Henry VIII was born in England in 1491. His parents were Elizabeth of York and Henry VII. He was given a lot of appointments during childhood, including Constable of Dover Castle, Earl Marshall of England, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Knight of the Bath, and Duke of York. He was also appointed to the Order of the Garter. He attained the throne at age 17, marrying his bother's widow, Catherine of Aragon. Together, they had one child, Mary I. (They had other children that were either stillborn or died in infancy.) He also had an illegitimate child with his mistress, Henry FitzRoy. Of course, he did away with Catherine in favor of his second wife, Anne Boleyn, who provided him with one daughter as well. Elizabeth I was not even three when her mother was executed and her father took a third wife. Jane Seymour gave Henry a legitimate son and heir, Edward VI, but she died soon after as a result of childbirth complications. His fourth wife was Anne of Cleves, who he seemed to like as a person, but was not attracted to. He had that marriage annulled, though they did seem to remain friendly. He instead set his sights on Catherine Howard, who he had executed for her behavior. His final wife was Catherine Parr, who outlived him.

As far as his policies and activities as a monarch, he seemed to like the policy of politically motivated executions. He had quite a few of his father's advisors and ministers executed for high treason. He had issues with France and the Habsburgs, annexed Wales, he had several monasteries and shrines destroyed, was excommunicated from the Catholic Church, which he had broken from, and went to war with Scotland. His war with religion, especially around the time when he wanted to divorce Catherine of Aragon in favor of Anne Boleyn, is one of the things that he is most well known for. (Aside from the fact that he had six wives and liked having people beheaded.)

Another interesting set of theories and facts surround his health. It is known that he suffered an accident while jousting in 1536. Historians have suggested that the accident could have caused a traumatic brain injury, which could explain his mood swings and fits of rage. While they did use helmets, the helmets were not built in a way that would prevent traumatic brain injuries from happening. It is also suggested that this jousting accident caused the wound on his leg that doctors could never get to heal. It was always ulcerated and infected, which probably also did not help his temper. It has also been suggested in several works that he suffered from gout, syphilis, McLeod Syndrome, and may have been Kell positive. At any rate, he was certainly obese and certainly suffered from boils and other issues. He died in 1547 at age 55.

I checked this book out from the library some time ago, but I found a copy at my local used book store so I bought it. I have nearly all of the other books by the writer, so I figured I needed it for my personal library. I am currently in the process of downsizing in an effort to get moved, but I am not parting with this set of books. I enjoy Carolly Erickson's work. She does a great job conveying the story of the person she is writing about, and her research is well done. I thought this book was interesting and informative, and I am glad to have it.