Meanwhile, back to England: Henry VII founded the Tudor dynasty after he won the War of the Roses. Henry VII married Elizabeth of York. They had two sons, Arthur and Henry (born in 1491). Arthur was the elder brother. Arthur married Catherine of Aragon (daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella) in 1501, but he died in 1502 before she could bear him any offspring. Catherine of Aragon later married Arthur's younger brother, Henry (will become Henry VIII).
Henry VII was iron-handed, but he didn't go overboard. He was called a despot due to his iron rule, but he only gave orders that people would obey, so he didn't become a tyrant. He was very good about checking around to see what the population wants and making those wants into the rules–a rough form of democracy. He catered to the rising middle class where the money was. The law is superior to the king in England. The king can't repeal any law nor add new laws without parliament. Nor can he pass new taxes or throw people in jail without a trial. The king was really in control, but these were the established precedents. The King of England is weaker than the monarchs of other countries of the day, but he can still pretty much do what he wants. The king is appointed by God, so you don't oppose God's wishes! Parliament does what he wants. The king can buy witnesses, so there is really no justice for the jailed if the king has it in for you, even with the English laws. Henry VII dies in 1509 and is succeeded by his son, Henry.
In 1509, Henry VIII becomes king. He was considered handsome, sporty, and highly educated. He had been initially trained to be a church official, cuz he was the 2nd son. Traditionally, the 2nd son goes into the church so he won't pose a threat to the 1st son (the heir to the throne). If he's stuck in the church, he couldn't have legitimate kids and therefore wouldn't threaten the succession of the throne. When his older brother, Arthur, died, Henry went into political training to be the king (since Arthur didn't have any children). Therefore, he had a really well-rounded education. Henry VIII spoke, French, Latin, and Spanish as well as English. He was a musician and had private tutors. He was only 18 years old when he became king and wanted to play, so he turned the state affairs over to Cardinal Wolsey for a number of years. Henry was religious, that is he knew his theology since he almost became a priest. He attacked Martin Luther with an essay, "In Defense of the Seven Sacraments," which pleased Pope Leo X so much that he named Henry, "Defender of the Faith."
Since Henry VII's elder son, Arthur, had died, Henry VII wanted to keep relations between Spain and England good. Plus, he didn't want to send her dowry back with her! Henry VII obtained a papal dispensation in 1503 to let his younger son, Henry, marry Arthur's widow, Catherine of Aragon. Henry VIII married her soon after he assumed the throne. Catherine was 6 years older than Henry VIII. A papal dispensation was necessary because of a passage in the Bible, Leviticus 20:21, which states that it is wrong to marry your brother's wife. Catherine didn't produce any legitimate sons for Henry VIII. She had 6 kids, but 5 of them died. She may have had syphilis (causing her problems with childbirth), which was pretty common in that time. The one child who lived was a girl named Mary, born in 1516. Catherine started going through menopause, so Henry decided that he needed a new wife (one who could bear him a male heir!). Henry VIII wanted an annulment. Henry VII, who always thought ahead, had had Henry VIII write up a document protesting the marriage before the marriage occurred in case Henry VIII needed to get out of the marriage for whatever reason. Normally, with a king wanting an annulment and such good proof (including the Bible verse!), the pope would have given him an annulment with no problem. The pope was willing, but he was under the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V's, control. Charles V is Catherine of Aragon's nephew and doesn't want to see his aunt treated this way. The pope appointed a committee to study the problem.
Meanwhile, Henry VIII has a pregnant mistress, Anne Boleyn. Anne was not very pretty but was rather charming. Henry had known her for years, so there was no great flaming passion to marry her, but Henry's astrologer said the baby was going to be a boy, so Henry needed to dump Catherine and marry Anne so the baby would be born legitimately (you can get married the day before the birth and the baby will be considered legitimate). Which is necessary for the baby to be a legitimate heir to the throne. Most of the clergy in England and Europe were behind Henry who decided to leave the Catholic church. Henry secretly marries Anne because everyone says he was never really married to Catherine anyway! Pope finds out about it and excommunicates Henry. Parliament passed an Act of Supremacy to make the king the head of the church of England (not the pope, as it had been before). A Treason Act forbid any name-calling or grumbling of any sort about the king and the new church. The vast majority of Englishmen went along with the change. The Catholic church had lost so much respect, and loyalty went to the nation and king before the church. Besides, Henry didn't change much of the church doctrine or services. The middle classes go with Henry (who has been treating them well) and the lower classes don't really know anything has changed. As a peasant, one Sunday you were Catholic, the next Sunday you were Protestant, but there was no great change so you may not have even realized the change occurred. Some did have problems with this. Namely, Sir Thomas More, who had replaced Cardinal Wolsey. More hides out, Henry finds him and wants More to state his support of Henry. More doesn't say anything and is arrested. A witness is hired to testify against him. More is beheaded. Catholic church makes him a saint.
