Henry VIII and the Men Who Made Him

Henry VIII and the Men Who Made Him

by Tracy Borman
Henry VIII and the Men Who Made Him

Henry VIII and the Men Who Made Him

by Tracy Borman

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Overview

The acclaimed historian presents a “beautifully perceptive and dynamic reassessment of Henry VIII…in this highly engrossing biography” (Booklist, starred review).
 
Henry VIII is best known for his tempestuous marriages and the fates of his six wives. But his reign and reputation were hugely influenced by his confidants, ministers, and even occasional rivals—many of whom have been underplayed in previous biographies. Exploring these relationships in depth, Tracy Borman offers a fresh perspective on the legendary king, revealing surprising contradictions in his beliefs and behavior.
Henry was capable of fierce but seldom abiding loyalty, of raising men up only to destroy them later. He loved to be attended by boisterous young men like his friend Charles Brandon, who shared his passion for sport. But the king could also be diverted by men of intellect, culture, and wit, as his longstanding interplay with Cardinal Wolsey and his reluctant abandonment of Thomas More attest.
Eager to escape the shadow of his father, Henry was easily led by male advisors early in his reign. In time, though, he matured into a profoundly paranoid and ruthless king. Recounting the great Tudor’s life and signal moments through the lens of his male relationships, Henry VIII and the Men Who Made Him sheds fresh light on this fascinating figure.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780802146403
Publisher: Grove/Atlantic, Inc.
Publication date: 05/14/2020
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 833
Sales rank: 362,208
File size: 19 MB
Note: This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Tracy Borman is England’s joint Chief Curator of Historic Royal Palaces and Chief Executive of the Heritage Education Trust. She is the author of many highly acclaimed books, including The Private Lives of the Tudors, Thomas Cromwell: The Untold Story of Henry VIII’s Most Faithful Servant, Elizabeth’s Women, and a first work of fiction, The King’s Witch. Borman is a regular broadcaster and public speaker.

Read an Excerpt

Remarkable though Henry’s marital history is, it is not what defines him. Far more influential than the women in his life were the men with whom he was surrounded. Although he was raised in a predominantly female household, the overbearing, often suffocating, presence of his father Henry VII dominated his early years. The sudden death of his elder brother Arthur at the age of just fifteen propelled Henry into the limelight, and, once king, he gathered around him a coterie of high-spirited young men to keep him entertained. During the course of his thirty-seven-year reign, he would attract some of the brightest minds of the sixteenth century: from omnipotent councilors such as Cardinal Wolsey and Thomas Cromwell to the renowned scholars Thomas More and Desiderius Erasmus, and the arrogant, ruthless members of the aristocracy, such as the dukes of Buckingham and Norfolk. In his private domain, meanwhile, he was attended by an array of different men: servants, barbers, physicians, fools and other lesser known characters whose job it was to attend to Henry’s every need, to entertain him and to listen to his confidences. It was these men who shaped Henry into the man—and monster—that he would become. And he, in turn, dictated their fates. This book will tell the story of England’s most famous monarch through the lens of the men who surrounded him, drawing in the many and varied characters at appropriate points in the narrative. As such, it will provide a fresh perspective on this much-studied monarch: a biography from the outside in.

Table of Contents

Preface: 'The son was born to a greater destiny' 1

Introduction: 'The changeableness of this king' 5

Chapter 1 'The king's second born son' 9

Chapter 2 'Having no affection or fancy unto him' 37

Chapter 3 'Lusty bachelors' 62

Chapter 4 'His Majesty's second self 84

Chapter 5 The servant is not greater than his lord' 99

Chapter 6 'Youths of evil counsel' 115

Chapter 7 "The most rascally beggar in the world' 146

Chapter 8 'The inconstantness of princes' favour' 178

Chapter 9 'The man who enjoys most credit with the king' 202

Chapter 10 'I shall die today and you tomorrow' 236

Chapter 11 'Resisting evil counsellors' 249

Chapter 12 'Every man here is for himself' 286

Chapter 13 'A goodly prince' 309

Chapter 14 'The greatest wretch ever born in England' 330

Chapter 15 'He has not been the same man' 362

Chapter 16 'My dearest son in Christ1 375

Chapter 17 'I have been young, and now am old' 403

Epilogue: 'Some special man' 419

Acknowledgements 429

Author's note 431

Abbreviations 431

Bibliography 433

Notes 443

Index 473

Picture acknowledgements 499

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