Henry VIII of Tudors was particularly known for having six marriages, and creating a new church, different from the Catholic one, in the process of divorcing his first wife – Catherine of Aragorn. The issue arose when she could not bear him a son, an heir to the throne. The only child Catherine was able to give him was daughter Mary, and the rest of their common children were miscarried (Rex 23). Once a grave defender of the Catholic church, Henry started to seek for ways to get rid of his wife. He could not kill her, instead, he chose to divorce her legally, which is where the problem arose.
Henry wrote a letter to the head of the Catholic church to resolve the matter with the blessing of God. However, at that time, divorces were impossible, the marriage was considered a sacred act that could not be destroyed by the will of men. Furthermore, the Pope threatened Henry that if he tried to divorce his faithful wife, the Church would disown him and his country (Rex 27). The King wanted out of his marriage, but at the same time, he did not want to break all relations with the Church. It was then when the greatest idea of all occurred him and he declared himself to be the Supreme Head of the Church of England.
Therefore, Henry created a completely new Church, rules of which differed from the Catholic ones. With the acquired power and the new Protestant queen at his side, the King began a process of reforming the old norms. By wishing to divorce his wife, who could not bear him any more children, he created an Anglican Church, that has its influence on society in Britain nowadays.
Work Cited
Rex, Richard. “The Religion of Henry VIII.” The Historical Journal, vol. 57, no. 1, 2014, pp. 1–32. JSTOR. Web.