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Henry VIII: The King and His Court
Henry VIII, renowned for his command of power and celebrated for his intellect, presided over one of the most magnificent–and dangerous–courts in Renaissance Europe. Never before has a detailed, personal biography of this charismatic monarch been set against the cultural, social, and political background of his glittering court. Now Alison Weir, author of the finest royal chronicles of our time, brings to vibrant life the turbulent, complex figure of the King. Packed with colorful description, meticulous in historical detail, rich in pageantry, intrigue, passion, and luxury, Weir brilliantly renders King Henry VIII, his court, and the fascinating men and women who vied for its pleasures and rewards. The result is an absolutely spellbinding read.
642 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2001
About the author
Alison Weir
81 books7,740 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
Alison Weir is an English writer of history books for the general public, mostly in the form of biographies about British kings and queens, and of historical fiction. Before becoming an author, Weir worked as a teacher of children with special needs. She received her formal training in history at teacher training college. She currently lives in Surrey, England, with her two children.
Alison Weir is an English writer of history books for the general public, mostly in the form of biographies about British kings and queens, and of historical fiction. Before becoming an author, Weir worked as a teacher of children with special needs. She received her formal training in history at teacher training college. She currently lives in Surrey, England, with her two children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 399 reviews
April 16, 2022
This is t h e book if you want to find out about Henry VIII and his court. There are some others that might deal with Henry’s wives, or come up with some fancy idea to illustrate his life, but basically this biography is still the one to read if you want a comprehensive picture of Henry VIII’s life.
There is maybe one possible serious alternative by Clayton Drees (around half as long as Alison Weir’s book), but since the book has only been published on 15th April 2022 and is prohibitively expensive in paper form, I have not had a chance yet to read it.
However, if you want an extremely well-researched matter-of-fact written biography about this infamous king of England, I can absolutely recommend this title.
5 out of 5 stars.
There is maybe one possible serious alternative by Clayton Drees (around half as long as Alison Weir’s book), but since the book has only been published on 15th April 2022 and is prohibitively expensive in paper form, I have not had a chance yet to read it.
However, if you want an extremely well-researched matter-of-fact written biography about this infamous king of England, I can absolutely recommend this title.
5 out of 5 stars.
October 4, 2011
I have to rate Alison Weir's 'Henry VIII-King and Court' a five star read. You get exactly what it says on the tin. A vast and fully comprehensive work, covering over five hundred pages, along with the obligatory sixty pages of notes.
As the author states in her introduction, this is not a political history of the reign, her brief here is to record the events that help to build up a picture of the life and ethos of the King and the court. The reader of Tudor history may well have to go elsewhere for greater depth and detail of Henry's six wives, or of the many monumental events that effected the cultural, social or political climate of the age. Instead the olde worn caricature of Henry VIII is dusted off and given a more realistic treatment illuminated with the light of modern research. Therefore this book is filled with a myriad of detail of court life from the Privy Chamber to the culinary creations of the royal kitchens down to the names of the pet dogs.
Other Tudor writers like Hutchinson or Starkey do disagree with Weir on various points, but in the main that does not detract from my enjoyment of this fascinating book. We have certainly come a long way from the portrait created by Charles Laughton.
As the author states in her introduction, this is not a political history of the reign, her brief here is to record the events that help to build up a picture of the life and ethos of the King and the court. The reader of Tudor history may well have to go elsewhere for greater depth and detail of Henry's six wives, or of the many monumental events that effected the cultural, social or political climate of the age. Instead the olde worn caricature of Henry VIII is dusted off and given a more realistic treatment illuminated with the light of modern research. Therefore this book is filled with a myriad of detail of court life from the Privy Chamber to the culinary creations of the royal kitchens down to the names of the pet dogs.
Other Tudor writers like Hutchinson or Starkey do disagree with Weir on various points, but in the main that does not detract from my enjoyment of this fascinating book. We have certainly come a long way from the portrait created by Charles Laughton.
November 5, 2021
3.75 stars rounded up
This is heavily researched and unbelievably detailed. In addition to the normal lists that usually make up Weir's non fiction history books, there's also descriptions of castles & palaces, kitchens, beds, clothing, jewels, food, drink, medicine, etc.
Everything you wanted to know about this period as it relates to the King & court.
This is slow going and a bit tedious.
I would not recommend the audiobook for this.
This is heavily researched and unbelievably detailed. In addition to the normal lists that usually make up Weir's non fiction history books, there's also descriptions of castles & palaces, kitchens, beds, clothing, jewels, food, drink, medicine, etc.
Everything you wanted to know about this period as it relates to the King & court.
This is slow going and a bit tedious.
I would not recommend the audiobook for this.
March 29, 2013
There, in a charity shop, completely unblemished as in a proper bookshop, lay Weir’s encylopaedic description of one of the most magnificent courts of English royalty. And it was mine for only 95p.
I’ve not read any of Weir’s books before. She’s written about pretty much every Tudor monarch or individual connected with Tudor monarchy you can think of. I used to read books like this all the time but the 1001 list has my heart set on novels. Because this was immaculate and a tenth of the price it was supposed to be, I snapped it up though. It sat well with my reading of Mantel’s Wolf Hall and Bring up the Bodies.
There are plenty of reviews out there which complain that this book isn’t actually about Henry VIII at all. They complain that it’s hard to find the king, buried as he is under the detailed descriptions of the world he inhabited. Having read the book, I agree. This book should really be entitled The Court of Henry VIII.
But that didn’t bother me too much. I wasn’t after a blow by blow description of his life. I was after a description of the times, and although the book was mis-named, I tried not to let this distract me from what is after all a good history.
There’s not much narrative thread though, and readers should be forgiven for thinking that because the opening line starts with the death of Henry VII they’re going to get a chronicle of the next 40 years. They’re not. What they do get are just over 500 pages split into 63 chapters. This works out at just under 8 pages a chapter. While this seems quite short, the book is printed in something like 5pt font. And each of these chapters deals with a different facet of the court. I’ll admit, I found it slow going.
But it wasn’t slow going in the way a plate of broad beans is slow going. This was slow going in the way treacle pudding with custard is slow going. You want to take your time. You want to gaze on the awesome jewel-encrusted splendour before you, to soak yourself in the sumptuous riches of cloth of gold, velvet and syphilis.
Wait, no! He didn’t have syphilis! This is a common myth and one of many that Weir debunks in her attempt to get at the truth behind a man who was very much larger than life. In the end, he appears as one who ruled according to the beliefs of his day. Let’s not forget that these shifted like the sands of the Thames estuary and doomed many who attempted the passage.
Henry was a magnificent statesman, of that there is no doubt. He may well have even been the preeminent one of his day. But he was a product of his time and Weir shows this very well. It is a flattering portrayal.
However, like the wardrobes of the day, Weir’s writing is weighed down by almost ludicrous attention to detail. There are more characters in here than a Russian epic and it’s hard to keep track sometimes of who is central to the events described. There are long lists of things, clothes, purchases, buildings, gifts, animals, etc., etc. It’s all a bit too much sometimes.
If you are a fan of the Tudors and not too much of a fan of Henry, you’re going to love this. If you are after a more traditional biography of Henry himself, be warned that this might be a frustrating read.
I’ve not read any of Weir’s books before. She’s written about pretty much every Tudor monarch or individual connected with Tudor monarchy you can think of. I used to read books like this all the time but the 1001 list has my heart set on novels. Because this was immaculate and a tenth of the price it was supposed to be, I snapped it up though. It sat well with my reading of Mantel’s Wolf Hall and Bring up the Bodies.
There are plenty of reviews out there which complain that this book isn’t actually about Henry VIII at all. They complain that it’s hard to find the king, buried as he is under the detailed descriptions of the world he inhabited. Having read the book, I agree. This book should really be entitled The Court of Henry VIII.
But that didn’t bother me too much. I wasn’t after a blow by blow description of his life. I was after a description of the times, and although the book was mis-named, I tried not to let this distract me from what is after all a good history.
