Henry VIII follows the Tudor king from his cultivated early court and military ambitions to the marital and religious crises that defined his reign. It examines the search for a male heir, the annulment from Catherine of Aragon and the break with papal authority.
The biography traces the fall of ministers and queens, the dissolution of the monasteries and the expansion of royal power, while also considering war, finance and court faction. It separates Henry’s commanding public image from the unstable policy and personal fear that marked his later years.
