View source for Vivat Rex!: 500th Anniversary of Henry VIII's Accession to the Throne

[[File:V.b.232 fol. 116r.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Portrait of Henry VIII in the 1608 Trevelyon Miscellany. Folger Digital Image [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/mqpj8e 4613].]]
''This article is about an exhibition about the historical figure Henry VIII. For other uses, see [[Henry VIII (disambiguation)]].''

''Vivat Rex!: 500th Anniversary of Henry VIII's Accession to the Throne'', one of the [[Exhibitions at the Folger]], opened on September 24, 2010 and closed December 30, 2010 and was first seen at [http://www.grolierclub.org/default.aspx?p=v35ListDocument&ID=755383322&listid=11459&listitemid=123184&ssid=166764&dpageid=&listname=Past%20Exhibitions The Grolier Club] in New York. The exhibition was curated by Arthur L. Schwarz. The [http://shop.folger.edu/store/165036%21165/Vivat+Rex catalog] can be purchased from the Folger Shop.

















== Contents of the exhibition ==

=== Prince Henry, King Henry ===

The first of the Tudor monarchs, King Henry VII, gained his throne at the Battle of Bosworth, on August 22, 1485. He married Elizabeth of York, uniting the royal houses of Lancaster and York, and they had four children who survived infancy. Their elder son, Prince Arthur, married Catherine of Aragon, but he died without an heir at the age of fifteen. Henry VII himself died on April 21, 1509, and two days later his second son, not yet eighteen, was proclaimed King Henry VIII. Within two months, the new king married his brother’s widow, having received papal dispensation to do so some five years earlier. What they wanted most was a son and heir, but this was not to be: a son, named Henry for his father, was born on New Year’s Day, 1511, but he died seven weeks later.
 
Pictured [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/57x04o here] is Henry VIII's birthplace—Greenwich Palace (earlier named Placentia, “the palace of courtesy”). The palace was demolished in the seventeenth century, and the Old Royal Navy College now stands on the same site.

Listen to curator Arthur Schwarz discuss the [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/24j9i7 title page] to Edward Hall's ''Chronicles''.

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==== Items included ====

* FACSIMILE from the [http://www.royalcollection.org.uk Royal Collection], by gracious permission of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. Photograph of Laughing child, possibly Henry VIII. Painted and gilded terracotta bust, ca. 1498, attributed to Guido Mazzoni. RCIN [http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/collection/73197/henry-viii-1491-1547-when-a-young-boy 73197].
* James Basire. ''A view of the Antient Royal Palace called Placentia, in East Greenwich''. Print. London, 1767. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=261659 ART Vol. d60 no.3] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/57x04o LUNA Digital Image].
* Edward Hall. ''The union of the two noble and illustre famelies of Lancastre [and] Yorke, beyng long in continuall discension for the croune of this noble realme''. London: Rychard Grafton, 1550. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=168317 STC 12723]; displayed [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/24j9i7 title page].

=== Educating a Young King ===

The early years of Henry’s reign were occupied with warfare against France and Scotland, worry about a possible invasion of Europe by Muslim forces, and concern for his throne, which was always vulnerable to possible usurpers. Meanwhile, Henry studied the arts of leadership and kingship, drawing inspiration from books by Thomas More, Niccolò Machiavelli, and Desiderius Erasmus.

The volume pictured [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/1204aq here], whose title translates as “Familiar Commentary on the ‘Duties’ of Cicero,” is Henry’s own schoolboy text, inscribed “Thys Boke Is Myne Prynce Henry.” In addition to Henry’s assertive ownership claim, the volume contains numerous glosses, annotations, notes, and aphorisms in the hand of Henry and what is thought to be that of his tutor, the poet John Skelton. It is one of the earliest surviving examples of a book containing Henry’s annotations. 
 
In a woodcut image of the Battle of Flodden Field in 1513, Scotland's James IV stands outside his tent before battle. Henry and James were rivals; the Scottish king was killed in the battle. This case also included [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/5nru8z Henry VIII as a young man] from the [[Word & Image: The Trevelyon Miscellany of 1608|Trevelyon Miscellany]], and an image of his rival, James IV, from Henry Holland's ''Book of Kings''.

Listen to curator Arthur L. Schwarz discuss Henry's copy of Cicero.

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==== Items included ====

* Marcus Tullius Cicero. ''Commentú familiare in Ciceronis officia''. Lyon: Etienne Gueynard, 1502. Call number: [http://shakespeare.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=207537 PA 6295 .A3 1502 Cage] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/1lp1b4 LUNA Digital Image].
* LOAN courtesy of [http://www.themorgan.org The Morgan Library & Museum] from the collections of Frances Mary Richardson Currer and A. W. Griswold. Richard Faques. ''Hereafter ensue the trewe encountre or batayle lately don betwene Englande and Scotlande: in whiche batayle the Scottsshe kynge was slayne''. London, 1809. Morgan call number: [http://corsair.themorgan.org/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=171862 006828]
* Thomas Trevelyon. ''Trevelyon Miscellany'' [formerly called ''Commonplace book'']. Manuscript, 1608. Call number: [http://shakespeare.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=101056 V.b.232]; displayed [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/mqpj8e Leaf 217], image of Henry VIII.  
* LOAN courtesy of the [http://library.harvard.edu/hou Houghton Library] of the Harvard College Library; Gift of Christian A. Zabriskie in memory of Edward Powis Jones. Henry Holland. ''Baziliōlogia = A Booke of kings: beeing the true and lively effigies of all our English kings from the Conquest untill this present, with their severall coats of armes, impreses and devises, and a briefe chronologie of their lives and deaths''. London, 1618. Harvard call number: [http://id.lib.harvard.edu/aleph/002831751/catalog  Houghton f STC 13581].
* John Skelton. ''Pithy pleasaunt and profitable workes of maister Skelton, Poete Laureate''. London: Thomas Marshe, [1568]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=163862 STC 22608 copy 1] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/sxk5z7 LUNA Digital Image].

