E+-+HENRY'S+FINAL+YEARS,+1540-1547

__**SECTION E: Henry's Final Years, 1540-1547**__

"In the final struggle, the religious reformers emerged triumphant. In Henry's pain ridden last years, fewer and fewer people were allowed access to him.  Most of these, such as his wife, Archbishop of Canterbury and the  gentlemen of the Privy Chamber, were of the new persuasion in religion.  That is why the conservatives mounted one last desperate attack on them in 1546." **D.Wilson -** //In the Lion's Court// **(2000)**

WARS



__** HENRY'S FOREIGN POLICY **__


 * The famous flagship of Henry VIII - The Mary Rose had been constructed in the early part of Henry's reign, named after his sister Mary, she was sunk off the Portsmouth coast in the Solent in the war against the French in July 1545.**



In order to gain sufficient evidence about how successful Henry's foreign policy was against France and Scotland in the 1540s, you should have a look for evidence from contemporary sources from one of the following websites: __** FACTIONALISM **__ At the end of Henry's reign, England had changed in multiple ways - religiously, economically, socially and politically. Some areas of the development of the realm could be argued to have been a success, others a failure. Yet Henry remains arguably our most reknowned monarch inspite of either being a hughely successful reformer, or the Tudor equivalent to Stalin. Either way there is a debate that continues to be discussed by historians as there is scope for argument - Henry started out his reign as a devout Catholic, yet retained the title of Defender of the Faith, in spite of his "Break from Rome", was excommunicated, facilitated some reform, reverted back to more traditional methods of religion. All of the scisms that he could be held responsible for might have been the work of his advisors (Wolsey, More, Cromwell et al), yet after the downfall of Cromwell, Henry decided to do away with the notion of one chief minister and replaced him with a group of supporters - a faction, which is a little like a political party today. However, these factions were able to use bribes to win Henry over, so the King would decide which faction had political influence, as opposed to today where the general public vote in a party. These factions were grounded on religious differences: The conservative faction - a pro-Catholic group made up of individuals such as Stephen Gardiner, Duke of Norfolk. The reforming faction - an anti-Catholic group made up of individuals such as Thomas Cranmer, Thomas Seymour. Both of these groups bid for the King's attention and would highlight the faults of the other in order to gain influence. The pawns in this political game of chess were Katherine Howard, the Catholic neice of the Duke of Norfolk, and Catherine Parr, an associate and widow of strong Protestant beliefs. Was Henry dragged by these groups, or did he manipulate them to get what he wanted? Ultimately at the end of his reign was Henry Catholic or not?

SUCCESSION





THE LAST DAYS OF HENRY VIII media type="youtube" key="fCbZ60q9NYo" width="560" height="315" align="center"

= Documentary - Inside the body of Henry VIII =

WAS HE CATHOLIC?