Tracy Borman: HENRY VIII,
PROBABLY THE BEST KNOWN ENGLISH KING IN HISTORY.
WE’RE ALL FAMILIAR WITH THE POPULAR IMAGE OF HENRY.
THE RUTHLESS, BAD-TEMPERED, OVERWEIGHT MONSTER
WHO HAD SIX WIVES,
A SPECTACULAR FALLING OUT WITH THE POPE IN ROME,
AND AN OBSESSION WITH FATHERING A SON AND HEIR.
AND ALL OF THIS IS INDEED TRUE,
BUT WAS THERE MORE TO HENRY THAN THAT?
Man: HENRY VIII STARTED WITH A LOT OF PROMISE,
THIS KIND OF YOUTHFUL, CHIVALRIC KING.
HE CENTRALIZED POWER IN THE COUNTRY.
HE MADE THE GOVERNMENT FANTASTICALLY WEALTHY.
Woman: HE WAS THIS GREAT, ENERGETIC YOUTH.
HE HAD SO MUCH GOING FOR HIM,
BUT THROUGHOUT HIS LIFE
HE SUSTAINED KNOCK AFTER KNOCK AFTER KNOCK.
HE’D RISKED SO MUCH IN THE PURSUIT OF THIS MALE HEIR,
AND IT HAD ALL REALLY COME TO NOTHING.
Man: HENRY VIII’S BIG PROBLEM WAS HE COMES TO POWER
AND THE DYNASTY STILL DIDN’T FEEL AS IF IT WAS LEGITIMATE.
YOU KNOW, AND HIS BIG STRUGGLE TO HAVE A SON
IS TO MAKE THE DYNASTY LEGITIMATE.
I MEAN, IN TERMS OF HIMSELF,
IN TERMS OF HIS PERSONAL LIFE, HE’S A DISASTER.
Man: HE WAS MONUMENTALLY SELF-OBSESSED
AND DESTRUCTIVE TO THE EXTENT
THAT HIS REIGN LEFT NOTHING BUT DIVISION IN THE COUNTRY,
AND HIS ONE GOAL,
HIS ONE AIM THAT MOTIVATED ALL OF HIS MURDEROUS ACTIVITIES,
FAILED IN ITSELF
IN THAT HIS DYNASTY LASTED NO LONGER THAN HIS CHILDREN.
Borman: IN THIS EPISODE, WE DISCOVER WHAT MADE HENRY VIII
SO POPULAR DURING HIS EARLY REIGN,
DELVE INTO ONE OF THE KING’S FAVORITE PASTIMES, REAL TENNIS,
AND EXPLORE THE FASHION THAT MADE HENRY BECOME
ONE OF THE MOST ICONIC BRITISH MONARCHS.
WHY HAS HISTORY TENDED TO FORGET
ABOUT HENRY’S MORE HANDSOME, YOUTHFUL PAST?
WERE SIX WIVES REALLY ENOUGH FOR HIM?
OR WAS HIS LOVE LIFE ALSO SPRINKLED WITH MISTRESSES?
AND HOW WOULD ONE SIMPLE ACCIDENT LEAD TO THE CREATION
OF THE TYRANT WE ALL REMEMBER TODAY?
I’M TRACY BORMAN,
AND THIS IS THE PRIVATE LIFE OF KING HENRY VIII.
♪
IT’S THE 7th OF JUNE, 1520,
AND ALTHOUGH THE WEATHER WAS VERY DIFFERENT,
NEARLY 10,000 ENGLISHMEN AND FRENCHMEN MEET IN A FIELD
IN NORTHERN CALAIS WITH THEIR RESPECTIVE KINGS,
HENRY VIII OF ENGLAND AND FRANCIS I OF FRANCE.
IN THE PAST, THIS WOULD HAVE SIGNALED YET ANOTHER WAR.
BUT THIS TIME THEY HAD AN ALTOGETHER DIFFERENT PURPOSE.
