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1509 Henry VIII is crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey, London

June 24, 2022

June 24, 1509, Henry VIII is crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey, London.

When young Henry became King in 1509, he was only the second Tudor behind his father, Henry VII, to rule as an English monarch and not the first in line to become King. Although Henry VIII is one of the best-known English Kings, the House of Tudor only ruled England for a little more than a century. But in that century, the Tudors introduced revolutionary changes to English culture and society that shaped the western world.

The first decade of the sixteenth century saw the death of both King Henry VII and Arthur Prince of Whales, Henry's brother and the future King in waiting. When Arthur dies suddenly after his marriage to Catherine, his younger brother Henry took over the role of a King in waiting. Arthur had been trained and groomed to be King. Not Henry. He was a romantic, a poet, and a musician, but he was not a politician.

A few weeks before Henry's official coronation, King Henry VIII, the new King, married his brother's widow Catherine. This was an important marriage because Catherine was the daughter of the King and Queen of Spain. The marriage formed a bond between Spain and England. They had a son named Edward who would also one day be King. Henry VIII went on to divorce Catherine and marry 5 more times for a total of 6 wives.

18 Comments

  1. Gene Goranov

    And the Church isn’t mentioned ones. Although the whole drama of Henry and England’s of the time was around the Church’s doctrine on marriage. It’s like teaching world history mentioning only kings, not priests, shamans, prophets who participating heavily in shaping the world.

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  2. Judith Stein

    Wales, not Whales.

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  3. Michael Brown

    I am Henry the the eighth I am, I got married to the widow next door she’d been married seven times before. Known as a child’s song, I was taught this song and the story about England’s King Henry the Eighth, in the forth grade. This was 1967 in Monroeville, Pa. at Patton Heights elementary school. Long live the Queen of England, Elizabeth 2, 96 years old today June 24, 2022. The year of the thieves in America, the Biden Regime. God Bless the Queen and America. Michael Lynn Brown aka Mad Mike

    Reply
  4. History Buff

    HOW could you be so ignorant?!!! Henry and Catherine never produced a living male heir. Of Catherine’s 6 pregnancies, only Mary—a female—lived and reigned for a while. Henry’s quest for a male heir was the reason Henry divorced Catherine and remarried (and divorced or killed) his other 5 wives. Edward was NOT the son of Henry and Catherine. Edward was Jane Seymour’s son.

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  5. Marla

    What were Henry viii wives names ? Where can I find out ?

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  6. Eileen

    Please be accurate. Arthur’s widow was Katherine of Aragon. Katherine and Henry did not have a son. They had a daughter named Mary who became Queen and was known as Bloody Mary. Edward was the sickly son of Henry and his 5th wife, also named Catherine.

    Reply
  7. Dunbar

    He started the ‘Church of England’, now known as the Episcopal Church in USA.

    Reply
  8. Angela Koch

    Just a fun fact…You may have heard the song” I am Henry the Vlll I am” well…back in that day instead of saying “that a person had a vanearial descease” they would say ” I am HenryVlll I am” because it was a known belief that HenryVlll was somewhat a playboy….

    Reply
  9. Jay

    The Tudors were not always popular, but together they changed the course of history, strengthen the English monarchy and left their country in better shape, then when they found it. Let us hope that, we may have a similar outcome.,

    Reply
  10. John prentice

    Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon did not have a son as stated in your story. They had a daughter named Mary who ruled a queen Mary I. Henry’s son Edward was born to his third wife Jane Seymour.

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  11. Beth

    Henry VIII did not produce a son with his first wife, Catherine. The son you are referring to came along later with I believe his 5th or 6th wife.

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  12. Steven Jackson

    The Union between Henry VIII and Catherine Aragon of Spain produced a daughter not a son. She became queen after Edward’s death and was known as Bloody Mary. It was his 6th wife, Catherine Parr, who bore Henry a son named Edward.

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  13. Rob

    Marriage of Henry and Catherine produced a daughter Mary who did become queen.
    The future King Edward was the son with his third wife, Jane Seymour.
    Makes you wonder who is writing today in history.

    Reply
  14. David Zwifka

    Edward was not the son of Henry and Catherine. The fact that Catherine did not bear him a don was one of the reasons for the Great Divorce” which led to the separation of England from the Roman Catholic Church. Catherine’s progeny was Mary (known to some as “Bloody Mary”) who succeeded Edward (Henry’s only son), who was borne of Jane Seymour, Henry’s third wife).

    Reply
  15. Leta Collier

    That last part is inaccurate. Henry and Catherine did not have a son and it is the reason Henry divorced Catherine.

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  16. Richard Ramsey

    Please – Prince of Wales – not whales.

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  17. Red Heart

    Wow, you misspelled Wales. Also, Henry and Catherine had a daughter, Mary, not a son. Edward was born to Jane Seymour.

    Reply
  18. Judika

    Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon did NOT have a son. They had a daughter, Princess Mary. Because of the lack of male heir, King Henry sought dispensation to divorce from Catherine and marry Anne Boleyn. Edward, who went on to become king before Elizabeth I’s reign, was the son of Henry and Jane Seymour

    Reply

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