History 105 Early Western Civilization

Assignment #5 - King Henry VIII

Assignment Questions

1. What led to Henry VIII's break with the Catholic Church?

1. Henry VIII wanted to get a divorce from his wife because she wasnt able to give
him the kids he wanted. He did not want to be excommunicated by the Catholic
Church so he decided to leave the Church and form the Church of England so he
could get the divorce he wanted.

2. How did Henry VIII's marital difficulties lead to a break with Rome and the creation of an
independent Church of England?

1. Henry claimed that his marriage was an unclean thing (Western Civilizations pg
359) and attempted to get Pope Clement VII to come to a verdict that would
grant him his divorce but it was a constant cycle that never actually progressed.
This conflict caused the creation of the Church of England because he wanted to
be the sole leader of the church and therefore be able to get his divorce.

3. Based on the response to Henry VIII's break with Rome, what was likely to be the future
relationship between the Catholic Church and England?

1. The likely future between the Catholic Church and England would be an area of
constant conflict as the Parliament was encouraged to make a list of grievances
against the Church in order to give power to King Henry to approve or disprove
any legislation by the church. The relationship between these two parties would
be somewhat neutral as the Church of England adopted similar values to that of
the Catholic Church.

4. What did Henry VIII do to the property of the Catholic Church once he was excommunicated
by the Pope?

1. Henry VIII went on to destroy various religious relics and monasteries and used
these treasures for himself. The wealth and jewels were confiscated from these
areas and Henry VIII went on to create pieces of jewelry and items for himself.
 History 105 Early Western Civilization
Assignment #5 - King Henry VIII

5. How much of Catholicism was retained during Henry VIII's reign?

1. The Church of England adopted many similar values to that of the Catholic
Church during its inception but as complications arose throughout his reign some
of the traditions were modified the Kings liking and many considered that the
Church of England was no longer in coordination with Rome.

6. When and how did the Church of England become more Protestant?

1. During the time that Henry VIII was excommunicated by the Pope his advisor
was Protestant and encouraged the implementation of various practices that
aligned better with the Protestant reformation. King Henry became more
separated with the Church of England because of the differences they had in
getting a divorce so England became more aligned with the Protestants because
it allowed Henry to get the divorce he wanted.

7. Why did Henry VIII's break with Rome have so much support from the English people?

1. The break with the Romans was well supported by the English people because
during the Reformation the English people were faced with many economical
problems due to taxes imposed by the Catholic Church in Rome. King henry
dissolved many of the monasteries which gave more financial support to the
people and many of the traditions and values of the Catholic church were held in
the Church of England.

8. How did Mary I attempt to restore Catholicism in England? Why did she fail?

1. Mary I attempted to restore Catholicism to England by reversing some of the

religious policies like bringing back masses held in Latin and requiring all the
priest to give up their wives if they wanted to continue serving as a priest. Mary I
 History 105 Early Western Civilization
Assignment #5 - King Henry VIII

overall failed in her ventures towards Catholicism because of the popularity of

the Protestant values because of the financial benefit that many were given as a
result of the dissolvement of monasteries.

9. How did the power of the British monarchy increase during the reign of the Tudors?

1. The power of the British monarchy increased even more during the reign of the
Tudors because of the separation from the Catholic church and the
implementation of a centralized Church that was ultimately controlled by the
monarchy. The Church of England was in control of the legislation of England and
this gave the monarchy much more power as they had little opposition from the
catholic church because they were now forming their own church.

10. What new political institutions/government structures were created during this period?

1. After Mary I reign, Elizabethan compromise imposed an even stricter rule which
prohibited any religions or foreign values to exercise authority over England and
constituted that the monarchy as the supreme governor of the English Church.
The government structure became more designated towards the rule of the
monarchy and they overarched their power to territories outside England to
places like Ireland and Wales.

Part II
Briefly describe each one of King Henry VIIIs wives relationship with Henry, their difficulties
and their ultimate fate? What religion was each of his wives and how did it affect England?

1. Catherine of Aragon
a. This was Henrys first wife that he obtained during his rule as a King and the
complication was that it was supposedly her fault that she couldnt bear a male
child for him. This would lead to Henry wanting a divorce and because she was
Catholic it led to Henry wanting to breakaway from the church to get the divorce
he wanted.
 History 105 Early Western Civilization
Assignment #5 - King Henry VIII

2. Anne Boleyn
a. Anne Boleyn had a long expected relationship with King Henry VIII but wanted to
wait until he had officially divorced his current wife since she was Catholic. Once
the annulment went through, Henry VIII faced the same problem in that the wife
wasnt able to bear a male child. She gave birth to Elizabeth which eventually
became the new Queen but was later executed for witchcraft
3. Jane Seymour
a. The relationship she had with Henry wasnt as conflicted compared to Anne as
very soon after giving birth to the future King Edward she died due to
complication with her health. She overall affected England by giving birth to the
male that Henry VIII wanted but her marriage was short-lived.

4. Anne of Cleves
a. This marriage was very short lived actually wasnt really considered an entirely
fulfilled marriage as it was never consummated. The marriage was very brief and
they both mutually agreed on getting a divorce very soon after getting married.
5. Catherine Howard
a. The marriage was very complicated as Catherine was accused for committing
adultery and was killed for her crimes. Henry VIII was very much in love with this
woman but was broken by her affairs which led to her death.

6. Catherine Parr
a. The last wife of Henry VIII mainly served as a step-mother towards to two male
children and outlived Henry VIII during their marriage. She took care of the two
children and later died after the life of their marriage.
What happened to each of his children? Mary, Elizabeth and Edward?

Mary went on to try and convert England back to Catholicism but failed because of the
popularity of the Protestant movement at the time. Elizabeth was the successor and had a
powerful rule over England and made stricter laws that favored the church of England and gave
much more power to the monarchy. Her reign is considered to be one of the most powerful out
of all the successors of Henry VIII. Edwards reign was much less significant because the
creation of the council led to him not having as much power as the previous rulers. He further
emplaced the values of the Protestant faith into England and continued the legacy that was put
in place by Henry VIII.