=== King at Court ===
[[File:ART 256916 (size S).jpg|thumb|right|240px|Print portrait of Will Sommers, 1622-1627. Folger Digital Image [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/37sbg7 17954].]]
Henry VIII was heavily influenced by the writings of Erasmus, More, Machiavelli, and Thomas Elyot, which provided him with advice and suggested appropriate standards of royal behavior. But Henry and his court had much more fun and pleasure than these treatises on morality may suggest. Ruler and courtiers outfitted themselves richly, according to their station, and Henry’s jester, Will Sommers, provided merriment in the court, much to the annoyance of Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, who detested him. He might well have done so, as one of Sommers’s favorite pastimes was lampooning the cardinal.

[http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/u26ono This view] of Nonsuch, near Epsom, in Surrey, was engraved some thirty-five years after Henry’s death but nevertheless provides an excellent impression of one of his royal palaces that is long gone. Arguably the greatest of Henry VIII’s building projects, Nonsuch was begun in 1538 but remained incomplete at the king’s death, almost nine years later. It was built to demonstrate the grandeur and power of the Tudor monarchy and to compete with the palace of Chambord, built by Henry’s great rival, Francis I, king of France.
 
[http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/6859o4 Pictured here] is Henry's jester, Will Sommers, wearing an elaborate coat with the letters “HR”—''“Henricus Rex”''—embroidered on the chest and jester’s cap tucked into his belt. Sommers was Henry's jester for over twenty years. He amused the king with foolish riddles and by playing practical jokes on Cardinal Wolsey, who could never abide him.

==== Items included ====

* Franz Hogenberg after Georg Hoefnagel. ''Palatium regium in Angliae regno appellatum Nonciutz.'' Engraved by Franz Hogenberg, Hand-colored engraving from Braun and Hogenberg's ''Civitates Orbis Terrarum''. Germany, 1582. Call number: [http://shakespeare.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=255367 ART Box H716 no.1 (size L)] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/u26ono LUNA Digital Image].
* Francis Delaram. ''Will Sommers, King Heneryes Jester. What though thou thinkst mee clad in strange attire...'' Print, ca. 1618-27. Call number:  [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=125878 ART 256- 916 (size S)] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/6859o4 LUNA Digital Image].
* ''A pleasant history of the life and death of Will Summers''. London: J. Okes, 1637. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=161173 STC 23434.5] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/jbhx78 LUNA Digital Image].
* Desiderius Erasmus. ''Enchiridion militis Christiani, saluberrimis praeceptis refertum''. Basel, 1519. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=76026 PA8517 .E5 1519 Copy 1 Cage] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/rnvy5n LUNA Digital Image].
* Niccolò Machiavelli. ''Il principe''. Rome, 1532. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=75461 Bd.w. PQ4627.M2 H5 1532 Cage] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/q5l08p LUNA Digital Image].
* Thomas More. ''A fruteful, and pleasaunt worke of the beste state of a publyque weale, and of the newe yle called Vtopia''. London: [S. Mierdman for] Abraham Vele, 1551. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=163632 STC 18094 Copy 1] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/35dfi9 LUNA Digital Image].
* Thomas Elyot. ''The boke named the Gouernour''. London: Thomas Berthelet, 1537. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=158338 STC 7636 Copy 1] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/cz3scf LUNA Digital Image]. 
* Thomas Elyot. ''The boke named the Gouernour''. London: Thomas Berthelet, 1553. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=158361 STC 7639 Copy 3] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/2a7c6k LUNA Digital Image].

=== Power and Pageantry; Magnificence and Munificence ===

Henry was the father of the English navy and, by the time of his death in 1547, the fleet had grown to fifty-eight ships. The extravagant ship “Great Harry” conveyed him and part of his retinue to France for his meeting with Francis I at the Field of the Cloth of Gold. In England, Henry also made a point of putting on display his vast wealth and his indulgent lifestyle. In 1546, Henry combined Cambridge’s King’s Hall and Michaelhouse Colleges to found Trinity College with the goal of producing future leaders of the Church of England.  He also completed the hugely expensive construction of King’s College Chapel, Cambridge, which was begun a century earlier. Despite these grand gestures, one might conclude that his goal was less to further education than to demonstrate his wealth and power.

[http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/collection/405794/the-field-of-the-cloth-of-gold This painting] depicts The Field of the Cloth of Gold—the name given to the site of a meeting between Henry VIII and Francis I of France. Henry and Francis tried to impress and outshine each other, and neither spared any expense. Huge temporary pavilions were erected to serve as halls and chapels, and great silken tents were decorated with gems and cloth of gold. Organized jousts and tilts, other competitions of skill and strength, masked balls, and lavish banquets filled the days and evenings. Henry challenged the French king to a wrestling match. Francis won.
 
Two items of further shows of power and wealth are King's College and a manuscript listing the gifts given by Henry for New Years Day, 1539.
 
King’s College was first founded by Henry VI in 1441, but it was only under the first two Tudor kings, Henry VII and Henry VIII, that its spectacular chapel was completed. The majority of construction and glazing of the windows was completed during the reign of Henry VIII, who was also responsible for the chancel screen, which bears the carved initials of Henry and Anne Boleyn, and much of the chapel woodwork. When Henry died in 1547, King’s College Chapel was recognized as one of Europe’s finest buildings.
 
The New Year's gift roll is eight and one-half feet long and signed on both sides by the king. It lists the gifts given by Henry to various recipients, arranged in descending order of precedence. Listed are “the Lorde Prince (Edward),” “the Lady Mariee,” “the Lady Elizabeth,” and “the Lady Margret Doughtles,” followed by “Bisshops,” “Dukes and Erles,” and lesser “Lordes.” The value of each gift is listed in the right-hand column. On the back of the document are some of the gifts received by the king, also in descending order of precedence. In the section headed “Gentelmen,” the gifts presented to Henry include “a brase of greyhoundes” from the marquis of Dorset, “a boke covered with grene velvet” from Lord Morley, “a night cap with cheynes & buttons of golde” from the Countess of Hampton, and “a shirte of camericke wrought in silke” from Lord Richard Grey. 

Learn more about the gift roll by listening to the curator's audio tour remarks.