HOWEVER, KINGS WILL BE KINGS, AND THE OLD ANGLO-FRENCH RIVALRY
WASN’T GOING TO DISAPPEAR OVERNIGHT,
ALTHOUGH THIS TIME IT TOOK A RATHER DIFFERENT FORM.
CANNONS WERE SWAPPED FOR QUAIL’S EGGS,
PLATE ARMOR FOR PLATES OF FOOD,
AND HAND-TO-HAND COMBAT FOR CHEEK-TO-CHEEK DANCING,
AS EACH KING ATTEMPTED TO OUTDO THE OTHER
IN A LAVISH BATTLE OF WEALTH.
Rebecca Rideal: THE FIELD OF THE CLOTH OF GOLD
WAS THIS INCREDIBLE MOMENT IN HISTORY
WHERE HENRY VIII TOOK A HUGE ENTOURAGE, THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE,
ACROSS THE CHANNEL,
OVER TO FRANCE AND CREATED THIS TENT CITY/PALACE.
THERE WERE GLASS WINDOWS IN THE TENTS.
THERE WERE FOUNTAINS OF WINE.
THE FRENCH DID A SIMILAR THING.
THEY HAD PARTIES, THEY HAD FEASTS TOGETHER.
THIS WAS ALL TO SHOW SOLIDARITY WITH THE FRENCH KING.
♪
Borman: THIS WAS HENRY DOING WHAT HENRY DID BEST,
PUTTING ON A SHOW.
HE NEARLY BANKRUPTED THE ENGLISH TREASURY
IN AN EFFORT TO OUTDO FRANCIS
WITH TENTS AND CLOTHING
MADE FROM THE EYE-WATERINGLY EXPENSIVE CLOTH OF GOLD.
IN FACT, THERE WAS SO MUCH OF THE STUFF
THAT THE SITE WAS NAMED AFTER IT.
HOWEVER, ALL THIS OPULENCE WASN’T ENOUGH FOR HENRY.
HE HAD TO SHOW HIS PHYSICAL STRENGTH AS WELL.
SO NATURALLY HE CHALLENGED FRANCIS TO A WRESTLING MATCH,
THE HONOR OF THEIR RESPECTIVE COUNTRIES AT STAKE.
THE FRENCH CHRONICLES
GIVE RATHER MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE OUTCOME
THAN THE ENGLISH ONES.
HENRY LOST!
♪
Tony McMahon: SO YOU HAVE TO IMAGINE
THE FIELD OF THE CLOTH OF GOLD.
IT’S SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE, YOU KNOW,
WHAT WE HAVE NOW AS A LEADERS SUMMIT.
YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY WOULD BE TERRIBLY FORMAL.
YOU KNOW, TV CREWS AND VERY SENSIBLE MEETINGS.
BUT IT WASN’T LIKE THIS IN TUDOR TIMES.
SO YOU HAVE, BASICALLY, KING FRANCIS I OF FRANCE
AND HENRY VIII WRESTLING EACH OTHER
AND BEING TERRIBLY GOOD CHAPS.
AND ALL AROUND THEM PEOPLE ARE GETTING DRUNK
OUT OF THESE WINE FOUNTAINS,
AND THEN THE BACKDROP TO ALL OF THIS
IS AN ARTIFICIALLY CONSTRUCTED PALACE,
YOU KNOW, THAT’S SUPPOSED TO LOOK LIKE THE REAL THING,
BUT IT’S BASICALLY A STAGE SET FOR THIS EVENT.
AND IT’S CONSTRUCTED AT ENORMOUS COST,
I MEAN, COMPLETELY POINTLESS,
TAKEN DOWN AND BURNT AFTERWARDS, NEVER USED AGAIN.
Dominic Selwood: HENRY DIDN’T REALLY HAVE A CONCEPT
OF THE COUNTRY
AND WHAT IT NEEDED OR WHAT IT THOUGHT.