There’s not much narrative thread though, and readers should be forgiven for thinking that because the opening line starts with the death of Henry VII they’re going to get a chronicle of the next 40 years. They’re not. What they do get are just over 500 pages split into 63 chapters. This works out at just under 8 pages a chapter. While this seems quite short, the book is printed in something like 5pt font. And each of these chapters deals with a different facet of the court. I’ll admit, I found it slow going.
But it wasn’t slow going in the way a plate of broad beans is slow going. This was slow going in the way treacle pudding with custard is slow going. You want to take your time. You want to gaze on the awesome jewel-encrusted splendour before you, to soak yourself in the sumptuous riches of cloth of gold, velvet and syphilis.
Wait, no! He didn’t have syphilis! This is a common myth and one of many that Weir debunks in her attempt to get at the truth behind a man who was very much larger than life. In the end, he appears as one who ruled according to the beliefs of his day. Let’s not forget that these shifted like the sands of the Thames estuary and doomed many who attempted the passage.
Henry was a magnificent statesman, of that there is no doubt. He may well have even been the preeminent one of his day. But he was a product of his time and Weir shows this very well. It is a flattering portrayal.
However, like the wardrobes of the day, Weir’s writing is weighed down by almost ludicrous attention to detail. There are more characters in here than a Russian epic and it’s hard to keep track sometimes of who is central to the events described. There are long lists of things, clothes, purchases, buildings, gifts, animals, etc., etc. It’s all a bit too much sometimes.
If you are a fan of the Tudors and not too much of a fan of Henry, you’re going to love this. If you are after a more traditional biography of Henry himself, be warned that this might be a frustrating read.
June 16, 2009
In one sense, I am at a disadvantage in assessing this volume. I am not an historian of this era, so I cannot confidently judge well the accuracy of Alison Weir's rendering of events and people.
That said, I am most impressed with this work. The author covers many aspects of English history--including day-to-day life--of the time. We read of medical practice (ugh), music, art, architecture, customs, drama, clothing, sports (e.g., hunting, archery, tennis, jousting, and so on), the internecine politics (when losers could lose their lives; politics was serious business), and the relationships among families in England of the era. This book is as much about the country at that time as about Henry VIII.
Henry VIII is portrayed in great detail. This is not a Charles Laughton view of the king. It is much more nuanced. It is true that, if Weir be correct, Henry became more rigid and unforgiving and vain and distrusting and autocratic as he aged. He drove England close to financial ruin with his wars (which often had little effect, even though costing much) and with his incessant building projects (his own palaces as one key example).But this should not detract from other of his accomplishments. He supported the arts; he was one of the more educated and intellectually oriented monarchs of the time. It may be that Weir romanticizes him to some extent, and that ought to be noted. But his was not simply a dissipated period in English history.
Of course, many would wonder about his rendering of the multitudinous wives of the monarch. Weir does spend time on this part of his life, including the Machiavellian politics associated with Henry's marriages (factions would use potential wives as pawns in power struggles). Weir's assessments of the various wives are pretty fair. We might be surprised to know of his affection for Katherine of Aragon; it is fascinating to watch the pas de deux between Anne Boleyn and Henry before their wedding; and so on.
Then, the descriptions of the hard ball politics of the era--featuring actors such as Wolsey, Cromwell, More, Cranmer, and the nobles of the time.
All in all, an accessible and very readable work on Henry VIII and his time. I'd strongly recommend. . . .
That said, I am most impressed with this work. The author covers many aspects of English history--including day-to-day life--of the time. We read of medical practice (ugh), music, art, architecture, customs, drama, clothing, sports (e.g., hunting, archery, tennis, jousting, and so on), the internecine politics (when losers could lose their lives; politics was serious business), and the relationships among families in England of the era. This book is as much about the country at that time as about Henry VIII.
Henry VIII is portrayed in great detail. This is not a Charles Laughton view of the king. It is much more nuanced. It is true that, if Weir be correct, Henry became more rigid and unforgiving and vain and distrusting and autocratic as he aged. He drove England close to financial ruin with his wars (which often had little effect, even though costing much) and with his incessant building projects (his own palaces as one key example).But this should not detract from other of his accomplishments. He supported the arts; he was one of the more educated and intellectually oriented monarchs of the time. It may be that Weir romanticizes him to some extent, and that ought to be noted. But his was not simply a dissipated period in English history.
Of course, many would wonder about his rendering of the multitudinous wives of the monarch. Weir does spend time on this part of his life, including the Machiavellian politics associated with Henry's marriages (factions would use potential wives as pawns in power struggles). Weir's assessments of the various wives are pretty fair. We might be surprised to know of his affection for Katherine of Aragon; it is fascinating to watch the pas de deux between Anne Boleyn and Henry before their wedding; and so on.
Then, the descriptions of the hard ball politics of the era--featuring actors such as Wolsey, Cromwell, More, Cranmer, and the nobles of the time.
All in all, an accessible and very readable work on Henry VIII and his time. I'd strongly recommend. . . .
August 26, 2021
It's like reading or listening to a fable, a fairy tale when you were a child. You knew the story line, you knew the outcome, and yet you never tired of listening once again and reliving it.
Initially this biography struck me as too hagiographocal with the King painted as a wunderkind. He is being portrayed as this beningn, good looking and talented in every area he touched golden prince. Now I realise this favourable treatment is in comparison to other princes and kings, but this is not explicitly stated. So instead, it looks as if parents of a spoiled child tried to present him to the world as a prodigy.
I'm sure he was not a genius nor even particularly intellectual person, and his egotistical traits, the need to be the centre of attention didn't suddenly appear in his later life, as a result of "stress and straints". This glazing over his defects early in the book is really dissonant with what we know about Henry VIII, about his later "caricature " of himself.
Nevertheless, Alison Weir's admiration had to be balanced out. Facts speak for themselves. Weir managed to pack a lot in this biography, but with so many people in King's circle she could have easily filled another one. What I liked most was that she included descriptions of many customs and traditions from the Tudor court, and explined which appeared at this particular time.
After reading wonderful Hilary Mantel's novels I had to keep reminding myself that some of the characters in those novels were reimagined after Weir and other biographers published their books, and the truth about the King, Thomas Moore and Thomas Cromwell lies somewhere in the middle. Weir was not as imaginative even at trying to give Moore a different dimension. Anne Boleyn and Cromwell, as always, bore the ultimate blame, both almost deserving their fate. Can't buy that anymore, after Mantel's alternative view.
Overall, it is very accessible and easy read, especially if you already know a thing or two about the King and the events described here. But even if you don't, don't let the size of this biography put you off.
I probably would like some more in depth detail, but for that I intend to read some biographies of Henry's courtiers.
Initially this biography struck me as too hagiographocal with the King painted as a wunderkind. He is being portrayed as this beningn, good looking and talented in every area he touched golden prince. Now I realise this favourable treatment is in comparison to other princes and kings, but this is not explicitly stated. So instead, it looks as if parents of a spoiled child tried to present him to the world as a prodigy.
I'm sure he was not a genius nor even particularly intellectual person, and his egotistical traits, the need to be the centre of attention didn't suddenly appear in his later life, as a result of "stress and straints". This glazing over his defects early in the book is really dissonant with what we know about Henry VIII, about his later "caricature " of himself.
Nevertheless, Alison Weir's admiration had to be balanced out. Facts speak for themselves. Weir managed to pack a lot in this biography, but with so many people in King's circle she could have easily filled another one. What I liked most was that she included descriptions of many customs and traditions from the Tudor court, and explined which appeared at this particular time.
After reading wonderful Hilary Mantel's novels I had to keep reminding myself that some of the characters in those novels were reimagined after Weir and other biographers published their books, and the truth about the King, Thomas Moore and Thomas Cromwell lies somewhere in the middle. Weir was not as imaginative even at trying to give Moore a different dimension. Anne Boleyn and Cromwell, as always, bore the ultimate blame, both almost deserving their fate. Can't buy that anymore, after Mantel's alternative view.