<html5media>File:VRNewYearsRoll.mp3</html5media>
 
==== Items included ====
* FACSIMILE from the Royal Collection, by gracious permission of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. Unknown Artist. The Field of the Cloth of Gold. Painting, ca. 1545. RCIN [http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/collection/405794/the-field-of-the-cloth-of-gold 405794].
* LOAN courtesy of Arthur L. Schwarz. Rudolph Ackerman. ''A History of the University of Cambridge''. London, 1815.
* Henry VIII. New Year’s gift roll of Henry VIII, King of England. Manuscript, 1 January 1538/9. Call number:  [http://shakespeare.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=231251 Z.d.11] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/4vy41x LUNA Digital Image].

=== Defender of the Faith ===

When Martin Luther published his ninety-five ''Theses'' (1518) and his ''On the Babylonian Captivity of the Church'' (1520), he ignited a controversy far greater than any he intended or imagined. While many agreed with his desire for a reformation of the Church’s excesses, others leapt to defend the papacy and its teachings. For his ''Assertion (Defense) of the Seven Sacraments against Martin Luther'' (1521), Pope Leo X named Henry VIII “Defender of the Faith,” a title still held today by British monarchs.

Prominent churchmen on the Continent and in England wrote spirited defenses of the Church against Luther’s “heresies.” People stood for hours inside churches and outdoors in churchyards to listen to [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/rc3rek sermons like this one] by John Fisher. These sermons would have been delivered with enthusiasm and fervor. Copies of Fisher’s attack on Luther are very rare, this being one of only two complete survivors.
 
The battle between Martin Luther and the Roman Catholic Church continued with polemical writings emanating from both camps. Attack followed attack, and others like John Fisher and Thomas More joined Henry in defense of the Church and the papacy against Lutheran heresies.
 
With hindsight, the irony is clear: within a dozen years, Henry VIII would break from Rome and establish himself as head of the Church of England.
 
Listen to curator Arthur Schwarz talk about Henry's new title, "Defender of the Faith." 

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Hear the curator discuss a purple vellum gift thought to have been given to him by Pope Leo X.

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==== Items included ====

* LOAN courtesy of Arthur L. Schwarz. Henry VIII. ''Assertio septem sacramentorum: or, a defence of the seven sacraments, against Martin Luther''. London, 1687. 
* John Fisher. ''The sermon of Johan the bysshop of Rochester made agayn the pernicious doctryn of Martin luther within the octaves of the ascensyon by the assingement of the most reverend fader in god th] lord Thomas Cardinal of Yorke and legate ex latere from our holy father the pope''. London: Wynkyn de Worde, 1521?. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=160958 STC 10894] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/hv8h73 LUNA Digital Image].
* Henry VIII, King of England. ''Assertio septem sacramentorum adversus Martin. Lutherum, ædita ab invictissimo Angliæ et Franciæ rege, et do. Hyberniæ Henrico eius nominis octavo''. London, 1521. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=169814 STC 13078] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/or0bp9 LUNA Digital Image].
* LOAN courtesy of the Morgan Library and Museum. ''The Golden Gospels of Henry VIII''. Manuscript, ca. 977-993. Morgan call number: [http://corsair.themorgan.org/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=76895 MS M.23].

=== The King's Great Matter: Catherine of Aragon ===

Having no male heir to succeed him, the King sought a divorce from Catherine of Aragon—in twenty-first-century terminology, an “annulment”—citing the Biblical prohibition of marriage to one’s brother’s wife. The “king’s great matter” was further complicated by his infatuation with Anne Boleyn, who refused his amorous advances; for her, it was marriage or nothing.
 
With Cardinal Wolsey in charge, Henry petitioned Rome to grant the divorce, but the pope was under the thumb of the Emperor, Charles V, who was also Catherine’s nephew. A court was convened, opinions were sought from theological experts across Europe, but all was in vain. It was Henry VIII vs. the Roman Catholic Church, with no softening of position on either side.

William Tyndale penned ''The Practyse of Prelates'' as a treatise on the excesses and abuses of Church power and the matter of the king’s proposed divorce. Tyndale, best known for his translation of the Bible into English, sharply attacked the English prelacy, antagonizing both Church and important government leaders. In the second part of the book are Tyndale’s aggressive objections to Henry VIII’s proposed divorce of Catherine of Aragon.
 
In [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/6m2t2l Henry's answer] to ''Practyse of Prelates'', Henry argues that the pope cannot dispense with the law of God and cannot, therefore, waive the biblical stricture against marrying one’s brother’s wife. He repeatedly declares that the pope has no power to override the law of Scripture nor the power to revoke to Rome a case that should, by both Church and English law, be heard in England. This is the first hint of Henry’s coming attack on the supremacy of the pope in the English Church.
 
Learn more about Catherine's defense of her position by listening to the curator's audio comments on the letter she wrote to her nephew, Emperor Charles V.

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Hear about Henry's trials with the Pope in this audio commentary.

<html5media>File:VRLetterinCode.mp3</html5media>

==== Items included ====

* FACSIMILE from the Royal Collection, by gracious permission of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. Unknown Artist. ''Caterina Prima Uxor Henrici Octavi''. Oil on panel, ca. 1550–1699. RCIN [http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/collection/404746/catherine-of-aragon-1485-1536 404746].
* Henry VIII. ''A glass of the truthe''. London: Thomas Berthelet, 1532?. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=159723 STC 11919] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/9t372j LUNA Digital Image].
* LOAN courtesy of the Morgan Library and Museum. Catherine of Aragon. Autograph letter signed to her nephew Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. Manuscript, 22 February 1531. Morgan call number: [http://corsair.themorgan.org/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=79926 Rulers of England Box 02, Henry VIII, no. 29].
* LOAN courtesy of the Morgan Library and Museum. Peter Vannes. Autograph letter signed to Cardinal Wolsey. Manuscript, 19 April 1529. Morgan call number: [http://corsair.themorgan.org/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=116710 Rulers of England Box 02, Henry VIII, no. 40]

=== Cardinal Thomas Wolsey ===

The influence of Thomas Wolsey, Archbishop of York and Henry’s confidante and closest advisor for almost twenty years, was far greater in secular matters than in ecclesiastical ones. Wolsey was ordained a priest in 1498, and, following a series of appointments, including one as chaplain to the Archbishop of Canterbury, he was appointed chaplain to Henry VIII in 1507.  In 1515, the pope named him cardinal, and later the same year, Henry named him lord chancellor, giving him the highest secular position in the land (save for the King). Although reviled by many as a self-aggrandizing, over-powerful butcher’s son, he was responsible for many good works, including the founding of Cardinal College, later renamed Christ Church.