HENRY AND THE COUNTRY WERE THE SAME IN HENRY’S MIND.
THEY WERE HENRY.
THAT MEANT THAT, IN EFFECT, HE HAD A COUNTRY-SIZED EGO.
WHAT WAS GOOD FOR HIM
HE THOUGHT WAS GOOD FOR THE COUNTRY.
Matt Green: THE WHOLE THING COSTS
HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF POUNDS.
THIS IS A MAN WHO HAD AN ENORMOUS EGO.
HE WANTED TO BE SEEN
AS THIS YOUNG, YOUTHFUL, CHIVALRIC PRINCE,
AND I THINK IT WAS ALL ABOUT CHIVALRY,
AND ALTHOUGH IT SEEMED AS THOUGH
THERE WAS ANTAGONISM BETWEEN FRANCIS AND HENRY,
IN FACT IT WAS A CLEVER FORM OF DIPLOMACY AS WELL,
’CAUSE THEY WERE SHOWING
THAT THEY WERE MEETING EACH OTHER ON A LEVEL.
THEY WERE BOTH THESE KIND OF MASCULINE FORCES.
AND PERHAPS IT WARDED OFF A WAR
WHICH OTHERWISE COULD HAVE BEEN MUCH WORSE.
[CHEERING]
Borman: BUT DID THE THREE-WEEK EXTRAVAGANCE ACHIEVE ITS AIMS
OF UNITING ENGLAND AND FRANCE?
WELL, NO.
A COUPLE OF YEARS LATER THEY WERE AT WAR AGAIN.
SO THE FIELD OF THE CLOTH OF GOLD
IS DESTINED TO BE REMEMBERED
JUST AS A MASSIVE SHOW OF ONE-UPMANSHIP.
♪
ALTHOUGH THERE IS NOTHING LEFT
FROM THE MAGNIFICENT SPECTACLE IN FRANCE,
HENRY VIII ALSO LAVISHED MONEY
IN A WAY THAT WE CAN STILL SEE TODAY.
HE WAS THE MOST PROLIFIC BUILDER OF THE TUDOR PERIOD,
AND DURING HIS REIGN,
THE NUMBER OF PALACES INCREASED FROM 12 TO A STAGGERING 55.
THESE INCLUDED ST. JAMES’S, NONSUCH,
AND PERHAPS THE MOST FAMOUS OF ALL, HAMPTON COURT PALACE.
IN ACTUAL FACT, HAMPTON COURT WAS NOT BUILT BY HENRY
BUT BY THOMAS WOLSEY, HIS CLOSEST ADVISOR.
BUT AS HE STARTED TO FALL OUT OF FAVOR WITH THE KING,
WOLSEY WISELY HANDED IT OVER TO HIM.
UNDER HENRY, HAMPTON COURT BECAME
THE MOST IMPORTANT PALACE OF HIS REIGN.
IT WAS THE PLACE WHERE HENRY’S ONLY LEGITIMATE SON WAS BORN,
WHERE HE MARRIED HIS SIXTH AND LAST WIFE, CATHERINE PARR,
AND IT WAS SAID TO BE THE KING’S FAVORITE RESIDENCE.
Hallie Rubenhold: HAMPTON COURT WAS JUST COMPLETE SPLENDOR
AND OPULENCE.
AND IT WAS BEAUTIFUL.
IT WAS BEAUTIFULLY FURNISHED WITH IVORY AND VELVET FURNITURE.
THE KITCHENS WERE MAGNIFICENT.
YOU COULD FEED ABOUT 600 PEOPLE.
YOU HAD MULTIPLE OVENS, FIREPLACES FOR SPIT ROASTING.
THERE WERE CELLARS FOR WINE AND CELLARS FOR ALE
AND A ROOM FOR SPICES,
SPICES THAT CAME FROM THE ORIENT AND EUROPE,
WHICH WERE ESSENTIAL IN THE PREPARATION OF FOOD,
SO YOU’VE GOT THIS INCREDIBLE ADVANCEMENT IN TUDOR TECHNOLOGY.
