King Henry Viii Cause And Effect Essay

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In 1533 Henry VIII, King of England, divorced his wife Catherine of Aragon. This event in European history is seen as a scandalous and altering incident, which had many repercussions that stemmed from it over time. The divorce was a turning point in European history because it caused was a defining moment in the English Reformation, when the power shifted to the king over the pope, the religion of England was completely changed resulting in an era of religious turmoil. Leading up to the divorce a number of things occurred to cause Henry to want to end his marriage with Catherine. First, Catherine had been unable to produce a male heir for Henry, which meant the crown would not stay in Henry’s direct line. Henry had also had many mistresses …show more content…

She did this by refusing the king’s sexual advances, unlike the other mistresses who had become pregnant after the king had his way with them, which led him to end their affairs. By resisting the king, Anne won over the king’s heart. One can see this through a letter from Reginald Pole, who opposed the king’s decision to divorce in the 1530s and eventually was exiled for his opposition. In his letter he states, “…miserably burning with passion for the love of a girl. …And in this passionate longing you responded mutually. In fact you surpassed her so that you thought it would be the greatest achievement of your fortunes, the height of your happiness.” This quote from the time period shows not only that the king was so obsessed with Anne he thought that he would be at his highest happiness if he was to be with her, it also shows that people from the time period did not agree with the king’s divorce, which made the divorce a very controversial event in English and European …show more content…

Even though it was against the English religion and church at the time, Catholicism and the Roman Catholic Church, Henry divorce Catherine anyway. The path to divorce was tough for Henry. Problems started when Henry appealed to Pope Clement VII to annul his marriage. His stated that the marriage should be annulled on the grounds of Leviticus 20:31, “If a man shall take his brother’s wife, it is an impurity; he hath uncovered his brother’s nakedness; they shall be childless.” The pope had was indecisive about this issue for some time, as he kept procrastinating a decision Henry became more impatient. After waiting for the pope to resolve Henry’s issue, he decided that he should not have to answer to the pope. In 1531 Henry had an assembly of English clergy declare him “protector and only supreme head” of the Church of England. This action made Henry more powerful than the pope and started the loosening the ties with the Catholic

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