Wolsey lost Henry’s confidence following his failure to obtain for the king a divorce from Catherine of Aragon. He fell from favor and was stripped of his government office and property, lamenting, “if I had served God as dyligently as I have don the Kyng, he wold not have gevyn me over in my gray heares.”   He was arrested and accused of treason in his diocese of York. In great distress, he set out for London, but fell ill and died on the way, on November 29, 1530, around the age of sixty.
 
This [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/21310z painting] depicts Wolsey’s downfall in Act 3, Scene 2 of Shakespeare’s [[Henry VIII|''Henry VIII'']]. The artist shows the cardinal being stripped of his power by the duke of Suffolk, Lord Surrey, the duke of Norfolk, and the lord chamberlain. His right hand rests on a bag containing the great seal. The figures’ faces are based on actual portraits of the men involved. This painting is one of four ''Henry VIII'' scenes Westall painted for the [[Marketing Shakespeare: the Boydell Gallery, 1789–1805, & Beyond|Boydell Shakespeare Gallery]]. The three smaller paintings, this one included, were engraved for the nine-volume edition of Shakespeare published by Boydell in 1802.

Listen to Arthur Schwarz discuss Cardinal Wolsey.

<html5media>File:VRWolsey.mp3</html5media>

==== Items included ====

* Richard Westall. ''Wolsey Disgraced''. Oil on canvas, 1795. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=128627 FPa84] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/21310z LUNA Digital Image].
* LOAN courtesy of Arthur L. Schwarz. Rudolph Ackermann. ''A History of the University of Oxford''. London, 1814.
* George Cavendish. ''Copy of Thomas Wolsey, his life and death, ca. 1554-1558''. Manuscript, ca. 1600. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=231487 V.b.111].

=== The Break with Rome ===

Although opposed by Thomas More, John Fisher, and others, Henry solved the problem of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon by following a path designed by Archbishop Thomas Cranmer and More’s successor as chancellor, Thomas Cromwell: he separated the English Catholic Church from the Roman, declared the “pope” to be merely the “bishop of Rome,” without rights or title superior to other bishops, and took for himself the title “Supreme Head of the Church of England.” It was Cromwell, Henry’s chief minister from 1532 to 1540, who suggested that Henry make himself head of the English Church and who was also responsible for drafting the legislation that formalized England’s break with Rome.

Thomas More resigned as Lord Chancellor of England, rather than champion Henry’s divorce, of which he disapproved on theological grounds. In 1534, the Act of Succession established the order in which Henry's heirs could inherit the crown, eliminating the now bastardized Mary and putting in children born to Anne Boleyn, whose marriage to Henry was now deemed proper. When it came time to swear to uphold this act, whose preamble offended his religious beliefs, More stood his ground and refused. He was executed on July 6, 1535. Four hundred years later, he and Bishop Fisher, who met a similar fate, were canonized as saints by the Roman Catholic Church. More and Fisher were not alone in their belief that Henry’s split from Rome was heretical. Evidence of the controversy can be found in passages variously canceled or honored in devotional books of hours.
 
The layman’s book of devotions shown at right was intended for private use. In this copy, many of the rubrics which are particularly offensive to anti-Roman Catholics have been lightly cancelled in ink, as required by royal injunctions, but they are still legible; in several cases the word “pope” has been scratched out. Other copies can be found with the rubrics intact and, in some cases, a number of the initials and images gilded as a show of devotion.

Listen to curator Arthur Schwarz discuss differences in personal devotional books. 

<html5media>File:VRReligiousDivide.mp3</html5media>

==== Items included ====

* LOAN courtesy of Arthur L. Schwarz. John Foxe. ''Acts and monuments of matters most special and memorable, happening in the church: with an universal history of the same''. London, 1684.
* LOAN courtesy of Arthur L. Schwarz. Francesco Bartolozzi after Hans Holbein the Younger. ''Tho. Moor Ld. Chancelour''. Engraving, 1792-1800.
* Catholic Church. ''[Book of Hours (Salisbury)]''. ''Hore Beatissime virginis marie ad legitimum Sarisburiensis Ecclesie ritum, cum quindecim orationibus beate Brigitte, ac multis alijs orationibus pulcherrimis, et indulgentijs, cum tabula aptissima iam ultimo adiectis''. Paris, 1530. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=168891 STC 15968] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/k1m5r6 LUNA Digital Image].
* ''Articles devisid by the holle consent of the kynges counsayle, to enfourme his louynge subiectis.'' London, 1534. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=171320 STC 9178] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/5sz4kv LUNA Digital Image].
* William Roper. ''The mirrour of vertue in worldly greatnes. Or The life of Syr Thomas More Knight, sometime Lo. Chancellour of England''. Paris, 1626. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=166350 STC 21316 copy 1].
* Cresacre More. ''D.O.M.S. The life and death of Sir Thomas Moore Lord high Chancellour of England''. [Douai: B. Bellière, 1631?]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=164629 STC 18066 Copy 1].

=== Reforming the Church ===

Henry, with Thomas Cromwell as his newly appointed vicegerent of spirituals, set about distancing his Church from the Roman Church and acquiring its vast wealth for the Crown. In addition, the 1530s saw the imposition of many new Church practices, required by the “Act of Ten Articles,” including the purchase of Bibles in English translation, requirements for education and moral conduct of the priesthood, and a recognition of three sacraments (baptism, penance, and the Eucharist) rather than the Roman Church’s seven. In two other critical areas the Articles differed from the Roman Church, as well as from emerging Protestant teachings: transubstantiation (the miraculous conversion of wine and bread into the blood and body of Christ) was not specifically mentioned; and the Lutheran “justification by faith alone” (the belief that God’s forgiveness of guilty sinners is granted and received solely through faith or belief, and not through any human efforts or works) was noted but not fully accepted.  