Overall, it is very accessible and easy read, especially if you already know a thing or two about the King and the events described here. But even if you don't, don't let the size of this biography put you off.
I probably would like some more in depth detail, but for that I intend to read some biographies of Henry's courtiers.
July 23, 2011
I always enjoy Alison Weir's books - she has a lively, engaging style and a knack for bringing both her subjects and the world they lived in truly to life, and this book is no exception. Henry VIII is a larger than life figure anyway: after all, every schoolchild grows up knowing 'divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived'. But there was a lot more to the man than the simple stereotype of a fat, bloated tyrant who chopped his wives' heads off. Charting his evolution from a handsome young prince with idealistic views of learning and governing to his latter incarnation as, yes, a fat bloated tyrant is truly fascinating.
The sheer amount of detail in this book is incredible - from the food Henry and his court ate, the houses they lived in, to the clothes they wore, down to the very sheets of the beds, nothing is too small or insignificant to escape mention. It really serves to bring the Tudor court to full colour and vigour.
My only quibble is that is perhaps focuses too much of Henry's life at court and not enough on his European relations; and the Reformation itself is somewhat skated over. But then, the title of the book is 'King and Court' and Henry's life within his English Court is the focus of the book, not his international relations with France, Spain and Rome.
The sheer amount of detail in this book is incredible - from the food Henry and his court ate, the houses they lived in, to the clothes they wore, down to the very sheets of the beds, nothing is too small or insignificant to escape mention. It really serves to bring the Tudor court to full colour and vigour.
My only quibble is that is perhaps focuses too much of Henry's life at court and not enough on his European relations; and the Reformation itself is somewhat skated over. But then, the title of the book is 'King and Court' and Henry's life within his English Court is the focus of the book, not his international relations with France, Spain and Rome.
August 5, 2014
Un exhaustivo y soberbio trabajo sobre la corte de Enrique VIII, uno de los personajes más controvertidos de la historia de Inglaterra y de la historia Universal sin lugar a dudas. Sus castillos, sus costumbres, la moda, los alimentos y hasta detalles de la higiene (o la falta de ella) que se practicaba en esos entonces.
Los primeros capítulos abordan minuciosamente todo lo escrito arriba. El resto de la obra es una radiografía de cada personaje cercano al Rey y su corte. Por fortuna, no se enfoca específicamente al tema de él y sus esposas. Ya hay mucho de ello en otros libros y la misma Alison Weir ya se ocupó de ello en un libro especial.
La lectura es a veces cansada por tanto y tanto detalle (Tomen nota de los tapices, los muebles y otras banalidades del interior de sus palacios) pero no por ello desmerece un trabajo que no es otra cosa que una fotografía en alta definición en escrito, tanto así que uno puede palpar la época, las pasiones y la vida social y política de una Inglaterra que decidió caminar sola partiendo de la soberbia y a la vez, magnificencia de un hombre como Enrique Tudor.
Lean todo lo que tengan que leer, resuelvan sus pendientes, pidan vacaciones, pues un libro con medio centenar de páginas dedicadas a la bibliografía, merece respeto y tiempo. Al menos, respeto al trabajo de la autora, indudable experta en el tema.
Los primeros capítulos abordan minuciosamente todo lo escrito arriba. El resto de la obra es una radiografía de cada personaje cercano al Rey y su corte. Por fortuna, no se enfoca específicamente al tema de él y sus esposas. Ya hay mucho de ello en otros libros y la misma Alison Weir ya se ocupó de ello en un libro especial.
La lectura es a veces cansada por tanto y tanto detalle (Tomen nota de los tapices, los muebles y otras banalidades del interior de sus palacios) pero no por ello desmerece un trabajo que no es otra cosa que una fotografía en alta definición en escrito, tanto así que uno puede palpar la época, las pasiones y la vida social y política de una Inglaterra que decidió caminar sola partiendo de la soberbia y a la vez, magnificencia de un hombre como Enrique Tudor.
Lean todo lo que tengan que leer, resuelvan sus pendientes, pidan vacaciones, pues un libro con medio centenar de páginas dedicadas a la bibliografía, merece respeto y tiempo. Al menos, respeto al trabajo de la autora, indudable experta en el tema.
June 6, 2024
Was this one of the driest books I've ever read on the Tudors? Yes. Did I love every minute of it? Yes. Please invite me to a Tudor trivia night.
July 21, 2020
Just not a very good book at all, there was no chronology or themes, it was pretty much exclusively about what cutlery Henry used.
I don’t mind the odd section on the finer details of court life but the title does also include KING so I expected a little bit (any) information on the life and time’s of the king himself.
I don’t mind the odd section on the finer details of court life but the title does also include KING so I expected a little bit (any) information on the life and time’s of the king himself.
August 4, 2024
ah, at last! a tome of my great deeds, and not of my ill-fated wives.
October 3, 2015
Alison Weir is one of my very favorite historians. I do not at all recommend reading her historical fiction for many and varied reasons, but her straight history is great. Well-researched, well backed up, and she frequently has some pretty interesting new theories to throw in the mix to make her books even more fun to read. She specializes in Tudor history, which, you know, my crack, so naturally I was quite pleased to find a book of hers that I hadn't read.
Sadly, it's not her best. Henry VIII: The King and His Court tries to be, as the title says, a biography of the king and a snapshot of the Tudor court at the same time, and it doesn't succeed terribly well. The first half of the book is heavily weighted towards the court, describing how it was organized, how it worked, and the people who attended it, while the second half covered Henry's reign in greater detail than the first half. There wasn't a lot of overlap; so we didn't get much about how the court was affected by the events of Henry's reign and vice versa. We also didn't get to hear a lot about what Wolsey and Cromwell were doing to actually run the kingdom, which is perhaps understandable but still frustrating. Plus, the first half was very difficult to get through because it was a lot of names and details without a lot of context.
Weir did also leave out a lot of the turmoil surrounding Henry's various marriages, but as she wrote an entire (much better) book specifically about them, I'll cut her some slack on that. It seems to have been a deliberate choice anyway.
I don't think I would recommend this book unless you have a deep and abiding interest in the nitty-gritty everyday world of the Tudor court. In that respect it's an invaluable resource, but there are other and better biographies of Henry VIII if that's all you're after.
Sadly, it's not her best. Henry VIII: The King and His Court tries to be, as the title says, a biography of the king and a snapshot of the Tudor court at the same time, and it doesn't succeed terribly well. The first half of the book is heavily weighted towards the court, describing how it was organized, how it worked, and the people who attended it, while the second half covered Henry's reign in greater detail than the first half. There wasn't a lot of overlap; so we didn't get much about how the court was affected by the events of Henry's reign and vice versa. We also didn't get to hear a lot about what Wolsey and Cromwell were doing to actually run the kingdom, which is perhaps understandable but still frustrating. Plus, the first half was very difficult to get through because it was a lot of names and details without a lot of context.
Weir did also leave out a lot of the turmoil surrounding Henry's various marriages, but as she wrote an entire (much better) book specifically about them, I'll cut her some slack on that. It seems to have been a deliberate choice anyway.
I don't think I would recommend this book unless you have a deep and abiding interest in the nitty-gritty everyday world of the Tudor court. In that respect it's an invaluable resource, but there are other and better biographies of Henry VIII if that's all you're after.
July 31, 2009
I love this book,and I find it a very easy read. Weir has a way of making the story of Henry VIII and his court come alive for her readers . Weir also have a knack for finding little known facts that most historian only skip over. Like the fact that prior to Anne Boleyn trial for treason, In April it was announce that Anne was pregnant. In May she was arrested,and she was beheaded on May 19. Weir ask the question, uh, what become of the pregnancy?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 12, 2014
This is a maticulously researched history, not a novel. In fact, this books from its first pages points out how poorly researched are most novels about this great English king. If you want to know Henry the 8th, I would recommend reading and studying this book by Alison Weir.