Borman: ONCE HAMPTON COURT PALACE WAS HIS,
HENRY BEGAN A HUGE PROGRAM OF EXPANSION.
HE REDECORATED THE GREAT HALL WE’RE IN NOW.
AND IF YOU LOOK UP, YOU’LL SEE A CURIOUS ARCHITECTURAL DETAIL.
HENRY HAD THESE CARVED WOODEN FIGURES BUILT INTO THE EAVES,
AND THEY’RE CALLED EAVESDROPPERS,
WHICH IS WHERE THE WORD COMES FROM.
HE WANTED TO DISCOURAGE GOSSIP
AND TO DEMONSTRATE THAT EVERYTHING SAID AT COURT
EVENTUALLY REACHED HIS EARS.
Selwood: HENRY STARTED WITH AMAZING PROMISE.
THIS WAS THE RENAISSANCE.
THIS WAS THE AGE OF HUMANISM.
THIS WAS A TIME WHEN RULERS, LIKE HENRY IN ENGLAND,
HAD THESE GLITTERING COURTS OF INTELLECTUALS AND ARTISTS,
AND THEY WERE EXPLORING AND DISCOVERING THE WORLD ANEW.
AND HENRY WAS PART OF THAT.
HE WAS INTELLECTUAL. HE LIKED BOOKS.
HE LIKED LEARNING. HE WAS A GREAT SPORTSMAN.
HE WAS A MUSICIAN.
HE WAS AN ATTRACTIVE, HANDSOME MAN.
HE HAD GREAT BONE. HENRY HAD EVERYTHING.
AND IT WAS EXPECTED THAT HIS COURT
WOULD BE THE DEFINING RENAISSANCE COURT OF EUROPE.
Borman: IT WAS DURING THE REIGN OF HENRY VIII
THAT ONE OF THE MOST UNUSUAL JOBS IN HISTORY WAS CREATED--
THE GROOM OF THE STOOL.
THE ROLE ENTAILED MONITORING AND ASSISTING
IN THE KING’S BOWEL MOVEMENTS,
AND THIS IS A REPLICA OF HENRY’S TOILET.
SO YOU’D THINK A JOB LIKE THIS
WOULD HAVE BEEN GIVEN TO THE LOWEST OF THE LOW IN SOCIETY.
ACTUALLY, IT WAS QUITE THE OPPOSITE.
GROOMS OF THE STOOL WERE MOST OFTEN
THE SONS OF NOBLEMEN AND THE GENTRY.
IT WAS THE MOST INTIMATE CONTACT
ANYONE HAD WITH THE KING OUTSIDE THE BEDROOM.
AND TIME WITH THE ROYAL DERRIERE
ALSO MEANT TIME WITH THE ROYAL EAR.
McMahon: SO THE BODILY FUNCTIONS OF A MEDIEVAL MONARCH,
OF A TUDOR MONARCH,
WERE SOMETHING THAT WAS SURPRISINGLY OPEN,
AND THAT INCLUDES GOING TO THE TOILET, BASICALLY.
AND THERE WAS A KIND OF PRESTIGE ATTACHED TO BEING THE ARISTOCRAT
WHO WAS SELECTED TO BASICALLY CLEAN UP AFTER HENRY.
SO, YOU KNOW, THESE ARISTOCRATS WANTED TO BE DOWN THERE,
GETTING DOWN AND DIRTY WITH HENRY’S BACKSIDE.
Green: NOW THIS MIGHT SOUND LIKE IT WAS THE LEAST DESIRABLE JOB
IN THE WHOLE OF TUDOR ENGLAND,
BUT IN FACT, THE OPPOSITE WAS TRUE,
BECAUSE THAT GAVE YOU, YOU KNOW, UNRIVALED, UNTRAMMELED ACCESS
TO THE KING, AND YOU COULD INFLUENCE HIM, YOU KNOW,
WHEN HE WAS KIND OF AT HIS MOST VULNERABLE.