==== Items included ====

* Gilbert Burnet. ''The History of the Reformation of the Church of England''. London: T.H. for Richard Chiswell, 1681. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=138411 B5798 Vol.1] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/7ij16l LUNA Digital Image].
* ''A treatise prouynge by the kynges lawes, that the byshops of Rome, had neuer ryght to any supremitie within this realme''. London: Tho. Berthelet, [1538]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=169276 STC 24248] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/68b5jj LUNA Digital Image].
* Richard Rolt. ''The lives of the principal reformers, both Englishmen and foreigners''. London, 1759. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=175606 BR304.R7 Cage] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/no6xx6 LUNA Digital Image].

=== The Bible in English ===
[[File:Z1020.I559 Cage title page.jpg|thumb|right|290px|The title page of ''Index of Prohibited Books'', 1559. Folger Digital Image [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/063j43 44011].]]
One of the most important results of Henry’s reformation of the English Church was the production of Bibles translated into the vernacular. What earlier would have been a crime—possessing a Bible in English—became a requirement for all churches in the realm. Henry’s influence as Head of the Church of England can be seen in the images and iconography on the title pages of these early English bibles. Unlike medieval royalty, who received the symbols of royal power such as the orb and scepter from the clergy, the king is no longer separate from the church but has become an integral part of it. His developing power is exemplified by the location of his image on the title page: in the 1535 Coverdale Bible Henry’s image is at the foot of the title page; four years later, Henry sits almost at the top, immediately under a very small image of the risen Christ.

Henry's influence and writings as the Head of the Church of England were not without controversy. Pictured at right is the ''Index of Prohibited Books'' (1559), a list of books forbidden to Roman Catholics as dangerous to faith or morals. In it, the works of “Henricus viij Anglus” are listed among the ''Auctores quorum libri & scripta omnia prohibentur''—authors all of whose books and writings are prohibited. Others afforded similar treatment include Coverdale, Cranmer, Erasmus, Luther, and Tyndale. The ban on all of Henry’s books also included ''Assertio Septem Sacramentorum''—or the ''Defense of the Seven Sacraments''—for which the pope had named him “Defender of the Faith.” Years later, the Inquisition tried to censor Shakespeare’s ''Henry VIII'' for making statements which the Church thought offensive.

Listen to Arthur Schwarz discuss the great Bible in English.

<html5media>File:VRBible.mp3</html5media>

==== Items included ====

* LOAN courtesy of the [http://www.library.illinois.edu University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign]. ''The Byble in Englyshe: that is to saye the content of all the holy Scrypture, bothe of ye Olde and Newe testament, truly translated after the veryte of the Hebrue and Greke textes, by ye dylygent studye of dyuerse excellent learned men, expert in the forsayde tonges.''. London: Rychard Grafton & Edward Whitchurch, 1539. U of Illinois call number: [http://vufind.carli.illinois.edu/vf-uiu/Record/uiu_5192891 IUQ00027].
* ''Index auctorum, et librorum qui ab Officio Sanctae Rom, et Universalis Inquisitionis caveri ab omnibus et singulis in uniuersa Christiana republica mandantur: sub censuris contra legentes, vel tenentes libros prohibitos in bulla, quae lecta est in Coena Domini expressis, & sub aliis poenis in decreto eiusdem Sacri Officii contentis''. Genoa, 1559. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=188337 Z1020 .I559 Cage] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/zzvnso LUNA Digital Image].

=== Henry's Wives ===

In Hans Holbein’s famous painting of Henry VIII, the king looms large and domineering, magnificently attired, ever magisterial, with his procreative power clearly suggested. Henry married six times, but he was not the lustful libertine often portrayed in modern fiction. According to the king’s knowledge and belief, he needed a male heir to assure continuation of a Tudor dynasty, justifying his divorce of Catherine of Aragon (his first wife). Wives two and five (Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard) were executed for alleged infidelity, wife three (Jane Seymour) died of childbed fever, wife four (Anne of Cleves) was divorced for what today would be termed “incompatability.” Wife six, Catherine Parr, survived Henry. All told, his wives bore Henry three children who survived him: Edward, Mary, and Elizabeth, each of whom came to rule England.

Listen to curator Arthur Schwarz discuss Henry's six wives.

<html5media>File:VRWives.mp3</html5media>

==== Items included ====

* LOAN courtesy of the Morgan Library & Museum. Artist Unknown. ''Henry VIII and his Six Wives''. Engraving, 19th century. Morgan call number: [http://corsair.themorgan.org/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=203552 Rulers of England Box 02, Henry VIII, no. 25].
* LOAN courtesy of the Morgan Library & Museum. Artist Unknown after Hans Holbein the Younger. ''Henry VIII''. Lithograph, 19th century. Morgan call number: [http://corsair.themorgan.org/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=203556 Rulers of England Box 02, Henry VIII, no. 11b].

=== The Final Years ===

The King became ever more irascible during his later years as his health deteriorated. He was preoccupied with the Church and, in a sudden about-face, “An Act Abolishing Diversity in Opinions,” was enacted in 1539. The law reasserted much traditional doctrine, and the burning of heretics increased. The return to conservatism was a major defeat for Archbishop Cranmer, chief minister Cromwell, and others who wished to move closer to Protestantism.
 
Henry also continued to attack his intimates. Among those executed for treason were Thomas Cromwell (for having misled the king in urging his marriage to Anne of Cleves) and the poet Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey (for suggesting that his father, Duke of Norfolk, was the logical Protector for Prince Edward, the heir to the throne). Henry VIII died on January 28, 1547 at the age of fifty-five. He was buried in St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle beside Jane Seymour, his favorite wife, the woman who had borne him a son and heir.

