Weir A. Henry VIII: The King and His Court

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fact, I wanted to use a little-known portrait of the young Henry, painted when he was eighteen, slim and long haired, on the

jacket, but my publishers felt—probably quite correctly—that no one would know who it was! Yet my aim was to present to

my readers a different view of Henry: the real Henry, whom I had come to know very well through my research.

What is your opinion of screen portrayals of Henry VIII?

AW: I suppose the enduring image is that created by Charles Laughton in Alexander Korda’s The Private Life of Henry VIII

(1933), but it’s the classic caricature, and very far removed from the real Henry. A far better portrayal is that by Keith

Michell in the BBC drama series The Six Wives of Henry VIII (1969), followed by a film of the same name. Here is a pretty

authentic Henry: an acting tour de force and a delight to watch! Robert Shaw’s portrayal in A Man for All Seasons (1966)

was very different but equally convincing.

Did you uncover anything new while you were researching the book?

AW: Yes, quite unexpectedly. I certainly didn’t set out to be controversial, but I discovered a letter written by Henry VIII

containing evidence that places a whole new construction on the reasons for Anne Boleyn’s fall. This evidence makes sense

of something that historians have puzzled over for centuries: why Henry could have consented to the destruction of a

woman he had so greatly desired and loved.

Was Henry VIII the lecher of legend?

AW: Possibly, although if he was, he was very discreet about it. For this reason, we have only fragments of information

about his sex life, but I’ve uncovered enough of them to make me revise the opinion I arrived at in my earlier book, The Six

Wives of Henry VIII.

One historian has famously described Henry VIII as “that great puppet.” Do you agree with this assessment?

AW: Not at all. Henry was certainly suggestible and sometimes swayed by the opinions of others, but the evidence

overwhelmingly suggests that for the most part he remained firmly in control. In fact, he was the one usually doing the

manipulating. Given his grasp of affairs, his powerful intellect, encyclopaedic memory, and efficient communications

network, it was not easy for any man to rule him. He was the King, and he never let anyone forget it.

HENRY VIII:

A Wonderful Subject for a Biography

By Alison Weir

People ask me—as I often ask myself—why I am so fascinated by Henry VIII, and no doubt there will be those who want to

know why I have written another book about him. There’s no doubt that Henry is a perennially charismatic figure—he was

larger than life in every sense, he married six times, he led England through a religious revolution, and he elevated kingship

to a high art—but I have always felt that there was more to him than this. All too often, Henry VIII is portrayed as a

caricature: a fat, overindulgent tyrant who cut off heads at will and chased women with equal fervor.

In writing this new book, I wanted to get as close to the real Henry as possible and to strip away all the myths about him that

have built up over the centuries. All too often his story is told from the perspective of his wives or his ministers, but I

wished to see events from Henry’s perspective. As a result, I have perhaps arrived at a more sympathetic view of him than

most historians, yet if this helps my readers to see Henry as a realistic figure rather than as the popular caricature of legend,

then I will consider my work well done.

My new book, Henry VIII: The King and His Court, is not just a biography of the King. During the last two decades, a great

deal of research has been done on his court, which was the most magnificent ever seen in England; and through this

research, which has made available to the general historian a wealth of unpublished sources, new perspectives on Henry

VIII have been gained. Until now, most biographies of him have been political, and those few that were rather more

personal focused chiefly on the King himself. My brief has been to set the personal life of Henry against the background of

his court, drawing on the recent research and embellishing it in every direction. What interests me—and, I suspect, many of

my readers— are the fascinating details of everyday life, both descriptive and anecdotal, that bring into sharp focus a world

long gone. This book is packed with them. Woven into a cohesive whole, these details reveal a startlingly clear picture of

what life must have been like at court in Henry VIII’s day.

The book I set out to write was to have descriptive, analytical, and narrative elements, and was to be a new portrayal of a

subject about which many people no doubt felt there was little more to be said. It was never my intention to be

controversial. Yet during the course of my research, I came across one of Henry’s own letters in which I discovered startling

information that sheds new light on the fate of Anne Boleyn and demolishes one of the most accepted theories as to why she

was executed. It also explains why Henry was able to put to death the woman he had, almost literally, moved Heaven and

Earth to marry. Such a discovery was exciting and challenging, and provided answers to many of the questions surrounding

Anne’s fall. I realize, however, that some readers may find my conclusions provocative.

What is most interesting to me is that no other writer seems to have picked up on this information. I first read Henry’s letter

in a recent biography of Anne Boleyn, and was amazed to find that the author, a respected historian, did not comment on it.

But there is no doubt in my mind as to its significance.

