Who were King Henry VIII’s six wives and what happened to them?
During this lockdown when children cannot be at school. I’ve been doing online history lessons for two youngsters aged nine years old – one is granddaughter no 1 and the other the son of a good friend.
We started with Victorian Britain and I did four sessions on this period. To keep things fresh, we’ve moved to Tudor Britain which included King Henry VIII. He is known for his marriage to six women and the creation of the Church of England – very much related matters.
But can you remember the six wives in order? And how did each marriage end?
- The Spanish Catherine of Aragon who had a daughter, the future Queen Mary I, before being divorced.
- The English Anne Boleyn who also had a daughter, the future Queen Elizabeth I, but was executed.
- The English Jane Seymour who finally gave Henry a son, the future King Edward VI, but died shortly after the birth.
- The German Anne of Cleves with whom there were no children and a quick divorce.
- The English Catherine Howard – again no children and another execution.
- The English Catherine Parr – once more no children and this time still married to the King when he died.
To help children remember the fortunes of these six women, we have this little rhyme:
“Divorced, beheaded, died;
divorced, beheaded, survived.”
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