==== Items included ====

* LOAN courtesy of Scott C. Schwartz. ''Henry VIII''. Contemporary original portrait of the king... removed from an official manuscript document. Manuscript, ca. 1542/3. 
* Cornelius Metsys. ''Henricus dei gratia rex anglie''. Print. Antwerp?, 1548. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=246853 ART 252- 711 (size S)] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/5zsibr LUNA Digital Image].

=== Verdicts on the Reign ===

In some quarters, Henry has been remembered as an ogre, a tyrant, and a man who would do anything to anyone to achieve his personal aims, with his years on the throne a veritable reign of terror. Other views of the reign suggest that the king was more a “creature of his time,” who did not act outside the accepted values and rules of the sixteenth century, who served his country with dignity, grace, and honor, and who helped create the England that has survived and prospered for five centuries since his accession to the Crown.

In Sir Walter Raleigh's ''History of the World'', Raleigh was highly critical of Henry, saying:
<blockquote>if all the pictures and Patternes of a mercilesse Prince were lost in the World, they might all againe be painted to the life, out of the story of this King. For how many servants did hee advance in hast … and with the change of his fancy ruined againe …? How many wives did hee cut off, and cast off, as his fancy and affection changed? </blockquote>

On the other side, Edward Lewis wrote an eighteenth century biography of the king, and had this to say:
<blockquote>Henry then, was a person of great sagacity and judgment, … of considerable learning himself; a friend and patron to learned men, and to every useful and ornamental art and science; – social, magnificent, magnanimous, – a tender husband, – an indulgent father, – a faithful friend, – a generous master, – not lewd, not cruel, not voluptuous, – an honest open-hearted man, – a sincere christian, and a Patriot King.</blockquote>

Finally, Edward, Lord Herbert of Cherbury, concluded, in his authoritative biography of Henry VIII:
<blockquote>With all his crimes yet, he was one of the most glorious Princes of his time …. But what this Prince was, and whether, and how far forth excusable in point of State, Conscience or Honour, a diligent observation of his Actions, together with a conjuncture of the times, will (I conceive) better declare to the judicious Reader, then any factious relation on what side whatsoever. To conclude; I wish I could leave him in his grave.</blockquote>

Listen to curator Arthur Schwarz opinion of Henry's monarchy and legacy.

<html5media>File:VRMasterfulMonarch.mp3</html5media>

==== Items included ====

* LOAN courtesy of Arthur L. Schwarz. William Henry Pyne. ''The History of the Royal Residences''. London, 1819.
* Walter Raleigh. ''The history of the world. In five bookes''. [London: William Iaggard, William Stansby, and Nicholas Okes for Walter Burre, 1621]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=166413 STC 20639].
* Edward, Lord Herbert of Cherbury. ''The life and reign of King Henry the Eighth''. London: Andr. Clark, for S. Mearne [1672]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=147949 H1505A] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/1w4231 LUNA Digital Image]

=== Additional items exhibited ===
[[File:STC 15889 D3v-D4r.jpg|thumb|right|330px|Salisbury Book of Hours, 1498. Folger Digital Image [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/728gdd 18461].]]
''The following items are listed chronologically according to the [[Hamnet|''Hamnet'']] catalog.''