Writing this book about Henry VIII, therefore, has involved using newly available material and reinterpreting known

sources. Yet how far can we rely on these sources? Every historian knows that some sources are untrustworthy, and those for

the reign of Henry VIII are frequently informed by religious bias. Some were written as propaganda, some with an ulterior

motive, some were based on misinformation, and some were either attempts at character assassination or plain whitewash

jobs! It is always important to look for corroborating evidence and to assess the prejudices of the writer and his/her nearness

to events. I have been dealing with Tudor sources for thirty-six years now, and am very familiar with many of them, but one

can never afford to be too complacent. The important thing is to read the sources properly and to think seriously about their

meaning. Misinterpretation is all too easy. That said, it is important to remember that these events occurred over four

centuries ago: two historians, given the same facts, might come up with completely different interpretations and, in the

absence of evidence to the contrary, both would be valid. I usually base my conclusions on a balance of probabilities, after

having examined as many facts as I can discover.

Researching Henry VIII: The King and His Court was a mammoth task. There is so much information available that it

would be impossible to include it all. I have, in fact, used just a quarter of my research for the book. Deciding what is to be

included and what is not is often very difficult, but with a subject like this it is all too easy—and pleasurable—to follow

lines of research that are not strictly part of the brief. Yet I never feel that my research is wasted, because the advantage of

having knowledge of so much background material lends added authority to what I finally write in the text.

I might not sound very disciplined with research, but I am very strict with myself when it comes to planning a book like

this. It took me two months to prepare a written plan that extended to every last detail, and in each instance I asked myself

if, firstly, each piece of information was relevant to the subject and, secondly, whether it would enrich the book as a whole.

As to length, I have to confess that the book is nearly twice as long as it was meant to be, and I can only express my

heartfelt gratitude to my publishers for agreeing with me that I could not have done justice to the subject in a shorter work.

It is no easy task to write a personal biography of a Tudor King, or an account of his court, because in the sixteenth century

a monarch ruled as well as reigned, and politics was an essential part of the life of the King and the court. Whilst making

this clear, I have touched on politics only where necessary. What I have done is to focus on the lives and personalities of

Henry’s courtiers, from his queens down to the lowliest scullion, and interwoven them into the narrative. I have also

described many of the dramatic events of the reign, emphasizing how they affected the King and the life of the court.

When it came to writing about Henry VIII’s six wives, I constantly bore in mind the fact that I had already written a book

about them, and tried to avoid repetition. The details that were repeated were those that were relevant to the new text. I have

also had occasion to revise some of my conclusions in the earlier book, in the light of new research, although I hasten to

assure those who have read and enjoyed The Six Wives of Henry VIII that I still stand by most of what I have written in it; if

you read this new book, you will see where my views have been revised, and why.

In the current climate, in which the monarchy is no longer very fashionable, I am pleased to see that there remains an

abiding interest in the kings and queens of the past. Perhaps it is because their lives were in such contrast to ours: they lived

by rigid social and religious rules and mores, whereas we perceive morality as being relative, and being true to ourselves as

being more important than social conformity. They dressed according to a strict code governed by status and modesty,

whereas for us dress is a matter of self-expression. They lived in an age when class and rank were all-important, while in

our egalitarian age we like to think of these things as anachronisms. And lastly, to the Tudors the concept of sexual equality

was unknown and against divine and natural law; to us, it is virtually an article of faith. It is therefore fascinating to us, from

our modern vantage point, to look back across the centuries and discover how people behaved within constraints that would

be utterly alien to most of us.

Furthermore, if power is sexy, then the near-absolute power wielded by a king such as Henry VIII is utterly irresistible,

especially when we see beyond the obese, aggressive despot of Holbein’s portraits to the golden, muscular youth who

exuded charm and sex appeal, and who excelled at everything he did. That charisma is still perceptible today, even across

the lapse of centuries. We are also compellingly fascinated by the fact that, until he became obsessed with privacy, a king

like Henry lived his life largely in the public eye—he was never alone or unattended, even when performing his most

intimate functions. Yet this diminished him in no way: such was the mystique of royalty that he remained a figure of awe

and ever-increasing majesty to all around him. No sovereign before or since has ever held such authority in England, neither

has any had such a larger-than-life personality. For these things alone, Henry VIII makes a wonderful subject for a

biography, but the real man—as I hope you will discover through reading this book—is even more fascinating.

Reading Group Questions and Topics for Discussion

1. At the beginning of the reign of Henry VIII, his virtues were extolled by those who served him. How

does the adulation the young King initially inspired of the court compare to the subsequent attitudes his

courtiers held toward him? In which ways was he burdened by unrealistic expectations? How did the

King manipulate his early reputation to his advantage?

2. It’s an adage that a man can often be judged by the company he keeps. How did this prove true of

Henry VIII? How much choice did he have over who comprised the court, and how much of it was

determined by external factors (for example, tradition, custom, blood ties, or the influence of others)?

3. How did the rich physical appearance of the court and his various palaces reflect the way that Henry

VIII felt about himself and his place in the world? Why were opulent surroundings, including

innovations in architecture, so important to him? How did the physical arrangement of the King’s

palaces establish the hierarchy of his courtiers?