England is a small, weak, backward country at this time. It has no real army or navy, because England has not been drawn into the wars on the European continent. So, how do you get power? The two biggies at this time are Spain and France. So, England runs back and forth between them threatening that he'll join the other side to get money. Therefore, everyone gave England trade concessions, etc. to keep England from joining the other side. This game worked as long as England was Catholic. After Henry VIII broke with the Catholic church, he couldn't threaten cuz nobody wanted a Protestant power on their side. Neither Spain nor France wants to talk to England. Balance of Power politics is over for England. England didn't have any military power and if they'd have been attacked, they'd have lost big. Henry confiscated monastery land for money to build ships, armies, etc. The church had owned 2/3 of England. With the money from this land, Henry built a neat navy. It was the first to mount cannons on ships. He also used the money for schools and coastal defenses. He sold the land to middle class people who wanted country farms to retire to, cuz owning land is prestigious, and beforehand, only the rich could afford it.
Anne Boleyn bore Henry VIII a daughter named Elizabeth in 1533. Oops. She didn't have any sons. Anne had a series of miscarriages (probably due to syphilis). She was framed for adultery and beheaded. Henry marries Jane Seymour, who bears him a son in 1537 (FINALLY), but she dies in childbirth. The son is named Edward. Henry didn't particularly want to get married again, but Thomas Cromwell (one of the king's principal advisors) wanted an alliance with a Protestant country, so Henry married Anne of Cleves (Cleves, Germany, that is). She was not very attractive. Henry called her "The Flemish Mare." Thomas Cromwell was beheaded, and Anne accepted an amicable divorce with a nice settlement for her trouble. Henry then fell in love with Catherine Howard (who was about 19 when Henry was 49). Catherine Howard was very immoral and was beheaded. Henry married Catherine Parr who mothered him through illness and old age and outlasted him!! Henry had a chronic ulcerated leg, probably from syphilis. It made him mean and not too much fun to be around in his old age. He died in 1547 at the age of 55. Henry was a great king. He reigned for 38 years, built a navy and managed to stay afloat in a Catholic world. In his will, he legitimized his older daughter, Mary (by Catherine of Aragon), but a son takes precedence so Edward is next in line.
[For those of you keeping score, the marriage tally for Henry VIII is: Annulled (Catherine of Aragon, mother of Mary), Beheaded (Anne Boleyn, mother of Elizabeth), Died (Jane Seymour, mother of Edward), Annulled (Anne of Cleves), Beheaded (Catherine Howard), and Survived (Catherine Parr).]
Edward VI becomes king in 1547 at the age of 9. He is Henry VIII's son by Jane Seymour (who died in childbirth). The big problem with monarchies is the succession troubles–at the time, only males could rule, so we get some very young kings. Edward had numerous advisors to rule the country for him. He is well-educated but sickly and religious. He was more Protestant than Henry had been. He didn't believe in transubstantiation, but he did believe in symbolic communion. He died from tuberculosis in 1553. He hasn't married yet, so there are no heirs.
Mary comes to the throne in 1553. She is Henry VIII's daughter by Catherine of Aragon. She is queen at the age of 37. She wasn't well and wasn't treated well throughout her life (is she legitimate today or is she a bastard?). She had been with her mother a lot and was very Catholic (her mom was Catholics, plus Catholics treated her as the only legitimate heir to the throne). She always lived in a precarious position–never knowing when she'd be legitimate or illegitimate, in favor or out of favor, according to her father. All of this had a big effect on her. She hated her father for this. She wanted to restore the Catholic religion to England. She called Parliament and they undid all the Protestant laws for her. It could have been done very smoothly, but Mary wanted people to give back the monastery lands. Mary threatened people with heresy and burned them at the stake (earning her the nickname, "Bloody Mary"). She burned about 300 people at the stake. The 1st Law of Persecution is to only persecute recognizable minorities, but Mary persecuted at random. Mary wanted to marry the Prince of Spain, Philip II, who was the leading Catholic prince. The English didn't want him cuz Spain was too powerful already. They were married in 1554, but Philip only stayed a year and left without producing an heir. He, apparently, didn't like her all that much. Mary was sickly (probably syphilis again), and died in 1558. Mary's big mistake is trying to force the English to do what they don't want to do–they have gotten used to their crude form of democracy, but she wanted to force them back into Catholicism. Her other big mistake was marrying Philip II–no one wanted her to marry him. Spain was so big that he could have just annexed England into their empire. Mary is a rather tragic figure.