* Catholic Church. ''[Book of Hours (Salisbury)]''. ''Incipiunt Hore Beate Marie Virginis secu[n]dum vsum Sarum ....'' [1498]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=170300 STC 15889] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/ul01k0 LUNA Digital Image].
* John Fisher. ''This sermon folowynge was compyled [and] sayd in the cathedrall chyrche of saynt Poule within [the] cyte of London by the ryght reuerende fader in god Iohn̄ bysshop of Rochester, the body beynge present of the moost famouse prynce kynge Henry the. vij. the. x. day of Maye, the yere of our lorde god. M.CCCCC.ix. whiche sermon was enprynted at the specyall request of [the] ryght excellent pryncesse Margarete moder vnto the sayd noble prynce and Countesse of Rychemonde and Derby''. London: Wynkyn de Worde, [1509 or 1510]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=159197 STC 10901] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/scoc6x LUNA Digital Image].
* Martin Luther. ''De captiuitate Babylonica ecclesiae praeludium''. Wittenberg, [1520]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=77211 171- 251q] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/64gr1v LUNA Digital Image].
* Martin Luther. ''Contra Henricum Regem Angliae Martinus Luther : longe alius est hic liber [quam] ille quem ante hunc uernacula lingua scripsit''. Wittenberg: [Adam Petri], 1522. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=77521 164- 595q] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/8d443u LUNA Digital Image].
* Thomas More. ''Eruditissimi viri Guilielmi Rossei opus elegans, doctum, festiuum, pium, quo pulcherrime retegit, ac refellit insanas Lutheri calumnias''. London: Richard Pynson, [1523]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=169311 STC 18089] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/4j2x94 LUNA Digital Image].
* Jean Froissart. ''Here begynneth the first volum of sir Iohan Froyssart: of the cronycles of Englande, Fraunce, Spayne, Portyngale, Scotlande, Bretayne, Flau[n]ders: and other places adioynynge''. London: Richard Pynson, [1523]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=168949 STC 11396 Vol. 1] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/64u2gj LUNA Digital Image].
* Henry VIII, King of England. ''A copy of the letters, wherin the most redouted [and] mighty pri[n]ce, our souerayne lorde kyng Henry the eight, kyng of Englande [and] of Frau[n]ce, defe[n]sor of the faith, and lorde of Irla[n]de: made answere vnto a certayne letter of Martyn Luther, sente vnto him by the same, and also the copy of the foresaid Luthers letter, in such order, as here after foloweth.'' London: Richard Pynson, [1527?]. Call number:  [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=161217 STC 13087] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/g74a49 LUNA Digital Image] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/4cks7z Binding image on LUNA].
* William Tyndale. ''The obedie[n]ce of a Christen man and how Christe[n] rulers ought to governe, where in also (yf thou marke diligently) thou shalt fynde eyes to perceave the crafty conveyau[n]ce of all iugglers''. Antwerp: [Hans luft [i.e. J. Hoochstraten], [1528]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=160665 STC 24446] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/u69g0f LUNA Digital Image].
* Thomas More. ''The supplycacyon of soulys made by syr Thomas More knyght councellour to our souerayn lorde the Kynge and chauncellour of hys duchy of Lancaster. Agaynst the supplycacyon of beggars''. London: William Rastell, 1529. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=169808 STC 18092] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/o173i5 LUNA Digital Image].
* Thomas More. ''A dyaloge of syr Thomas More knyghte''. London: William Rastell, 1530. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=165713 STC 18085] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/y692v9 LUNA Digital Image].
* Edward Fox. ''The determinations of the moste famous and mooste excellent vniuersities of Italy and Fraunce, that it is so vnlefull [sic] for a man to marie his brothers wyfe, that the pope hath no power to dispence therwith''. London: Thomas Berthelet, 1531. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=162189 STC 14287 Copy 2] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/jdo4c0 LUNA Digital Image].
* Catholic Church. ''[Book of Hours (Salisbury)]. Enchirdio preclare ecclie sarisburiesis.'' Paris [1533?]. Call number: [http://shakespeare.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=168913 STC 15982] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/f4dt1a LUNA Digital Image].
* Henry VIII, King of England. Writ under sign manual and signet, for Christopher Moore. Manuscript, 24 November 1539. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=244741 L.b.1] and [http://findingaids.folger.edu/dfoloseley2002.xml Guide to the Loseley Collection] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/ogql11 LUNA Digital Image].
* Henry VIII, King of England. ''An epistle of the most myghty and redouted Prynce Henry the .viii. by the grace of God Kynge of Englande and of Fraunce, lorde of Irlande, defender of the faith, and supreme heed of the Churche of Englande, nexte vnder Christe, wrytten to the Emperours Maiestie, to all Christen princes, and to all those that trewly and syncerely professe Christes religion''. London: Thomæ Bertheleti, [1538]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=171408 STC 13081 pt. 2] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/783q48 LUNA Digital Image].
* ''Anno tricesimo primo Henrici octaui. Henry the VIII. By the grace of God kynge of England and of Fraunce, defender of the fayth, Lord of Irelande, and in earth supreme hed immediatly under Christ of the churche of England to the honour of almyghty God, conseruation of the true doctrine of Christes religion, and for the concord quiet and welth of this his realme and subiectes of the same, helde his moste hyghe court of Parliament, begonne at Westm[inster] the .xxviii. day of Aprill, and ther continued tyll the .xxviii. day of June, the .xxxi. yere of his most noble and victorious reigne, wherin vvere establysshed these actes folowinge''. London: [Thomæ Bertheleti], [1539]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=164000 STC 9397] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/g00l3c LUNA Digital Image].
* William Turner. ''The huntyng & fyndyng out of the Romishe fox whiche more then seuen yeares hath bene hyd among the bisshoppes of Englong [sic] after that the Kynges hyghnes had comma[n]ded hym to be dryuen out of hys realme''. Basel:  [i.e. Bonn: L. Mylius], 1543. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=160698 STC 24353 Copy 1] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/k231qm LUNA Digital Image].
* Church of England. ''The primer, in Englishe and Latyn, set foorth by the Kynges maiestie and his clergie to be taught learned, and read: and none other to be vsed throughout all his dominions''. London: Richard Grafton, [1545]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=162928 STC 16040] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/5pjo2o LUNA Digital Image].
* ''A supplication of the poore commons. Wherunto is added the supplication of beggers''. London: John Day and William Seres?, 1546. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=159196 STC 10884] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/p2368m LUNA Digital Image].
* Philipp Melanchthon. ''The epistle of the famous and great clerke Philip Melancton made vnto oure late Souereygne Lorde Kynge Henry the eight, for the reuokinge and abolishing of the six articles set forth and enacted by the craftie meanes and procurement of certeyne of our prelates of the clergie''. Antwerp: S. Mierdman, 1547. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=160391 STC 17789] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/1um3pa LUNA Digital Image].
* Catharine Parr. ''The lamentacion of a synner, made by the moste vertuous Lady quene Caterine, bewailyng the ignoraunce of her blind life''. London: Edwarde Whitchurche, [1548]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=162328 STC 4828] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/i34lz7 LUNA Digital Image].
* John Lambert. ''A treatyse made by Johan Lambert vnto kynge Henry the .viij. concerynge hys opynyon in the sacrame[n]t of the aultre as they call it, or supper of the lorde as the scripture nameth it''. [Wesel: D. van der Straten, 1548?]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=160124 STC 15180] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/b2311b LUNA Digital Image]. 
* Marguerite, Queen, consort of Henry II, King of Navarre. ''A godly medytacyon of the christen sowle, concerninge a loue towardes God and hys Christe''. [Wesel: Dirik van der Straten, 1548]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=164180 STC 17320] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/vcs43j LUNA Digital Image].
* Catharine Parr. ''Prayers or meditacions, wherein the minde is stirred, paciently to suffre all afflictions here, to set at nought the vayne prosperitee of this worlde, and alway to longe for the euerlastinge felicitee''. London: : W. Powell?, ca. 1550. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=165567 STC 4824a] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/3w292u LUNA Digital Image].
* ''Anno XXIIII Henrici VIII. Actes made in the session of this present parlyamente, holden vppon prorogacion at Westminster, the. iiii. daie of Februarie, in the. xxiiii. yere of the reygne of our moste dradde soueraigne lorde Kynge Henrie the eyght, and there continued and kept tyll the. vii. daie of Aprill then nexte ensuinge, to the honour of god and holy church, and for the common weale of this his realme''. London: Thomas Powell, 1562. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=169019 STC 9377] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/pocz74 LUNA Digital Image].
* ''Anno XXV. Henrici Octaui. Actes made in the session of this present parliament holden vpon prorogation at Westminster, the xv. daye of Ianuarye, in the xxv. yeare of the raigne of our most drad soueraigne lord King Henry the viii and there continued and kept till the xxx. day of March then next ensuinge: to the honour of God and holy Church, and for the common weale and profite of this his realme''. London: [Thomas Marsh], [1542, i.e. 1575?]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=169030 STC 9384] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/5j753y LUNA Digital Image].
* William Lambarde. ''A perambulation of Kent: conteining the description, hystorie, and customes of that shyre''. London: For Ralphe Newberie, 1576. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=162722 STC 15175] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/o76v26 LUNA Digital Image]. 
* Raphael Holished. ''[Vol. I:] 1577. The firste volume of the chronicles of England, Scotlande, and Irelande...''. London: H. Denham, 1587. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=171417 STC 13569.2] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/k837v3 LUNA Digital Image]. 
* Francis Bacon. ''The historie of the raigne of King Henry the Seventh''. London: W. Stansby, 1622. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=170723 STC 1160] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/9necgh LUNA Digital Image].
* William Shakespeare. ''Mr. William Shakespeares comedies, histories, & tragedies : published according to the true originall copies''. London: Isaac Iaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=78505 STC 22273 Fo.1 no.31] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/bm7c5e Binding image on LUNA].
* Henry VIII, King of England. ''A famous speech of King Henry the eighth, made in the Parliament House the 24. of December, in the 37. yeare of his Majesties reigne. Anno Dom. 1545''. London, 1642. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=158007 H1471]. 
* John Topham. ''A description of an antient picture in Windsor Castle, representing the embarkation of King Henry VIII. at Dover, May 31, 1520''. London: J. Nichols, 1781. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=177795 200870].
* Luigi Schiavonetti after Hans Holbein. ''Edward Stafford Duke of Buckingham''. London: E. Harding, 1792. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=256157 ART File B922.5 no.2 (size XS)].
* Howard Henry Surrey. ''The works of Henry Howard earl of Surrey and of Sir Thomas Wyatt the elder''. London: T. Bensley, for Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown, 1815-16. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=26042 Folio PR2370 .A1 1815 Cage].
* Henry Shaw. ''Dresses and decorations of the Middle Ages''. London: W. Pickering, 1843. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=14079 GT732 .S4].
* Gilbert Abbott À Beckett. ''The comic history of England''. London: Bradbury, Agnew & Co. [1864?]. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=53232 DA33 .A2].

