King Henry VIII - Mind of a Tyrant
King Henry VIII - Mind of a Tyrant Previous Broadcasts
KQED 9: Thu, Feb 23, 2012 -- 8:46 PM
At first it was lust, then love on the king's part, "his so great folly" recorded in the seventeen letters he wrote to her in 1527 and 1528. But when Anne refused to become his mistress ("I had rather lose my life than my honesty" - in the end she lost both) Henry conceived the idea of marrying her. That required a Papal annulment of his marriage to Katherine of Aragon. This ought not to have posed a problem for a king, but David Starkey's research in the Vatican Archives has revealed the real story of Henry's futile six-year struggle to get what he wanted from Clement VII. During this time, and prompted by Anne, Henry began to re-think the nature of the English monarchy. He came to believe that he had spiritual as well as temporal powers: that the King, not the Pope, should rule the Church in England.
Repeat Broadcasts:
- KQED 9: Fri, Feb 24, 2012 -- 2:46 AM









