Biography

King of England from April 21, 1509 until his death.

Established the Church of England on November 3, 1534 after Pope Leo X rejected his petitions to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, daughter of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, and widow of Henry's brother, Arthur. He argued for an annulment by claiming she and Arthur had consummated their union (which she always denied). The real reason was Henry's desperate quest for a legitimate male heir; of he and Catherine's 6 children, only their daughter Mary had survived infancy. After divorcing Catherine, he married Anne Boleyn. Ironically, he annulled the marriage before having Anne executed on bogus charges of adultery (their last 2 children, both sons, were stillborn). His third wife, Jane Seymour, died less than two weeks after giving birth to his longed-for heir, Edward. His fourth wife, Anne of Cleves, wisely agreed to an annulment (he couldn't bring himself to consummate the union). He had his fifth wife, Anne Boleyn's cousin, Catherine Howard, executed for adultery (this time, the evidence was overwhelming). His last wife, Catherine Parr, married Jane Seymour's brother four months after Henry's death.

Father of Queen Elizabeth I, who has been played by Vanessa Redgrave, Joely Richardson, Miranda Richardson, Florence Eldridge, Irene Worth, Jean Simmons, Athene Seyler, Gwendolyn Jones, Yvette Pienne, Maria Koppenhöfer, Jenny Runacre, Judith Evelyn (on the radio), Lynn Fontanne (on the radio), Helen Menken (on the radio and on the stage), Benita Hume (on the radio), Eva Le Gallienne (on the radio), Diane D'Aquila (on the radio, on the stage, and on television), Siobhan Redmond (on the radio), Lalla Ward, Helen McCrory, Olga Lindo, Agnes Moorehead, Catherine Lacey, Gladys Ffolliott, Bette Davis, Judith Anderson (on the radio and on television), Catherine McCormack, Hattie Jacques, Patience Collier, Charlotte Cornwell, Imogen Slaughter, Karen Archer, Lily Cole, Emma Thompson, Julie Neubert, Tamara Hope, Margot Kidder, Cate Blanchett, Helen Mirren, Dorothy Black, Peggy Thorpe-Bates, Mecha Ortiz, Katya Douglas, Vivienne Bennett, Susan Engel, Jean Kent, Mildred Natwick, Maxine Audley, Glenda Jackson, Rachel Skarsten, Margot Robbie, Judi Dench, Gemma Jones, Quentin Crisp (in drag), Graham Chapman (in drag), and Flora Robson. Jackson and Mirren each won an Emmy; Anderson was nominated for an Emmy; Robbie was nominated for an Oscar; Dench won an Oscar.

Father of Queen Mary I, who has been played by Jeanne Delvair, Gwen Ffrangcon Davies, Yvette Pienne, Ann Tyrrell, Sheila Allen, Françoise Christophe, Nicola Pagett, Inge Keller, Jane Lapotaire, Lara Belmont, Sarah Bolger, Bláthnaid McKeown, Constance Stride, Miranda French, Daisy Ashford, Lilit Lesser, Anah Ruddin (on the radio), Glynis Johns, Marion Davies, Joanne Whalley, Kathy Burke, and Daphne Slater.

Father of King Edward VI, who has been played by Desmond Tester, Warren Saire, Nicholas Lyndhurst, and Marguerite Clark.