THAT WAS ALL PART OF THE KIND OF MECHANICS OF TUDOR POWER.
IT WAS ALL ABOUT GETTING THE KING’S EAR,
AND FACTIONS FORMED,
AND USUALLY THE RIVAL FACTIONS
WOULD TRY AND RECRUIT THE CURRENT GROOM OF THE STOOL
SO THAT THEY COULD KIND OF, YOU KNOW, POUR IDEAS
LIKE DOWN THE EAR OF HENRY
AS HE WAS SITTING
ON HIS BEAUTIFUL, KIND OF VELVET TOILET.
Borman: BUT WHILE HENRY GAVE THE IMPRESSION
THAT HE WAS ALL-KNOWING,
THAT DIDN’T MEAN HE WANTED EVERYONE KNOWING HIS BUSINESS.
AFTER ARRIVING AT EACH PALACE, FOR INSTANCE,
ALL HE WANTED WAS A LITTLE PRIVACY.
SO AFTER TRAVELING TO HAMPTON COURT ON A ROYAL BARGE,
HE’D USE A SPECIALLY BUILT WATERGATE,
COMPLETE WITH A COVERED WALKWAY,
THAT LED RIGHT TO HIS PRIVATE APARTMENTS.
THAT WAY, NO ONE COULD SEE THE KING COME AND GO.
♪
THIS SENSE OF PRIVACY CARRIED THROUGH
TO HIS RELATIONSHIPS WITH WOMEN.
AN EXAMINATION OF HENRY’S SEX LIFE
USUALLY FOCUSES ON HIS ENDLESS QUEST FOR A SON,
AND HIS UNFORTUNATE HABIT OF DOING AWAY WITH HIS WIVES
WHEN THEY NO LONGER FULFILLED HIS WISHES.
BUT IN ACTUAL FACT, HE HAD A STRING OF MISTRESSES.
WHILE OTHER MONARCHS, SUCH AS CHARLES II AND GEORGE IV,
PARADED THEIR MISTRESSES AND FLAUNTED THEM
IN FRONT OF THEIR WIVES, HENRY WAS DIFFERENT.
HE WAS ACTUALLY AN INTENSELY PRIVATE MAN,
AND SO HIS EXTRAMARITAL LIAISONS WERE KEPT UNDER WRAPS,
KNOWN ONLY TO A SMALL CIRCLE OF LOYAL INTIMATES.
Rubenhold: HENRY’S RELATIONSHIP WITH WOMEN
WAS REALLY NO DIFFERENT THAN THE STANDARD TUDOR RELATIONSHIP
BETWEEN A MAN AND HIS WIFE OR MEN AND WOMEN.
WOMEN WERE JUST VESSELS FOR A MAN’S SEED.
THAT WAS A WOMAN’S JOB-- PRODUCE A LEGITIMATE HEIR.
THAT WAS IT!
AND HENRY LOOKED AT EACH WOMAN AND EACH WIFE
AS A POTENTIAL FOR THAT.
AND THAT’S IT.
THERE WAS NO, NECESSARILY, ANY GREAT EMOTION
IN ALL OF HIS RELATIONSHIPS.
HE LOVED ANNE BOLEYN.
HE PROBABLY LOVED JANE SEYMOUR AS WELL.
BUT HOW MEN AND WOMEN RELATED TO ONE ANOTHER
WAS IN A VERY DIFFERENT CONTEXT THAN WE IMAGINE IT TODAY.
♪
Borman: TUDOR ATTITUDES TO LOVE AND SEX
WERE RATHER COMPLEX AND CONTRADICTORY.
ONE VIEW HAD IT THAT SEX WAS AN INCREDIBLY HEALTHY THING TO DO,
PROVIDED IT WAS GOOD.
