 1518, her future fate was also decided: she was betrothed to the heir of the French king Francis I. In the marriage agreement concluded by the two rulers, there was also a clause according to which Mary became heir to the throne if Henry died sons. However, the king himself at that time had not yet seriously considered such a prospect.

Mary was given an excellent education. She was taught to speak and write correctly in Latin and Greek. She studied art and poetry, and also learned to ride and hunt with a falcon. However, in the program of her education, there were no subjects at all that could prepare her for ruling the country. After all, her father, the king, did not consider such an opportunity at all. However, over time it became increasingly clear that Catherine would not be able to give birth to an heir to the king, and Mary was given the title of Princess of Wales, which was usually given to heirs to the crown. The girl at that time was 9 years old, and she was already engaged for the second time - with the son of the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.

Mary's life changed dramatically in 1527, when Henry annulled his marriage to her mother, Catherine of Aragon. The young princess was declared illegitimate and removed from the palace. The biggest stumbling block was religion. Catherine of Aragon raised her only daughter as a fierce Catholic, and her father demanded that she convert to Protestantism. The girl refused. When Henry married Anne Boleyn and she gave birth to his second daughter, Mary was returned to the court and assigned to the "legitimate" Princess Elizabeth. The new queen did not particularly favor her stepdaughter and often tore her by the ears.

However, Anne Boleyn did not stay on the royal throne for long, and soon Mary reluctantly recognized her father as the "Supreme Head of the Anglican Church." After that, she was returned to the retinue that was due to the princess. And soon the king married a third time. His wife turned out to be a sweet and kind woman who not only gave birth to his long-awaited son, but also warmed his daughters. Unfortunately, another stepmother died shortly after the birth of the child.

By the time of Henry VIII's death, Mary was already 31 years old. She did not marry during her father's lifetime, and after his death her marriage became even dangerous for those around her young brother-king. Therefore, she was kept away from the palace and from possible contenders for her hand. Young Edward was brought up in a deep dislike for his older sister. The 9-year-old boy was a staunch Protestant, and his sister Mary was an equally staunch Catholic. It was this contradiction that prompted him to deprive Mary of her right to inherit the throne.

Of course, Mary did not accept this will. Upon learning of Edward's death, she came to London. The fleet and army went over to her side, and the Privy Council declared her queen. The unfortunate Jane Grey, appointed by Edward as his heiress, was executed.

Upon assuming the throne, Mary first of all faced the same problem as her father: she desperately needed an heir. At that time, she was already almost 38 years old, and she did not differ in special beauty. However, as soon as she received the throne, a groom was immediately found for her - the heir to the Spanish throne, Philip, who was 12 years younger than her. He agreed to marry Mary for purely political reasons; he rarely came to England, where he was not particularly favored. But Maria, judging by the letters and reviews of her contemporaries, had rather tender feelings for him.

Other important tasks of Mary were the strengthening of Catholicism in England and the revival of the country, which had become impoverished under Edward. The reign of Mary, which began with the execution of Jane Gray, who was just a pawn in the hands of cunning relatives, was marked by a series of arrests and executions of Protestants. About three hundred people - especially ardent Protestants and representatives of the Anglican Church - were burned at the stake. Even those who agreed to accept Catholicism were not spared. All these people were not just Protestants, it was through their efforts that the Reformation took place in England, and, accordingly, the split of the country. But the cruelty with which they were executed led to the fact that during the reign of Elizabeth I, Mary was given the nickname Bloody.

Medieval Europe is a world of merciless epidemics that claimed tens of thousands of lives and made no distinction between commoners and noble people. The Queen of England was no exception. The disease proceeded rather sluggishly, and Maria had time to think about the future of her country. Her marriage to Philip never produced a coveted heir for England. The only heir was a Protestant sister, born Anne Boleyn. On November 8, 1558, Mary conveyed her verbal blessing to Elizabeth, and on November 17 she died.

Mary Tudor, who ruled England for only a few years, became a rather iconic figure in the history of the country. She became the first woman on the English throne. But, alas, she also became the queen, to whom not a single monument was erected in her homeland. The day of her death was celebrated in England as National holiday, and her entire reign is remembered as a series of cruel executions, for which her descendants named her Bloody Mary.

Good Queen Bess, or the last of the Tudors

September 7, 1533 London froze in anticipation: the second wife of King Henry VIII, his adored Anna, was about to give birth to a child. And England, led by her king, was looking forward to her son. Their hopes were not destined to come true: the child was born healthy and strong, but alas, it was another girl. The king was terribly disappointed. However, this did not prevent him from arranging magnificent celebrations in honor of the birth of his daughter, who was given the name Elizabeth - in honor of the king's mother.

Time passed, but Anna did not give the long-awaited son. This time, the king was more decisive than in the case of Catherine of Aragon, he did not wait 20 years for another wife to give birth to his heir. Heinrich did not have reasons to divorce Anne Boleyn, but there were reasons to fabricate charges of treason against her. When Anne Boleyn was executed, Elizabeth was not even three years old. Like her older sister Maria, the girl was declared illegitimate and removed away from the royal court.

