omnia causa fiunt Everything happens for a reason Should Mary I Be Called “Bloody Mary”? Mary I was brought up in an austere Catholic environment. Her father was Henry VIII and her mother was Catherine of Aragon. Mary was born at the Palace of Placentia in Greenwich in London. Henry was desperate for a male heir, so he wasn’t too pleased when Catherine couldn’t produce one.
Do you agree with the view that the main reason for Henry’s failure to obtain the annulment of his marriage in the years 1525-29 was the determine opposition of Katherine of Aragon? Between the years of 1525-29 Henry tried his hardest to have his marriage annulled with Katherine of Aragon. His grounds for annulment were based on a biblical transcript called Leviticus. In this Transcript, it clearly stated that if a man were to sleep with his brother’s wife then he was to never have a child. Another reason why Henry wanted an annulment was due to his lust for his new found Anne Boleyn, The third reason he wanted an annulment was that Katherine was hitting menopause.
Henry VIII believed that it was necessary to have a male heir so that he could make sure that the Tudor dynasty survived throughout generations. Henry’s wife, Catherine of Aragon had given him a daughter, Mary, but no son. Regrettably, she had numerous miscarriages and it was apparent that the chances of her giving birth to a son were very slim. As a result of his strong passion for a male offspring, he was determined to divorce Catherine and marry somebody else. Nevertheless, only the Pope, who was the head of the Church, could give him this.
The King wanted Anne to follow in her sisters footsteps, she would not. She did not want to end up cast aside as her sister Mary had been (Williams 107). The King tried very hard to win Anne’s’ favor, through written word in his own hand, gifting jewels, lavish gowns, nothing worked It was at this time the King decided that an annulment from Catherine was needed, as she had produced none of the much desired sons. The Pope did not agree to the annulment. It was proposed to Henry that he separate the Church of England from the Church of Rome, so that is what he did (Williams115-131).
The popehad even rewarded Henry with the title Defender of the Faith. Henry took thedecision to leave the Catholic Church because he needed a male heir. He alsowanted to gain power and money.Henry actually needed to break away from the Catholic Church because hecould not produce a male heir with Catherine of Aragon. Several of their babieshad died, and Henry’s only legitimate child was a girl called Mary. Henry hadbecome convinced that he was cursed for marrying his brother’s
However in 1553 when Mary proposed the marriage treaty England was economically drained and therefore vulnerable. An alliance with wealthy Spain served Englands interests in protecting it from France. It was also crucial to Mary's ultimate aim of making England catholic again. She was aware she needed a catholic heir if her changes to England were to stick. Charles could provide that.
Henry VIII’s first wife was Catherine of Aragon. She was stubborn, resilient and beautiful. Catherine was the daughter of King Ferdinand of Aragon and Queen Isabella of Castile, they had arranged for her to marry the King of England to keep the alliance of Spain and England. Before she married Henry she was previously married to his older brother Arthur. They got married in November 1501.
They were also not allowed to go against the word of any man and were expected to continue with their ‘Feminine Activities’. As Henry VIII needed to produce an Heir, to ensure a Tudor would be ruling over England, he decided to marry Catherine of Aragorn, a Spanish Princess. By doing this he stabilised and secured a firm relationship with Spain. Another factor that was kept the same was the bonds and recognisances between the crown and the nobility, which threatened to fine the aristocracy if they did not remain loyal to the king and break his trust. These bonds were unpopular with the nobility, however they stopped factions being formed, eliminating any threats against Henry VIII.
Henry’s father, also named Henry, was at the time trying to create an alliance between Spain and England. Prince Arthur had married the youngest daughter of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. Henry’s older brother had been given a world class education and it was expected that Henry would live a life in the Church. With his brother’s death, Henry’s father wanted him to marry Arthur’s widow, Catherine of Aragon, in order to continue the alliance with Spain. Henry and Catherine needed the consent of the Pope in order to marry, because church law required that a woman cannot marry her husband’s brother and have children with him.
Charles came back to England and fully suported Parliament. James was still against this war because he wanted to protect peace. Another wr with Spain would be catastrophic. Charles opposed his father. => very messy