BAD SEX, HOWEVER, WAS BAD FOR THE SOUL.
ANOTHER VIEW HELD THAT HAVING SEX
SHORTENED A MAN’S LIFE BY A DAY,
SO HE SHOULD ONLY DO IT TO PRODUCE CHILDREN
AND CERTAINLY NOT FOR ENJOYMENT.
HENRY TENDED TOWARDS THE PRO-SEX POINT OF VIEW.
AND ACCOUNTS SUGGEST HE WAS AN AFFECTIONATE LOVER,
ALBEIT IT RATHER A CONSERVATIVE ONE.
HENRY WAS A POWERFUL KING AND RATHER HANDSOME,
A COMBINATION THAT MADE HIM PRETTY IRRESISTIBLE TO WOMEN,
AT LEAST IN HIS YOUNGER DAYS.
THIS IS ANNE HASTINGS,
THE MARRIED YOUNGER SISTER OF THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM.
HENRY TOOK HER AS HIS MISTRESS IN 1510
WHILE HIS QUEEN, CATHERINE OF ARAGON,
WAS PREGNANT.
SHE WAS THE CAUSE OF THE FIRST ARGUMENT IN THE ROYAL MARRIAGE.
NOT THAT HENRY REALLY UNDERSTOOD WHY.
AFTER ALL, HE’D BEEN FREE TO INDULGE HIS PASSION FOR WOMEN
DURING HIS YOUTH.
WHY SHOULD HE STOP NOW HE WAS MARRIED?
THIS IS ELIZABETH BLOUNT, KNOWN AS BESSIE,
MAID OF HONOR TO CATHERINE OF ARAGON.
SHE GAVE BIRTH TO HENRY’S CHILD IN JUNE 1519.
WE’RE NOT SURE IF CATHERINE KNEW ABOUT THIS,
AS HENRY KEPT BESSIE’S PREGNANCY VERY SECRET INDEED.
THE HEALTHY BOY, NAMED HENRY FITZROY,
WAS THE ONLY ILLEGITIMATE CHILD THAT HENRY OPENLY ACKNOWLEDGED.
BUT THERE WAS A REASON.
IT PROVED THAT THE KING WAS CAPABLE OF FATHERING A SON.
THE AFFAIR ENDED SOON AFTERWARDS.
NOBODY IS SURE WHY.
AND BESSIE WAS MARRIED OFF TO THE COURTIER GILBERT TALLBOYS
IN 1522.
Rideal: IT’S HARD TO UNDERESTIMATE
HENRY VIII’S DESIRE FOR A MALE HEIR.
HE WAS ONLY THE SECOND OF HIS DYNASTY.
IT WAS IMPORTANT TO SECURE AN HEIR FOR THE FUTURE.
AND HIS DESIRE FOR THIS MALE HEIR
DID HAVE, YOU KNOW, IMPLICATIONS ON THE WOMEN THAT HE CHOSE,
AND IT WAS A DRIVING FORCE
BEHIND THE BREAK WITH THE CHURCH OF ROME
AND BEHIND THE MARRIAGE TO ANNE BOLEYN
AND BEHIND ALL THE SUBSEQUENT BEHEADINGS, DIVORCES
THAT CAME AFTER THAT POINT.
IT WAS ALL IN PURSUIT OF THIS MALE HEIR.
Borman: NOW WE GET TO THE BOLEYNS.
YES, THAT’S BOLEYNS, PLURAL.
FIRST UP WAS MARY BOLEYN.
SHE GAVE BIRTH TO HER FIRST CHILD IN 1523,
AND IT WAS ALMOST CERTAINLY HENRY’S.
THIS WAS MADE SLIGHTLY WORSE BY THE FACT
THAT HENRY HAD BEEN THE PRINCIPAL GUEST
AT MARY’S WEDDING TO HIS COURTIER, WILLIAM CAREY,
ONLY A FEW YEARS BEFORE.