This was followed by a succession of wives, and some of them treated Elizabeth quite affably. Alas, three of the four wives of Heinrich, whom the girl knew, were waiting for early death. It is generally accepted that the execution of Henry's fifth wife, Kate Howard, made such a strong impression on Elizabeth that she decided never to marry. However, some historians believe that this decision was made due to some physical and mental flaws of the princess.

Despite the fact that Elizabeth was recognized as illegitimate, her father took care to give her excellent education. And for some time, the young heir to the throne, Edward, also studied with her. Elizabeth and Edward were very close, during the reign of Edward VI, Elizabeth was next to him. The death of her brother was a real blow to her, as was his will, which deprived her of her rights to the throne.

The reign of Sister Mary was another test for Elizabeth. Religion remains the main stumbling block. Maria began to actively restore positions catholic church in England, which led to violent resistance from the Protestants, who not only wove secret intrigues, but also raised outright riots. Regardless of whether Elizabeth took part in these protests or not, it was she who always became their symbol - the Protestant heiress. Elizabeth survived imprisonment in the Tower and exile. However, despite all the hardships of life, she remained the heir to the English throne.

At the insistence of the Privy Council and her husband Philip, Mary Tudor, a few days before her death, recognized her unloved sister as her heiress. So Elizabeth Tudor became Queen of England. London greeted her arrival with thunderous applause.

The new queen was 25 years old. By the standards of that time, it was a respectable age, but she looked much younger than her peers, was friendly and followed fashion trends. In a word, she had everything that Mary lacked. Unlike her sister, Elizabeth did not settle accounts with representatives of a religion alien to her. Moreover, one of her first acts was the creation of the “Act of Uniformity”, in which she announced that she would follow the course of the Reformation, but did not prohibit Catholics from celebrating mass according to the Catholic rite. Thus, Elizabeth extinguished all hints of civil war in a tormented country.

Elizabeth was haunted by the same Tudor curse as her father and sister: she needed an heir. However, faithful to the decision made in her youth not to marry, at first she gently, and over time, more and more firmly rejected any suitors who were persistently wooed to her. In her life there was only one man whom evil tongues called her lover, which Elizabeth herself categorically denied, arguing that between them "there was never anything vulgar." It was Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, whose brother was married to the unfortunate "Nine Day Queen" Jane Grey. Robert and Elizabeth had a friendship since childhood, which lasted until the count's death. Elizabeth trusted him so much that she even appointed him Lord Protector when she was seriously ill.

The policy of Elizabeth I (and she ruled for 45 years) was distinguished by thoughtfulness and frugality. She was quite careful and in the conduct of foreign policy. However, this did not prevent her from getting involved in the war of two queens, as the conflict between Elizabeth I and Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots and wife of the French King Francis II, is often called. Mary considered herself a more legitimate contender for the English throne than Elizabeth, who was branded illegitimate. Other heirs also claimed the throne of England, each of whom was related to the founder of the Tudor dynasty. However, Elizabeth managed to stop all these encroachments. In the case of Mary - by execution.

During the reign of Elizabeth, England not only rose from its knees, on which it was placed by religious strife and embezzlement of previous rulers, but also became a great power. Through the personal efforts of Elizabeth, who financed and encouraged seafarers, the fleet of England, which was founded under her grandfather Henry VII, became a thunderstorm on the seas, displacing even the fleet of Spain. world famous English pirate Francis Drake, who, in addition to smashing Spanish ships, bringing considerable income not only to himself, but also to England, also made an invaluable gift to all of Europe by bringing potato tubers from his travels. For his contribution to the fight against the Spaniards and the contribution of huge funds to the royal treasury, Elizabeth granted Drake a knighthood.

Despite the fact that Henry VIII could not even imagine that a woman would ascend the English throne, his daughter managed to become one of the greatest rulers in the history of this state. Elizabeth actively developed the country's domestic economy and economic relations with other countries, encouraged the development of the arts, in her reign the first English colony in America was founded, and the fleet became the most powerful in the world.

However, the Tudor curse remained: the queen never married and did not give England an heir. There are stories in the historical literature that say that Elizabeth and Robert Dudley had a son, whom they had to give up for education. However, there is no reliable evidence for these stories. And even if this child really was, his mother decided that in future fate England, he should not play a significant role. On her deathbed, Elizabeth Tudor bequeathed the throne to the Scottish King James VI, who was the great-great-grandson of the founder of the Tudor dynasty. Ironically, he was the son of the same Mary Stuart, with whom Elizabeth fought for almost half of her life and whom she executed ...

Despite a drop of Tudor blood, which allowed him to be declared heir, Jacob became the founder of a new dynasty on the English throne. The Tudor Age ended on March 24, 1603, with the death of Elizabeth I.

