Born: June 28, 1491
Greenwich, England
Died: January 28, 1547
London, England

King

" … if he were still free he would choose her in preference to all others."

Henry VIII, upon marrying Catherine of Aragon.

Henry VIII is best known today as the king who discarded—or beheaded—his wives because they did not give him a male heir. He is also famous for defying the pope (the supreme head of the Roman Catholic Church). As a consequence of the pope's refusal to grant Henry a divorce from his first wife, Henry withdrew from the Roman Catholic Church and created the Church of England. Henry was also a great supporter of the English Renaissance. Although his daughter, Elizabeth I (1533–1603; see entry), is usually associated with the height of English culture, Henry set the stage by encouraging new humanist ideas that were being brought from Italy...