July 22, 2022
Very good. Pretty comprehensive in its overview of Henry's life. Weir Does an excellent job of describing the details of Henry's court. The biography though does not focus on narrative as Weir focuses largely on the palaces, the food, and the various other material goods enjoyed by Henry VIII and the lack of narrative, particularly early on meant that the start was quite slow. However, as it went on it picked up pace somewhat, and was both enjoyable and interesting to read.
December 26, 2011
What can really be said about Henry VIII which us Tudor obsessees don't know? Well, unless "Great Harry" comes back to life and personally answers some of our most burning questions; not much.
However, Alison Weir explores a different route in Henry VIII: The King and His Court. Unlike her usual novels which focus on a single event(s) or feature the biography/portrait of a historical figure; this book can be described as an entire Henry VIII museum wrapped into the confines of a book. Meaning: the same way that a museum exhibit would feature artifacts and smaller singular factoids, this novel also presents smaller glimpses into the Tudor court which you may have no experienced before. Yet, the entire novel is better if you are new to Henry VIII or seeking a refresher course. Not necessarily suggested for avid Henrican buffs. In fact, sometimes the book sadly is too dry and even at times, pointless.
The King and His Court is divided into two parts, in a sense. The first features a very informative view of the background life at court. This describes logistical details and a “behind the scenes” look while the second half the book is more in the realm of depicting actual events (more like Weir’s “regular” history books although it sometimes read like a research paper). Don’t expect too much on the wives, as Weir emphasizes in the foreword that this topic would not be covered in its entirety, although the King’s “Great Matter” is covered with a moderate chunk, as is Anne Boleyn’s downfall.
The first part of the book could have been a “go-to” for the researchers who worked on the Tudors TV series. Everything you need to know about background and “props” (furniture, household logistics, and administrative members) is answered in this section. Extensive details from games played to how many dogs a courtier could own, to what time one could defecate; is explored. Okay, the last one is an exaggeration but that is how detailed the research on Tudor life Weir presented. On the contrary, this can cause dragging and at some points too much focus on the decorum of the court.
There were valuable eye-openers. The chapter on “feeding the court” was remarkable. The amount of food and logistics which went into meal times is fascinating. Even more so, is the fact that records still exist of these details, even centuries later. The Field of Cloth of Gold was also deliciously well- described in its entire splendor. One of my favorite highlights was the story of how Henry gained the title “Defender of the Faith”. Although I am very familiar with the famous title which he made a hereditary term, it wasn’t necessarily explained clearly in previous works I have read.
Another pleasing factor was the included information on “secondary” individuals at court such as the Horenbouts (Gerard, Lucas, and Susanna) – the court illuminators— and other artists like the well-known Hans Holbein. However, I would have liked more passages on the fool we all know and love, Will Somers since he was in the court picture for 20 years.
Some parts of the book were too exhaustive in details and seemed like Weir just wanted to show-off her depth of research. At some points, I just wanted it to end, already. Weir would also repeat phrases which stuck-out like, “…good son of the church that he was…” when speaking about Henry. Either she was trying to hard to solidify the irony or she didn’t have a great editor. Plus, I was REALLY angered on page 296, paragraph 3, when I encountered the sentence, “It is was to Chapuys that Sir Nicholas Carew revealed his growing sympathy for the Queen and Princess Mary”. Even my Microsoft Word Spell Check just underlined and caught the “it is was” error, how did Weir and her editor miss it?!
It is very interesting to lean about the culture and art of the court (even the propaganda) in place during the Henrican events versus just the events, themselves. A different view can be refreshing and you will certainly learn some interesting factoids to impress people with (I know this for a fact as I lightly mentioned facts to my boyfriend daily while reading this book). Although Henry buffs may skim some areas, it is certainly worth a glance.
However, Alison Weir explores a different route in Henry VIII: The King and His Court. Unlike her usual novels which focus on a single event(s) or feature the biography/portrait of a historical figure; this book can be described as an entire Henry VIII museum wrapped into the confines of a book. Meaning: the same way that a museum exhibit would feature artifacts and smaller singular factoids, this novel also presents smaller glimpses into the Tudor court which you may have no experienced before. Yet, the entire novel is better if you are new to Henry VIII or seeking a refresher course. Not necessarily suggested for avid Henrican buffs. In fact, sometimes the book sadly is too dry and even at times, pointless.
The King and His Court is divided into two parts, in a sense. The first features a very informative view of the background life at court. This describes logistical details and a “behind the scenes” look while the second half the book is more in the realm of depicting actual events (more like Weir’s “regular” history books although it sometimes read like a research paper). Don’t expect too much on the wives, as Weir emphasizes in the foreword that this topic would not be covered in its entirety, although the King’s “Great Matter” is covered with a moderate chunk, as is Anne Boleyn’s downfall.
The first part of the book could have been a “go-to” for the researchers who worked on the Tudors TV series. Everything you need to know about background and “props” (furniture, household logistics, and administrative members) is answered in this section. Extensive details from games played to how many dogs a courtier could own, to what time one could defecate; is explored. Okay, the last one is an exaggeration but that is how detailed the research on Tudor life Weir presented. On the contrary, this can cause dragging and at some points too much focus on the decorum of the court.
There were valuable eye-openers. The chapter on “feeding the court” was remarkable. The amount of food and logistics which went into meal times is fascinating. Even more so, is the fact that records still exist of these details, even centuries later. The Field of Cloth of Gold was also deliciously well- described in its entire splendor. One of my favorite highlights was the story of how Henry gained the title “Defender of the Faith”. Although I am very familiar with the famous title which he made a hereditary term, it wasn’t necessarily explained clearly in previous works I have read.
Another pleasing factor was the included information on “secondary” individuals at court such as the Horenbouts (Gerard, Lucas, and Susanna) – the court illuminators— and other artists like the well-known Hans Holbein. However, I would have liked more passages on the fool we all know and love, Will Somers since he was in the court picture for 20 years.
Some parts of the book were too exhaustive in details and seemed like Weir just wanted to show-off her depth of research. At some points, I just wanted it to end, already. Weir would also repeat phrases which stuck-out like, “…good son of the church that he was…” when speaking about Henry. Either she was trying to hard to solidify the irony or she didn’t have a great editor. Plus, I was REALLY angered on page 296, paragraph 3, when I encountered the sentence, “It is was to Chapuys that Sir Nicholas Carew revealed his growing sympathy for the Queen and Princess Mary”. Even my Microsoft Word Spell Check just underlined and caught the “it is was” error, how did Weir and her editor miss it?!
It is very interesting to lean about the culture and art of the court (even the propaganda) in place during the Henrican events versus just the events, themselves. A different view can be refreshing and you will certainly learn some interesting factoids to impress people with (I know this for a fact as I lightly mentioned facts to my boyfriend daily while reading this book). Although Henry buffs may skim some areas, it is certainly worth a glance.
February 9, 2010
This biography is very impressive. In general I think Alison Weir is a fabulous biographer. Her research is very thorough and her writing isn't so full of details that you get lost. However, she has completely outdone herself with this book. I have read several books about the six wives of Henry VIII, but never a biography of his own life so this was a treat.
I always thought of Henry VIII as some egotistical monster that liked divorcing or beheading his wives so that he could move on to his next catch. Yes, he had an ego, a big one, but he wasn't a monster. He was influenced by so many things, his upbringing, his religious beliefs, and especially that of his personal counselors. I always thought of him as a one man show being king and head of the Church of England after he left the Catholic faith, but it wasn't that way at all. I didn't realize the impact that his counselors had on his decisions until I read this book. Anne Boylen wasn't taken down by Henry, she was taken down by his closest counselor, who didn't like her and wanted her gone. So he made her into an adulterer and a traitor, two things that she was not.
