POWER

4 Dissent and the break with Rome 4.3 Henry VIII breaks with Rome
Source 3 A letter from Henry VIII to Anne Boleyn,
written in the summer of 1527 (when he was still
married to Catherine), asking her to be his wife,
not just his mistress.
The proofs of your affections are such, the fine poesies
of the letters so warmly couched, that they constrain me
ever truly to honour, love and serve you, praying that you
will continue in this firm and constant purpose. …
Henceforth my heart shall be dedicated to you alone,
greatly desirous that so my body could be as well, as God
can bring to pass if it pleaseth Him, whom I entreat once
each day for the accomplishment thereof. …
Written with the hand of that secretary who in heart,
body and will is
Your loyal and most ensured servant
Henry aultre A B ne cherse R. [Henry looks for no other]
1 Look at Source 3. Why does Henry VIII propose by
letter and not in person?
2 Does this source prove that Henry was religious?
PROFILE
Anne Boleyn (1501–36)
● Born 1501, the daughter of the
Earl of Wiltshire.
● Brought up at the French court.
● She had an interest in biblical
teachings.
● Became one of the most
important patrons of the English
religious reformers.
● She gave Henry VIII a copy of
Simon Fish’s ‘A Supplication
of Beggars’.
● On becoming queen, she
made sure many Protestant
reformers were appointed as
the king’s advisers (they became
known as the ‘Boleyn faction’
because they supported Anne
and religious reform).
● Accused of adultery and
executed in 1536.
The ‘King’s Great Matter’
All kings in the medieval and early modern periods were very
concerned with ensuring a secure and legal succession after
their death. This meant having a healthy, LEGITIMATE son.
Henry VIII took this responsibility very seriously.
Henry had been happily married to Catherine of Aragon for
over 20 years. The queen fell pregnant six times but only one
child, a girl named Mary (born in 1516), survived. By 1525,
Catherine was 40 years old and Henry was sure she was no
longer capable of bearing him a son. He was deeply troubled
by this, and at court the issue became known as the ‘King’s
Great Matter’.
Henry came to the conclusion that he needed a new wife. His
eye had already fallen on Anne Boleyn, one of Catherine’s
ladies-in-waiting, but how could he get rid of Catherine so that
he would be free to marry Anne? The Church taught that
marriage was a sacred vow, made in the sight of God – and
Henry took religion seriously. Divorce did not exist at the
time; the only way to end a marriage was to have it annulled,
which meant saying it had not been legal the first place. Only
the pope could annul a marriage because he was God’s
representative on Earth. So, working with his advisers, Henry
developed an argument for annulment to present to the pope.
Before her marriage to Henry, Catherine had been married
to Henry’s brother, Arthur, until his death in 1502. It was
highly unusual to marry your brother’s widow and Henry
had needed special DISPENSATION (permission) from the pope
to do so. Now he argued that this dispensation should never
have been granted. Henry pointed to two passages in the
Bible which warned that if a man
took his brother’s wife ‘it was an
unclean thing’ and ‘they shall be
childless’. We will never know
for sure whether this was just a
legal argument or whether the
king really did believe that God
disapproved of his marriage to
Catherine. However, Henry was
a religious man and it is possible
that his conscience troubled
him. He may have started to
believe that this was why he and
Catherine had never had a son.
By 1526, Henry VIII had ordered
Wolsey to launch a campaign to
persuade Pope Clement VII to
pronounce the king’s marriage
invalid. Both Henry and Wolsey
were sure they would succeed,
and Henry even proposed to
Anne (see Source 3). Catherine
was devastated. She totally
opposed the annulment and had
no intention of slipping quietly
into the background.
Uncorrected proof
Source 4 Bishop John Fisher of Rochester, writing
c1530. Fisher was not convinced that the Pardon of
the Clergy would be the end of Henry’s meddling
with the Church.
What if he should shortly after change his mind, and
exercise in deed the supremacy over the church of this
realm. Or what if he should in time fall to an infant or a
woman that shall still continue and take the same upon
them? What shall we then do? Whom shall we sue unto?
Or where shall we have remedy?
3 What is Bishop John Fisher worried about?
The pope’s decision
Pope Clement might have granted the annulment but other considerations prevented
him. Most significantly, he was at war with France and needed the support of the
Habsburg emperor, Charles V, to defend northern Italy. Charles was Catherine of
Aragon’s nephew and was furious at Henry VIII’s treatment of his aunt.
In 1529, the pope allowed Wolsey and another cardinal, Lorenzo Campeggio, to
set up a commission in England to investigate whether or not there were grounds
for annulment, but he ordered Cardinal Campeggio to waste time and delay
making a decision. Eventually the commission announced that it could not decide,
so the pope took control and said that only he could settle the outcome. And the
pope was in Rome – far away from Henry’s influence. Henry refused to accept
this, and so the ‘King’s Great Matter’ became a struggle not for an annulment but
for control of the Church in England.
The fall of Wolsey
As papal legate (messenger), Wolsey was the pope’s representative in England, so
Henry blamed Wolsey for this failure. In fact, some historians have suggested that
secretly Wolsey was not in favour of the annulment, afraid that it might cause
serious religious divisions. Although Wolsey was never a fan of the PAPACY, he felt
that reforming ideas were heresy.
Henry himself was becoming increasing influenced by anticlericalism – perhaps
by Anne Boleyn, who was a keen supporter of religious reform. The new advisers
who rose to power at Henry’s court under her influence (known as the ‘Boleyn
faction’) were all Protestants. In 1529, Henry removed Wolsey as chancellor and
replaced him with Thomas More, a layman. We should not read too much into
this. Henry was not becoming a Protestant reformer – More was probably more
ruthless in attacking Protestants than Wolsey had been.
The issue of praemunire
Henry summoned parliament. Most MPs probably shared Henry’s views -
anticlerical but not really committed Protestants. ln 1530, under the skilful
direction of his new adviser Thomas Cromwell (who was an MP, a privy
councillor and a reformer - although he skilfully kept his views to himself), the
king accused first Wolsey then the entire clergy of England of PRAEMUNIRE.
This was an old medieval law that said people could not support a foreign power
(including the pope) over the king in civil matters. By accusing the clergy of
praemunire, Henry was effectively accusing them of treason.
This was an extraordinary act – and one that shows Henry’s desperation. He had
no intention of bringing every priest in the country to court, but it allowed him
to raise the question of the pope’s authority over the king. It also allowed Henry
to ‘pardon’ the clergy for the princely sum of £100,000!
Cromwell, probably encouraged by the Boleyns, added words
to the pardon which meant priests had to recognise the king as
‘singular protector, supreme lord and even, so far as the law of
Christ allows, supreme head of the English Church and clergy’.
Reluctantly, they accepted.
Meanwhile, other reformers at court, led by Thomas Cranmer,
Edward Foxe and Edward Lee (the archbishop of York), were
writing up a document Collectanea (‘The Collection’) which
demonstrated that since Anglo-Saxon times, kings had enjoyed
spiritual supremacy in their own kingdoms. They argued
that Henry could call on any English bishop to announce his
annulment. By September 1530, Henry was certain that a
break with Rome was justified.
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