Save Henry VIII's Reputation
As a budding historian you hate it when the truth is shrouded with less important details that manage to take away the true worth of information. You’ve been battling it for years, but social media and the internet make it hard to keep things in perspective at times. Sometimes, certain details get blown out of proportion - like most of us know Henry VIII had six wives, but few of us know the impact he had on the English Reformation. Seriously, the wives were only a small part of what he did and the legacy he should receive. Your goal is to help shed light on other aspects of Henry’s legacy. The easiest way to help his legacy is to start a media revolution, but before you can do that you have to hack into the Dark Web so that YOUR information is the information everyone sees and shares. Can you “hack it” and open the locks below to ensure people know more about Henry VIII than just his wives? Let’s See!
In his early year, Henry was a devout catholic. In fact as Martin Luther's Protestant Reformation was gaining ground, Henry spoke out against it by writing the book Assertio Septem Sacramentorum, which stated the Pope held supreme power regardless of the increasing popularity of the German Monk. However, Henry's good relationship with the church did not last long.
As king, Henry believe the only way to secure his legacy was to have an heir to the throne - and not just any heir - only a male heir could rule well. Henry had a daughter (Mary) with his first wife Catherine of Aragon, but he wanted a son and petitioned the Roman Catholic Church to annul his marriage so that he could remarry and have a male heir. The RCC refused and Henry ended up forming the Church of England where he became head of the Church (and granted his own divorce). His next wife Anne Boleyn was a Protestant and helped set the Reformation into motion.
But What Happened To All The Wives?
In total, Henry was married SIX times. Some of his wives were lucky and simply ended up divorced while others found their way to the (literal) chopping block. The song below is from the BBC's Horrible Histories and gives a brief overview of what happened to each wife and why. Keep in mind this is a simplified version of what happened - not the whole story!
Divorced, Beheaded, Died.mp3