Reign of Henry VIII

Since the accession of Henry VIII (1509–1547) to the throne, support for Spain and participation in hostilities against France have become traditional. The expression of this alliance with Spain was the marriage of Henry VIII to Catherine of Aragon, widow of Henry VIII's deceased brother Arthur. Catherine of Aragon, daughter of the Spanish king Ferdinand, was the aunt of the German emperor and the Spanish king Charles V of Habsburg. The conductor of Spanish policy in England at that time was Cardinal Wolsey.

The situation changed dramatically when, after the Battle of Pavia (1525), the position of Spain was strengthened and the Spanish king occupied a virtually dominant position on the continent. From that moment on, relations between England and Spain worsened, and Henry VIII began to gravitate towards an alliance with France.

The internal policy of the English government up to 1530 was also led by Cardinal Wolsey (1515–1530). The most significant feature of this period was the policy of further strengthening the positions of the absolute sovereign, which was reflected in some reorganization of internal administration. Taking on an increasing role royal council, whose members were appointed at the choice of the king, mainly from officials, and not from representatives of the feudal nobility. The composition of this council was permanent. The council had a number of committees that actually carried out the government. Parliament continued to be convened and provided all possible support to Henry VIII, as if entrusting him with all power.

Cardinal Wolsey's attempts to increase taxes caused the strongest displeasure in the House of Commons, and the collection of forced loans aggravated the situation even more. Irritation grew among the people against the intensified financial extortions. All this in 1523-1524. greatly injured Cardinal Wolsey. The luxurious lifestyle he led was defiant and turned public opinion against him. The nobility was unhappy with Wolsey because he pursued a policy of strengthening absolutism, while the people hated him for an excessive increase in the tax burden. However, it was not the people and not the representatives of the feudal nobility that determined the policy of Henry VIII. The decisive word actually belonged to the new nobility and bourgeoisie, and Cardinal Wolsey incurred the hatred of these circles as well. In an effort to strengthen the foundations of Tudor dominion and mitigate the sharpness of the social contradictions caused by enclosures, he carried out a series of measures against enclosures, restricting new nobles and capitalist farmers who drove the peasants. It was this circumstance that made him a completely odious figure in the eyes of the rural gentry and the bourgeoisie, and ultimately played a decisive role in his downfall.

Wolsey's position became more complicated because in the second half of the 1920s there was a sharp turn in the foreign policy of England towards rapprochement with France, which was possible only on condition of a break with Spain and, in general, with the Habsburgs. All this inevitably had to entail a refusal to obey the Pope in ecclesiastical terms. The reason for the break with the Habsburgs and the Pope was the divorce case between Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon.

At the court at that time was the lady-in-waiting Anna Boleyn, who enjoyed the location of the king. A large party of courtiers formed around her, mostly from representatives of the new nobility, among whom the Duke of Suffolk played the main role, hoping with the help of Anne Boleyn to bring about the fall of Cardinal Wolsey. In 1529 the king demanded that his marriage to Catherine of Aragon be declared illegal (because she was his brother's widow). The commission of legates, headed by Wolsey, postponed the hearing of the divorce case, and from that moment the story of Wolsey's fall begins: at first he was only removed from the court, but after a while he was arrested and sent to the Tower of London. Wolsey died on the way there.

After Wolsey's death, the government of Henry VIII moved decisively to formalize the king's divorce from Catherine of Aragon. It soon became clear that this policy was dictated not so much by the desire to break off relations with Spain as by the desire of the English king to get out of the power of the pope, who stubbornly refused to approve the divorce.

The king needed a break with Rome primarily for purely financial reasons. Papal extortion was a heavy burden on the masses, and this made the break with Rome quite popular. At the same time, the Reformation thus begun was by no means a popular movement. The closure of monasteries and the seizure of monastic lands, which were an inevitable consequence of the break with Rome, were necessary and beneficial primarily to the king, the new nobility and new nobles. This was the basis of the anti-Catholic policy of the government of Henry VIII, who found in the divorce proceedings a convenient pretext for reforming England and seizing huge church property into his own hands.

After the fall of Wolsey, for a short time, the famous humanist, author of Utopia, Thomas More, was the chancellor of the kingdom. The impending reformation forced him to resign from this post. Soon Thomas More, accused of high treason, as he did not want to recognize the supremacy of the king in church affairs, was executed.

From 1532, Thomas Cromwell, a man who made a quick career by the most shameless methods, played a major role in the government. His policy was aimed at maximizing the strengthening of the central government. T. Cromwell became the all-powerful ruler of the state. He was in charge of all financial affairs, disposed of the three seals of the kingdom, was the chief royal secretary, had a large staff of officials and actually led the Privy Council, which at that time became the highest government body. Of particular importance was the reform of the financial departments and administration initiated by Cromwell.

In every area of ​​central government, medieval methods and forms were replaced by more modern methods and forms. Medieval palace management turned into a bureaucratic apparatus of a centralized state.