I love how the author puts you into Henry's world by describing how the court worked, what he ate, where he slept, what his rooms were like, what the houses/castles he lived in were like and what he wore. His daily life is very well described and is easy to imagine.
It was also interesting to find out more about what kind of person he was. He was extremely intelligent and talented. He was a marvel at sports of all kinds, played musical instruments, wrote music and poems and was very well educated. He was also a charmer and knew how to put on a good show. He had a big temper as well so everyone around him had to be careful about what they said or did in order to not incur his wrath.
He was very fit and active until he started to have a recurring infection in his legs that would send him to bed for weeks on end and eventually took his life. After the infection began he started putting on weight and it made his condition even worse. They don't really know what happened to him the last few weeks of his life as he was in almost total seclusion and no one let any information out about what was going on. So the cause of death can only be speculated at. His death was kept a secret for two days after he died.
Fabulous book. If you want to understand Henry VIII, read this. Definitely a different perspective than I had anticipated.
I always thought of Henry VIII as some egotistical monster that liked divorcing or beheading his wives so that he could move on to his next catch. Yes, he had an ego, a big one, but he wasn't a monster. He was influenced by so many things, his upbringing, his religious beliefs, and especially that of his personal counselors. I always thought of him as a one man show being king and head of the Church of England after he left the Catholic faith, but it wasn't that way at all. I didn't realize the impact that his counselors had on his decisions until I read this book. Anne Boylen wasn't taken down by Henry, she was taken down by his closest counselor, who didn't like her and wanted her gone. So he made her into an adulterer and a traitor, two things that she was not.
I love how the author puts you into Henry's world by describing how the court worked, what he ate, where he slept, what his rooms were like, what the houses/castles he lived in were like and what he wore. His daily life is very well described and is easy to imagine.
It was also interesting to find out more about what kind of person he was. He was extremely intelligent and talented. He was a marvel at sports of all kinds, played musical instruments, wrote music and poems and was very well educated. He was also a charmer and knew how to put on a good show. He had a big temper as well so everyone around him had to be careful about what they said or did in order to not incur his wrath.
He was very fit and active until he started to have a recurring infection in his legs that would send him to bed for weeks on end and eventually took his life. After the infection began he started putting on weight and it made his condition even worse. They don't really know what happened to him the last few weeks of his life as he was in almost total seclusion and no one let any information out about what was going on. So the cause of death can only be speculated at. His death was kept a secret for two days after he died.
Fabulous book. If you want to understand Henry VIII, read this. Definitely a different perspective than I had anticipated.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 2, 2017
This book did not take me as long as some other dense history books I've read, so I am overall proud of myself.
In school I was told that I should steer clear of Alison Weir when doing research for a paper. For the life of me I can't understand why! This book was thoroughly researched and crafted, why should it be discredited because it's considered 'popular history.' Then I noticed while reading Lucy Worsley's "If Walls Could Talk," that in her acknowledgements she thoroughly thanked Weir for "Henry VIII: The King and His Court" as it provided great insight into Tudor England. If the amazing Worsley, who holds my dream job as Chief Curator at Historic Royal Palaces, can use Weir as a source, why can't I?!
I loved the in depth discussion of small, everyday facts of life for Henry VIII, it really made the past come alive for me. It painted a full picture of Henry VIII that is not often seen, a man of contradictions who loved greatly one moment then despised whole heartedly the next; a man who was brave and prideful, but also fearful and somewhat private and self conscious. His legacy both the good and the bad are not shied away from by Weir.
There was so much about Henry Book's building projects, palaces, and houses. A slew of these old Tudor sites have now been added onto my list of places to visit in England. My wallet will surely suffer.
In school I was told that I should steer clear of Alison Weir when doing research for a paper. For the life of me I can't understand why! This book was thoroughly researched and crafted, why should it be discredited because it's considered 'popular history.' Then I noticed while reading Lucy Worsley's "If Walls Could Talk," that in her acknowledgements she thoroughly thanked Weir for "Henry VIII: The King and His Court" as it provided great insight into Tudor England. If the amazing Worsley, who holds my dream job as Chief Curator at Historic Royal Palaces, can use Weir as a source, why can't I?!
I loved the in depth discussion of small, everyday facts of life for Henry VIII, it really made the past come alive for me. It painted a full picture of Henry VIII that is not often seen, a man of contradictions who loved greatly one moment then despised whole heartedly the next; a man who was brave and prideful, but also fearful and somewhat private and self conscious. His legacy both the good and the bad are not shied away from by Weir.
There was so much about Henry Book's building projects, palaces, and houses. A slew of these old Tudor sites have now been added onto my list of places to visit in England. My wallet will surely suffer.
July 20, 2016
Niestety to najsłabsza, a momentami najbardziej odtwórcza książka jaką czytałam w tym temacie.
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Not a book that I would have recommended to anyone who is interested in Henry VIII regin.
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Not a book that I would have recommended to anyone who is interested in Henry VIII regin.
December 30, 2020
Henry VIII is perhaps the most recognizable of all English monarchs. Yet many, at least in America, seem to mostly know him only as the king who chopped off his wives' heads. But his story is much more complex than that. Yes, Henry did have two of his wives executed, and he also executed several other prominent people and waged wars that bankrupted the country. But he was also a scholar, a patron of the arts, and a reformer who led the effort to change England from a medieval state into a more modern one.
Allison Weir spends much of the first quarter of her biography of Henry on the times: the dress, the food, the art, the manners, and so on. This sets the stage for a better understanding of Henry and his court. She then presents a good popular biography of Henry, exploring how he ruled and interacted with those around him, presenting but his accomplishments and his faults. Henry started out as the model Renaissance Prince: he was was well read, knowledgeable in many areas including theology, but also extremely athletic. But as he aged -- perhaps because of the pain caused by several chronic health problems -- he became more closed, more paranoid, and crueler. At times he regretted some of the cruel steps he took (such as the execution of Thomas Cromwell, who he only too late remembered he was his best servant).
Weir does her usual good job of making the issues and events understandable to readers who only know a bit of the history but are anxious to learn more. Her prose style is clear, so that readers don't bog down even when things become complicated. She's written a number of books on English history, including several on the Tudors. I've reader perhaps half of them, and all have been worth reading.
Allison Weir spends much of the first quarter of her biography of Henry on the times: the dress, the food, the art, the manners, and so on. This sets the stage for a better understanding of Henry and his court. She then presents a good popular biography of Henry, exploring how he ruled and interacted with those around him, presenting but his accomplishments and his faults. Henry started out as the model Renaissance Prince: he was was well read, knowledgeable in many areas including theology, but also extremely athletic. But as he aged -- perhaps because of the pain caused by several chronic health problems -- he became more closed, more paranoid, and crueler. At times he regretted some of the cruel steps he took (such as the execution of Thomas Cromwell, who he only too late remembered he was his best servant).
Weir does her usual good job of making the issues and events understandable to readers who only know a bit of the history but are anxious to learn more. Her prose style is clear, so that readers don't bog down even when things become complicated. She's written a number of books on English history, including several on the Tudors. I've reader perhaps half of them, and all have been worth reading.
April 16, 2022
If I had read this fully in the print version, I'd have gotten either lost or bored. The audiobook, however, is fantastic, and perfect for multiple, short car rides. Weir presents not only a comprehensive biography of Henry VIII but also a detailed look at the day-to-day life in the Tudor courts and how it changed over the course of Henry VIII's reign. I learned a ton I didn't know about Henry VIII and his wives, including quite a few dispelled legends. I read Weir's biographies of the Tudors chronologically backward, but that didn't take away from fascinating insights into this complicated, transformative time.
Two things were missing for me: first, more context on what was happening in Europe at large, and, second, some discussion of the effects of the naval buildup that started during this time. The Age of Exploration was well underway by this point and it's near impossible to overstate the effect of the British Navy on world history. Since that starts here, I expected at least some mention of it but Weir only includes one sea battle that took place near the end of Henry VIII's reign. This also coincides with the only brief mention of troubles in Scotland; no mention of Ireland is made at all.