4. What characteristics of a courtier do you think that the King held in highest regard? Which

characteristics were undesirable? Can you apply these to advisors of leaders in modern times? In your

opinion, which of the King’s courtiers was most successful in serving Henry VIII? Who was the most

successful in advancing his own personal interests?

5. How did the itinerant nature of the court and its constant movement from place to place affect its

makeup? How might it have been different—both physically and politically—if it had been

permanently situated in one spot?

6. The Privy Council and the Privy Chamber formed the most elite core of Henry’s courtiers and

advisors. Was this similar or different to the setup of the King’s father, Henry VII? What were the

differences between the two groups? How did these individuals wield their influence? How did Henry

VIII’s mistrust of the gentry shape the court, and how did it prove less constrained by a strict social

hierarchy than the outside world as a whole at that time?

7. At the time of Henry VIII’s kingship, the ideas of the Renaissance were flourishing. Which of these

ideas were most influential to the King and his court? How did influential humanists—for example,

Petrarch or Sir Thomas More—shape the thoughts and policies of the King? How was the King’s

warlike spirit at odds with the opinions of his humanist friends and confidants?

8. Thomas Wolsey enjoyed a spectacular rise to power, becoming a cardinal who was considered as

powerful—or even more—than his master, Henry VIII. Which attributes make him indispensable to the

King? How does he arouse antipathy from the others around him? What role does his background,

breeding, and personal ambition play in his rise and eventual downfall? What purpose did Wolsey serve

for both his friends and his enemies?

9. How could the King’s favor—or displeasure—toward a courtier affect their fortunes? Examples to

discuss could include Cardinal Wolsey, Thomas Cromwell, Archbishop Cranmer, Sir Thomas More, the

Duke of Suffolk, Sir Nicholas Carew, and Fray Diego Fernandez.

10. Henry VIII’s love for Anne Boleyn changed not only the court, but also the path of England. It led

to the King’s “Great Matter”—his desire to nullify his marriage to Queen Katherine of Aragon. How

did this issue factionalize the court? What issues do you believe it eclipsed, and which did it bring to

the forefront? How did the religious climate of the time, and Luther’s 95 Theses in particular, also

affect the question of religion?

11. Anne Boleyn positioned herself as a paragon of virtue and morality. How did this contrast with her

ascent to the throne and some of her own personal characteristics? How did her influence compare to

that enjoyed by Katherine, and how did pomp and patronage play into her reign? How did the opinion

held of her by the courtiers evolve, and how did that compare to public’s view of her? What attributes

that initially attracted Henry to her proved to be her undoing?

12. Thomas Cromwell was the second powerful figure to take precedence in the court of Henry VIII.

How did he compare to Wolsey? In which ways did Cromwell wield more influence on the King and

on the policies of England than Wolsey? Why? How was his downfall similar to that of Wolsey? How

was he merely the victim of his adversaries?

13. How did the question of succession shape not only Henry VIII’s marriages and liaisons, but also the

court in general? How did the birth of Prince Edward affect this? What type of relationship do you

believe that Henry’s children by three different mothers enjoyed with one another? In particular, how

did the relationship between Mary and Elizabeth thrive? What restrictions were placed upon it?

14. How did the lavish spending on coronations, palaces, queens, and wartime activity affect the later

years of the King? How did he react to the constant scourge of plague and illness?

15. How was the Reformation of Henry VIII a dividing point between the conservatives and the

radicals of his court? How was the Act of Six Articles, which established the doctrine of the Church of

England as law, received by both groups? What elements of the Act most reflected Renaissance

thinking?

16. How did Henry’s advisors use the King’s faith to their own advantage, often in ousting their

enemies? How did his position of head of the Church influence the King and his way of thinking? In

your opinion, how much of his faith was motivated by personal desires (for example, the nullification

of his marriages)?

17. How did the various wives—particularly Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn—wield power and

influence? How were they employed to advance the interests of particular courtiers, especially in

regard to alliances with other countries? Which causes were advanced by each Queen?

18. How were at least three of the wives removed from power by the maneuverings of the King, the

court, or both? Do you think that the influence enjoyed by women in Henry VIII’s court was unusual

based on the gender attitudes of the time? Why or why not?

19. At the close of his life, Henry VIII had grown quite ill. How did this affect the day-to-day workings

of the court and the King’s advisors? How would you characterize the management style of the King?

Would you say that Henry VIII was by nature a laissez-faire manager, or was he merely forced to

become one because of his failing health? Why or why not?

ALISON WEIR is the New York Times bestselling author of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry VIII: The

King and His Court, The Life of Elizabeth I, The Children of Henry VIII, The Wars of the Roses, The

Princes in the Tower, and The Six Wives of Henry VIII. She lives in Scotland with her husband and two

children.

A Ballantine Book

Published by The Random House Publishing Group

The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc.

Published in the United States by Ballantine Books, an imprint of The Random House

Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York, and simultaneously in

Canada by Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto. Published in Great Britain in

slightly different form by Random House UK Ltd., in 2001.

Ballantine and colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.

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