== Supplemental materials ==

=== [[Vivat Rex! children's exhibition|''Vivat Rex!'' children's exhibition]] ===

=== [https://flic.kr/s/aHsjsjcMH7 Image Gallery] ===

To view some highlighted images from this exhibition, visit this [https://flic.kr/s/aHsjsjcMH7 Flickr photo album].

=== Audio tour ===
Arthur Schwarz, curator of the exhibition, shares insights into a selection of items from the exhibition. Additional audio can be found within the above [[#Contents of the exhibition|exhibition material]] descriptions.


==== A Most Accomplished Prince ====

Curator Arthur Schwarz shares the Venitian Ambassador's opinion of the king.

<html5media>File:VRAccomplished.mp3</html5media>


==== Party for a Prince ====

When Catherine of Aragon had a son, a grand celebration took place. Listen to curator Arthur Schwarz tell about it.

<html5media>File:VRParty.mp3</html5media>

* FACSIMILE. ''A Description of the solemn Justs held at Westminster … in the first year of Henry the VIII in honor of his Queen Katherin upon the birth of their eldest Son Prince Henry. A.D. 1510''. Print, 1726. Call number: ART Flat a3 and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/610rxo LUNA Digital Image].


==== Reformation in Five Acts ====

Curator Arthur Schwarz discusses five acts that made the English Reformation possible.

<html5media>File:VRReformation.mp3</html5media>

* ''Anno XXVI. Henrici VIII. Actes made in the session of this presente parliamente holden uppon prorogacion at Westminster, the thyrde daye of November in the XXVI. yeare of the reigne of our moste drad soveraigne lord king Henry ye viii. and there continued and kepte till the xviii. day of December next ensuing''. London: Thomas Marsh, 1575?. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=169031 STC 9302.2 Part 10] and [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/5m8034 LUNA Digital Image].


==== Royal Instructions ====

Curator Arthur Schwarz explains some of the changes Henry brought upon England's parishes.

<html5media>File:VRRoyalInstructions.mp3</html5media>

* LOAN courtesy of Arthur L. Schwarz. ''Injunctions to the Clergy''. Diocese of Worcester(?), 1538.


==== Censoring Shakespeare ====

The Spanish Inquisition did not agree with Shakespeare's portrayal of Henry VIII, as curator Arthur Schwarz explains in this audio commentary.

<html5media>File:VRShakespeare.mp3</html5media>

* William Shakespeare. ''Mr. William Shakespeares comedies, histories, and tragedies''. London: Tho. Cotes, 1632. Call number: [http://hamnet.folger.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=97486 STC 22274 Fo.2 no.07]; displayed [http://luna.folger.edu/luna/servlet/s/zen1k1 y6v].

=== Video ===

Famous for making himself head of the Church of England, Henry VIII instituted sweeping religious changes during his reign. Hear curator Arthur Schwarz discuss Henry VIII's break with Rome.

<html5media height="180" width="320">https://www.youtube.com/embed/5KsRGF_WYXo</html5media>


Was King Henry VIII a womanizer? Curator Arthur Schwarz takes a look at the king's romantic history.

<html5media height="180" width="320">https://www.youtube.com/embed/zI-e5EWML8c</html5media>

=== Related Programs ===

==== [[Talks and Screenings at the Folger]] ====

* ''Folger Friday: Henry VIII Discussion'', October 15, 2010 
* ''Henry VIII: Art and Magnificence'', November 5, 2010 
* ''A Reading by Margaret George, author of The Autobiography of Henry VIII'', November 29, 2010 

==== [[Folger Theatre]] ====

* William Shakespeare's [[Henry VIII (Folger Theatre, 2010)|''Henry VIII'']], October 12 – November 28, 2010

==== [[Folger Consort]] ====

* [[Pastime with Good Company: Music from the Court of Henry VIII (2010)|''Pastime with Good Company: Music from the Court of Henry VIII'']], October 1–3, 2010
* [[A Renaissance Christmas (2010)|''A Renaissance Christmas'']], December 10–12, 2010

==== [[Folger Institute]] ====

* [[Reassessing Henry VIII (workshop)|Reassessing Henry VIII]], Workshop, November 5–6, 2010.

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