This is an accessible, detailed biography of Henry VIII with a strong emphasis on understanding the cultural, religious, political, and personal forces at play during his life. Recommended to readers interested in the time period, particularly in audiobook format.
Two things were missing for me: first, more context on what was happening in Europe at large, and, second, some discussion of the effects of the naval buildup that started during this time. The Age of Exploration was well underway by this point and it's near impossible to overstate the effect of the British Navy on world history. Since that starts here, I expected at least some mention of it but Weir only includes one sea battle that took place near the end of Henry VIII's reign. This also coincides with the only brief mention of troubles in Scotland; no mention of Ireland is made at all.
This is an accessible, detailed biography of Henry VIII with a strong emphasis on understanding the cultural, religious, political, and personal forces at play during his life. Recommended to readers interested in the time period, particularly in audiobook format.
October 5, 2020
Naprosto vyčerpávající dílo o životě anglického dvora za vlády Jindřicha VIII. Dozvíte se prostě všechno! Oč se Jindřich VIII zasadil, jaké skvosty po sobě zanechal, co stálo být dvořanem v jeho područí, jak se doba vyvíjela a měnila, kdo a co bylo v kurzu... Autorka obsáhla neuvěřitelný rozsah informací. Místo to bylo čtení opravdu vyčerpávající, člověk si musí dávat dobrý pozor, aby se neztratil a udržel pozornost. Kniha mě ve výsledku bavila, nešlo o to, že by něco bylo více nebo méně poutavě napsáno, spíš mě některé aspekty zajímaly více než jiné. Pro milovníky tudorovské doby určitě moc dobré a zajímavé čtení.
May 31, 2020
This is the fourth book by Weir I've read on the Tudor dynasty and it did not disappoint. Her focus is on the people in Henry's life and goes into great detail about everything: the many departments in his court, his friends, family, enemies, protocol and etiquette, religious devotions, and the minutiae of everyday life in medieval England. This is the stuff that makes history rich and fascinating.
August 2, 2022
3.5*
I think the book was a great overview of Henry VIII, but it really wasn’t anything I haven’t heard/read before. Would be a great book if you’re looking for a basic bio of Henry, but wouldn’t recommend if you’re looking for something deeper.
I think the book was a great overview of Henry VIII, but it really wasn’t anything I haven’t heard/read before. Would be a great book if you’re looking for a basic bio of Henry, but wouldn’t recommend if you’re looking for something deeper.
November 11, 2023
I've read several of her nonfiction books and enjoy the way she describes history - very accessible. But I'm often surprised by her analysis of those events and people. In fact, based on her own presentation of the facts, I usually disagree with her.
April 23, 2024
Very important book focusing on the king not just his wives which was different to most.
May 15, 2024
I generally love Allison Weir and her ability to make history come to life through her writing. However, this book suffers, probably due to its age, by depicting events inaccurately in many sections, promoting ideas now believed to be false, and uplifting Henry while forgiving his tyranny. Definitely not my favorite book on the Tudor era.
May 18, 2022
Book: Henry VIII: The King and His Court
Author: Alison Weir
Publisher: Ballantine Books; Reprint edition (29 October 2002)
Language: English
Paperback: 672 pages
Item Weight: 558 g
Dimensions: 14.02 x 3.51 x 20.98 cm
Country of Origin: USA
Price: 1336/-
Sixty three chapters!! Can you beat that, mates? Two and a half days of determined reading.
The phases into which this 642 page epic is divided are:
1 - “A Most Accomplished Prince”
2 - “The Triumphal Coronation”
3 - “A Prince of Splendour and Generosity”
4 - “This Magnificent, Excellent and Triumphant Court”
5 - “A Perfect Builder of Pleasant Palaces”
6 - “The King’s House”
7 - “The Worship and Welfare of the Whole Household”
8 - “Such Plenty of Costly Provision”
9 - “Elegant Manners, Extreme Decorum, and Very Great Politeness”
10 - “Innocent and Honest Pastimes”
11 - “New Men” and “Natural Counsellors”
12 - “All Goodly Sports”
13 - “Merry Disports”
14 - “Rather Divine Than Human”
15 - “The Holy Innocent”
16 - “A Galaxy of Distinguished Men”
17 - “The King’s Painters”
18 - “Graceless Dogholes”
19 - “Obstinate Men Who Govern Everything”
20 - “Cloth of Frieze Be Not Too Bold”
21 - “The Best Dressed Sovereign in the World”
22 - “This Cardinal Is King”
23 - “The Pearl of the World”
24 - “Multitudes Are Dying around Us”
25 - “The Mother of the King’s Son”
26 - “The Eighth Wonder of the World”
27 - “One Man’s Disobedience”
28 - “A Proud Horse Tamed and Bridled”
29 - “All the Enemies of England Are Gone”
30 - “Next in Rank to His Majesty”
31 - “The Establishment of Good Order”
32 - “A Fresh Young Damsel”
33 - “Master Hans”
34 - “Noli Me Tangere, for Caesar’s I Am”
35 - “A Thousand Cases of Sweat”
36 - “Back to Your Wife!”
37 - “Above Everyone, Mademoiselle Anne”
38 - “Squire Harry Will Be God, and Do as He Pleases!”
39 - “Opprobrious Words”
40 - “The Lady Marquess”
41 - “The Triumph at Calais and Boulogne”
42 - “Anna Regina Angliae”
43 - “Here Anna Comes, Bright Image of Chastity”
44 - “The High and Mighty Princess of England”
45 - “The Image of God upon Earth”
46 - “That Thin Old Woman”
47 - “Thunder Rolls around the Throne”
48 - “Bound to Obey and Serve”
49 - “The Suppression of the Religious Houses”
50 - “The Most Joyful News”
51 - “The Very Pearl of the Realm”
52 - “A Sort of Knaves”
53 - “Nourishing Love”
54 - “Displeasant Airs”
55 - “I Have Been Young, and Now Am Old”
56 - “Is Not the Queen Abed Yet?”
57 - “Little, Sweet Fool”
58 - “A Nest of Heretics”
59 - “The Good Expectations of the King’s Majesty”
60 - “The Enterprise of Boulogne”
61 - “The Worst Legs in the World”
62 - “Painful Service”
63 - “The Rarest Man That Lived in His Time”
Few monarchs have divided judgment more than Henry VIII. Unavoidably so, because besides doing more than any other English king to reshape the country’s institutions and individuality in approximately the form they survive today, he was also a wilful demolisher.
For those who opposed his attacks on the Church and robust demands of taxation, he was a spiteful oppressor who associated might with right and value with lustre.
He was, said John Hale, a priest of Isleworth in Middlesex, ‘to be called a great tyrant rather than a king’. Allowed his day in court by Henry before being sent to the gallows on a charge of high treason, Hale was determined to put his views on the record. ‘Since the realm of England was first a realm,’ he insisted, ‘was there never in it so great a robber and pillager of the commonwealth read of, nor heard of as is our king.’
Others have vigorously disagreed. For possibly a bulk of his subjects, Henry was everything a king should be. Capable of the best as well as the worst, he exuded splendor, both personally and through his spectacular palaces and art collections.
His children revered and adored him.
Faced with disobedience from her own privy councillors, his daughter Mary, who as the country’s first queen regnant sometimes found it an uphill struggle to establish her authority even with her closest supporters, declared that ‘they would never have dared to do such a thing in her father’s lifetime, and she only wished he might come to life again for a month’.
The Tudors elevated the English monarchy to unparalleled heights while extending the royal authority. Their prestige was enhanced by the progressively more complicated ceremonial that attended every aspect of their highly public lives, as well as by spectacle and representation, calculated to augment the royal image.
The development of royal palaces and progresses were just two features of this policy: a king needed to be perceptible and to be in touch with his subjects, and also to impress them and foreigners with a display of radiance.
