The Six Wives of
Henry VIII
❧
BHS World History
Ms. Justice | Mr. Demianiw | Mrs. Koble
Henry VIII
❧
❧ Attractive and charismatic as a young man
❧ Excelled at jousting, hunting, wrestling,
and tennis
❧ Wrote music and poetry
❧ Really wanted a son (because he believed a woman
could not be a successful ruler of England)
❧ Morbidly obese (54 inch waist) and his
health suffered in his old age
Catherine of Aragon
❧
❧ Very religious and kind
❧ Married Henry in 1509 (he was 18 and she was 23)
❧ After 20 years of marriage only had 1 daughter: Mary
❧ Henry needed a son to be the heir to the throne
❧ Henry divorced her in 1532 because she
could not give him a son (and because he
was having an affair with someone else,
whom he wanted to marry)
Anne Boleyn
❧
❧ Young and beautiful
❧ Henry married her immediately after his first marriage
ended in 1533 (he was 41, she was 31)
❧ Only had 1 daughter: Elizabeth
❧ Henry began to think god was cursing him
by not giving him a son
❧ Henry charged Anne with treason because
she was accused of cheating on him
❧ She was beheaded in 1536
Jane Seymour
❧
❧ Gentle, calm, and quiet
❧ Married 11 days after Anne was beheaded in 1536 (he
was 44, she was 26)
❧ Gave birth to a son in 1537: Edward
❧ She died 12 days later
❧ Henry’s favorite wife (because she gave him
a son)
Anne of Cleves
❧
❧ German duchess
❧ Married Henry in 1540 to form an alliance between
England and Germany
❧ Henry agreed to marry her after seeing a painting of
her (he was 48, she was 24)
❧ When Henry saw her he said she looked
like a horse!
❧ He divorced her because he thought she was
unattractive (and because he had already
fallen in love with someone else)
❧ They remained friends for the rest of his
life
Catherine Howard
❧
❧ Anne Boleyn’s cousin
❧ Young and beautiful; loved parties
❧ She was 19, Henry was 50 when they married in
1540
❧ She cheated on Henry (a lot)
❧ He beheaded her in 1542
Katherine Parr
❧
❧ Companion and nurse to Henry in his old age
❧ Married Henry in 1547 (he was 52, she was 37)
❧ She re-united Henry with his 3 children
❧ Henry died in 1550 (age 55)
❧ Katherine outlived him