Henry VIII was the first English king to adopt the style “Your Majesty,” rather than the traditional “Your Grace” or “Your Highness”; foreign ambassadors were addressing him as such before 1520.
Like other European sovereigns, Henry was influenced by humanist teachings on sovereignty, which emphasised strong, centralised rule, dynastic continuity, and the consolidation of royal power.
“The Prince is the life, the head and the authority of all things that be done in England,” wrote Sir Thomas Smith. More than a century before Louis XIV, the King was seen as the embodiment of the state.
At the institution of the Tudor monarchy was the concept of princely majesty. The outward show of authority and position, displayed by both king and court, was tremendously important in an age of extensive illiteracy, and also in a culture that valued the trappings of rank, and it had the advantages of impressing foreigners and attracting talented and able men to the royal service.
Magnificence, or majestas, was calculated to astound the beholder; it could create a chimera of wealth and power that might contradict the reality, and was consequently very effectual as a misinformation tool.
The goings-on at the court of King Harry have fascinated generations of historians, students, novelists, playwrights, film directors and armchair enthusiasts, and that for many reasons. Not least among them is the feeling that we know the main occupants of this petit-monde.
Whereas the personnel of earlier royal households are mere names or stiff-visaged icons, thanks to the incomparable genius of Hans Holbein, we can people the chambers and corridors of early Tudor Greenwich and Whitehall with men and women whose faces are familiar.
The belief that, thus, we ‘know’ them may be erroneous but it is none the less powerful for that ‘Proud’ Wolsey, ‘saintly’ More, ‘scheming’ Cromwell, ‘slippery’ Wriothesley, ‘innocent’ Cranmer and ‘arrogant’ Howard are stereotypes which, as we shall see, evaporate under the are lights of research but those very stereotypes do provide us with a basis for closer observation.
Then there is the high drama of events crowded into these years: the stage-managed splendour of the Field of Cloth of Gold; the struggle for the divorce; More’s wit as he knelt before the headsman; the dissolution of the monasteries – history’s largest single act of nationalisation; the Pilgrimage of Grace, which came perilously close to toppling the throne; the sudden striking-down of Cromwell, the man who had made his master the richest prince in Christendom.
Over all these momentous happenings looms the larger-than-life figure of Henry VIII, powerful and capricious yet always an enigma.
For how should we view him: as a lazy opportunist with no clear policies of his own, or as a wily puppet-master manipulating his creatures according to a script of his own devising, or as a ferocious persecutor, ready to sacrifice everything and everyone to the security of the dynasty, or as a giant among kings, who inspired loyalty and genuine affection among his servants, or as the worst kind of self-indulgent megalomaniac – Junker Heinz, who, in the words of Luther, ‘will be God and does whatever he lusts’?
Mention of the German monk brings us to the final and, for me, the most compelling argument for telling the story of Henry VIII and his six Thomases: it forms a tiny part of the greatest upheaval in European history before the French Revolution, the socio-politico-religious volcanic eruption we call the Reformation.
Tiny it may be, as a single-cell culture is tiny by comparison with the organism from which it is taken, but placing such a sample under the microscope increases our knowledge of the whole living tissue.
In the 63 chapters, the author has pared off a splinter from the macrocosm of European Reformation politics so that the reader can observe.
Every student of English history would, with absorption, scrutinize the antigens and antibodies motivated and manoeuvring within it and then proceed to arrive at a clearer diagnosis of the state of the whole.
Just as diseases and disorders within the body result from the interaction of microbes, so the great movements of history only happen because of the conflicts and congresses of individuals. They can only adequately be understood by sampling significant personal relationships.
Although this book is presented in a basically chronological format, the first third is largely devoted to setting the scene and describing the court and the royal palaces.
This is a necessary prologue to the account of the King’s life and reign that follows, for without it much of the context of events would be blurred.
However, the book is not just a descriptive account of Henry’s court and reign, but is packed with anecdotal evidence intended to bring to life this most colourful period of English history and the larger-than-life character who dominated it.
The author has also attempted to explain and analyse the cultural and social development of the English court, and to this end have included every aspect of court life: the ceremonial and pageantry, state occasions, entertainments, sports, poetry and drama, art, music, religious observances, sexual and political intrigues, banquets and feasts, dress, transport, household organisation and administration, finance, hygiene, and even pets.
The Tudor court was first and foremost the place where a host of persons, grand and ordinary, gathered about the King. Therefore, one of this book’s chief aims has been to weave the lives of queens, princes, princesses, lords, ladies, privy councillors, knights, gentlemen, artists, craftsmen, and servants into the rich tapestry of court life, intrigue, and vicious faction fights.
Rather than attempt to vindicate the views of either side of the debate in this short reassessment, the book seeks to look behind the mask into Henry’s mind and explain how he himself understood events.
*How far did those of his childhood and adolescence make their indelible mark?
*What led him to shape his policies and choose his wives and ministers?
*Was he a ruler with genuine principles or genuinely held convictions or simply an immoral realist?
*Was he devout and as a result sincere in demanding the enormous changes and destruction wreaked upon the Church and the monasteries?
*What impelled him to attempt to become a commanding presence on the European stage, with all its immense costs, human and material?
*In particular, did his cruel streak come only latterly with age, disappointment and ill-health, or was it always there?
Keeping such questions to the fore will, this book shall certainly open the door to unfamiliar as well as more familiar insights and enable readers to feel they can reach out and touch this charismatic and yet so tricky and multifaceted king.
A five on five.
Author: Alison Weir
Publisher: Ballantine Books; Reprint edition (29 October 2002)
Language: English
Paperback: 672 pages
Item Weight: 558 g
Dimensions: 14.02 x 3.51 x 20.98 cm
Country of Origin: USA
Price: 1336/-
Sixty three chapters!! Can you beat that, mates? Two and a half days of determined reading.
The phases into which this 642 page epic is divided are:
1 - “A Most Accomplished Prince”
2 - “The Triumphal Coronation”
3 - “A Prince of Splendour and Generosity”
4 - “This Magnificent, Excellent and Triumphant Court”
5 - “A Perfect Builder of Pleasant Palaces”
6 - “The King’s House”
7 - “The Worship and Welfare of the Whole Household”
8 - “Such Plenty of Costly Provision”
9 - “Elegant Manners, Extreme Decorum, and Very Great Politeness”
10 - “Innocent and Honest Pastimes”
11 - “New Men” and “Natural Counsellors”
12 - “All Goodly Sports”
13 - “Merry Disports”
14 - “Rather Divine Than Human”
15 - “The Holy Innocent”
16 - “A Galaxy of Distinguished Men”
17 - “The King’s Painters”
18 - “Graceless Dogholes”
19 - “Obstinate Men Who Govern Everything”
20 - “Cloth of Frieze Be Not Too Bold”
21 - “The Best Dressed Sovereign in the World”
22 - “This Cardinal Is King”
23 - “The Pearl of the World”
24 - “Multitudes Are Dying around Us”
25 - “The Mother of the King’s Son”
26 - “The Eighth Wonder of the World”
27 - “One Man’s Disobedience”
28 - “A Proud Horse Tamed and Bridled”
29 - “All the Enemies of England Are Gone”
30 - “Next in Rank to His Majesty”
31 - “The Establishment of Good Order”
32 - “A Fresh Young Damsel”
33 - “Master Hans”
34 - “Noli Me Tangere, for Caesar’s I Am”
35 - “A Thousand Cases of Sweat”
36 - “Back to Your Wife!”
37 - “Above Everyone, Mademoiselle Anne”
38 - “Squire Harry Will Be God, and Do as He Pleases!”
39 - “Opprobrious Words”
40 - “The Lady Marquess”
41 - “The Triumph at Calais and Boulogne”
42 - “Anna Regina Angliae”
43 - “Here Anna Comes, Bright Image of Chastity”
44 - “The High and Mighty Princess of England”
45 - “The Image of God upon Earth”
46 - “That Thin Old Woman”
47 - “Thunder Rolls around the Throne”
48 - “Bound to Obey and Serve”
49 - “The Suppression of the Religious Houses”
50 - “The Most Joyful News”
51 - “The Very Pearl of the Realm”
52 - “A Sort of Knaves”
53 - “Nourishing Love”
54 - “Displeasant Airs”
55 - “I Have Been Young, and Now Am Old”
56 - “Is Not the Queen Abed Yet?”
57 - “Little, Sweet Fool”
58 - “A Nest of Heretics”
59 - “The Good Expectations of the King’s Majesty”
60 - “The Enterprise of Boulogne”
61 - “The Worst Legs in the World”
62 - “Painful Service”
63 - “The Rarest Man That Lived in His Time”
Few monarchs have divided judgment more than Henry VIII. Unavoidably so, because besides doing more than any other English king to reshape the country’s institutions and individuality in approximately the form they survive today, he was also a wilful demolisher.
For those who opposed his attacks on the Church and robust demands of taxation, he was a spiteful oppressor who associated might with right and value with lustre.
He was, said John Hale, a priest of Isleworth in Middlesex, ‘to be called a great tyrant rather than a king’. Allowed his day in court by Henry before being sent to the gallows on a charge of high treason, Hale was determined to put his views on the record. ‘Since the realm of England was first a realm,’ he insisted, ‘was there never in it so great a robber and pillager of the commonwealth read of, nor heard of as is our king.’
Others have vigorously disagreed. For possibly a bulk of his subjects, Henry was everything a king should be. Capable of the best as well as the worst, he exuded splendor, both personally and through his spectacular palaces and art collections.
His children revered and adored him.
Faced with disobedience from her own privy councillors, his daughter Mary, who as the country’s first queen regnant sometimes found it an uphill struggle to establish her authority even with her closest supporters, declared that ‘they would never have dared to do such a thing in her father’s lifetime, and she only wished he might come to life again for a month’.
The Tudors elevated the English monarchy to unparalleled heights while extending the royal authority. Their prestige was enhanced by the progressively more complicated ceremonial that attended every aspect of their highly public lives, as well as by spectacle and representation, calculated to augment the royal image.
The development of royal palaces and progresses were just two features of this policy: a king needed to be perceptible and to be in touch with his subjects, and also to impress them and foreigners with a display of radiance.
Henry VIII was the first English king to adopt the style “Your Majesty,” rather than the traditional “Your Grace” or “Your Highness”; foreign ambassadors were addressing him as such before 1520.
Like other European sovereigns, Henry was influenced by humanist teachings on sovereignty, which emphasised strong, centralised rule, dynastic continuity, and the consolidation of royal power.
“The Prince is the life, the head and the authority of all things that be done in England,” wrote Sir Thomas Smith. More than a century before Louis XIV, the King was seen as the embodiment of the state.
At the institution of the Tudor monarchy was the concept of princely majesty. The outward show of authority and position, displayed by both king and court, was tremendously important in an age of extensive illiteracy, and also in a culture that valued the trappings of rank, and it had the advantages of impressing foreigners and attracting talented and able men to the royal service.
Magnificence, or majestas, was calculated to astound the beholder; it could create a chimera of wealth and power that might contradict the reality, and was consequently very effectual as a misinformation tool.
The goings-on at the court of King Harry have fascinated generations of historians, students, novelists, playwrights, film directors and armchair enthusiasts, and that for many reasons. Not least among them is the feeling that we know the main occupants of this petit-monde.
Whereas the personnel of earlier royal households are mere names or stiff-visaged icons, thanks to the incomparable genius of Hans Holbein, we can people the chambers and corridors of early Tudor Greenwich and Whitehall with men and women whose faces are familiar.
The belief that, thus, we ‘know’ them may be erroneous but it is none the less powerful for that ‘Proud’ Wolsey, ‘saintly’ More, ‘scheming’ Cromwell, ‘slippery’ Wriothesley, ‘innocent’ Cranmer and ‘arrogant’ Howard are stereotypes which, as we shall see, evaporate under the are lights of research but those very stereotypes do provide us with a basis for closer observation.
Then there is the high drama of events crowded into these years: the stage-managed splendour of the Field of Cloth of Gold; the struggle for the divorce; More’s wit as he knelt before the headsman; the dissolution of the monasteries – history’s largest single act of nationalisation; the Pilgrimage of Grace, which came perilously close to toppling the throne; the sudden striking-down of Cromwell, the man who had made his master the richest prince in Christendom.
Over all these momentous happenings looms the larger-than-life figure of Henry VIII, powerful and capricious yet always an enigma.
For how should we view him: as a lazy opportunist with no clear policies of his own, or as a wily puppet-master manipulating his creatures according to a script of his own devising, or as a ferocious persecutor, ready to sacrifice everything and everyone to the security of the dynasty, or as a giant among kings, who inspired loyalty and genuine affection among his servants, or as the worst kind of self-indulgent megalomaniac – Junker Heinz, who, in the words of Luther, ‘will be God and does whatever he lusts’?
Mention of the German monk brings us to the final and, for me, the most compelling argument for telling the story of Henry VIII and his six Thomases: it forms a tiny part of the greatest upheaval in European history before the French Revolution, the socio-politico-religious volcanic eruption we call the Reformation.
Tiny it may be, as a single-cell culture is tiny by comparison with the organism from which it is taken, but placing such a sample under the microscope increases our knowledge of the whole living tissue.
In the 63 chapters, the author has pared off a splinter from the macrocosm of European Reformation politics so that the reader can observe.
Every student of English history would, with absorption, scrutinize the antigens and antibodies motivated and manoeuvring within it and then proceed to arrive at a clearer diagnosis of the state of the whole.
Just as diseases and disorders within the body result from the interaction of microbes, so the great movements of history only happen because of the conflicts and congresses of individuals. They can only adequately be understood by sampling significant personal relationships.
Although this book is presented in a basically chronological format, the first third is largely devoted to setting the scene and describing the court and the royal palaces.
This is a necessary prologue to the account of the King’s life and reign that follows, for without it much of the context of events would be blurred.
However, the book is not just a descriptive account of Henry’s court and reign, but is packed with anecdotal evidence intended to bring to life this most colourful period of English history and the larger-than-life character who dominated it.
The author has also attempted to explain and analyse the cultural and social development of the English court, and to this end have included every aspect of court life: the ceremonial and pageantry, state occasions, entertainments, sports, poetry and drama, art, music, religious observances, sexual and political intrigues, banquets and feasts, dress, transport, household organisation and administration, finance, hygiene, and even pets.
The Tudor court was first and foremost the place where a host of persons, grand and ordinary, gathered about the King. Therefore, one of this book’s chief aims has been to weave the lives of queens, princes, princesses, lords, ladies, privy councillors, knights, gentlemen, artists, craftsmen, and servants into the rich tapestry of court life, intrigue, and vicious faction fights.
Rather than attempt to vindicate the views of either side of the debate in this short reassessment, the book seeks to look behind the mask into Henry’s mind and explain how he himself understood events.
*How far did those of his childhood and adolescence make their indelible mark?
*What led him to shape his policies and choose his wives and ministers?
*Was he a ruler with genuine principles or genuinely held convictions or simply an immoral realist?
*Was he devout and as a result sincere in demanding the enormous changes and destruction wreaked upon the Church and the monasteries?
*What impelled him to attempt to become a commanding presence on the European stage, with all its immense costs, human and material?
*In particular, did his cruel streak come only latterly with age, disappointment and ill-health, or was it always there?
Keeping such questions to the fore will, this book shall certainly open the door to unfamiliar as well as more familiar insights and enable readers to feel they can reach out and touch this charismatic and yet so tricky and multifaceted king.
A five on five.
July 21, 2024
Fucking hell that was a slog. A good slog, but a long one.
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