BUT HENRY LOST INTEREST IN MARY ONCE HE’D GOT WHAT HE WANTED.
KEEPING IT IN THE FAMILY,
NEXT OF COURSE, WAS ANNE BOLEYN, MARY’S SISTER.
HENRY AND ANNE’S RELATIONSHIP DEVELOPED MORE GRADUALLY
AS ANNE WAS DETERMINED TO BE
MORE THAN JUST ANOTHER OF HENRY’S MISTRESSES.
SO SHE TEASED HIM AND LED HIM ON SLOWLY.
HENRY’S LUST, AND, I THINK IT’S FAIR TO SAY, LOVE,
JUST GOT STRONGER AND STRONGER.
AND, WELL, THE REST, AS THEY SAY, IS HISTORY.
THE SEVERING OF TIES WITH ROME WAS FOLLOWED
BY THE SEVERING OF ANNE’S HEAD FROM HER SHOULDERS.
♪
Green: WELL, THERE’S A RUMOR THAT HENRY BEDDED
NOT JUST ANNE BOLEYN, BUT HER SISTER AND HER MOTHER AS WELL,
WHICH THAT DOES SOUND FAR-FETCHED,
BUT HENRY COULD REALLY, YOU KNOW, TAKE HIS PICK.
HE WAS THE KING, AND NO ONE’S GONNA SAY NO TO HIM.
McMahon: THE BOLEYN FAMILY ARE MASSIVELY AMBITIOUS,
AND THEY WILL DO ANYTHING TO GET IN WITH THE KING,
SO ANNE PLAYS VERY HARD TO GET.
SHE PLAYS A VERY CLEVER GAME.
AND SHE’S ARGUABLY THE WIFE THAT HE LOVED THE MOST,
BECAUSE SHE WAS VERY INTELLIGENT,
AND SHE HAD FRENCH MANNERS.
SHE’D SPENT TIME IN THE FRENCH COURT.
BUT THEY ARE AN AMBITIOUS FAMILY.
THE GIRLS VIE FOR HIS ATTENTION.
ANNE IS THE ONE WHO SUCCEEDS, BUT OH, MY GOODNESS,
HOW SHE MUST HAVE WISHED SHE HADN’T SUCCEEDED
WHEN SHE FACED THE EXECUTION BLOCK.
Borman: SO HENRY CLEARLY FOUND PLENTY OF WAYS
OF FILLING HIS SPARE TIME,
AND AS WELL AS WOMEN, HE FOUND ANOTHER: REAL TENNIS.
THIS WAS THE FORERUNNER OF TENNIS AS WE KNOW IT TODAY.
AND HENRY HAD A COURT BUILT AT HAMPTON COURT PALACE
SO HE COULD PLAY HIS FAVORITE GAME.
THE FIRST TENNIS COURT AT HAMPTON COURT
WAS BUILT FOR CARDINAL WOLSEY BETWEEN 1526 AND 1529.
AS A YOUNG MAN,
HENRY VIII WAS A KEEN AND TALENTED TENNIS PLAYER
WHO SPENT HOURS ON COURT.
LESLEY RONALDSON HAS AGREED TO SHOW ME THE COURT
WHERE THE KING REGULARLY PLAYED.
WOW! THIS IS AMAZING.
[DOOR SLAMS]
SO WE’RE STANDING ON HENRY VIII’S COURT?
Lesley Ronaldson: YES. Borman: OR ALMOST.
Ronaldson: YES, HE PLAYED ON THIS SITE, YES.
Borman: THAT’S INCREDIBLE.
YOU KNOW, I WORK AT HAMPTON COURT,
BUT I’VE NEVER BEEN IN HERE BEFORE.
SO THIS IS A SUCH A TREAT.
Ronaldson: THAT’S ACTUALLY SINFUL.
Borman: IT IS. IT REALLY IS.
BUT I’M SO PLEASED NOW THAT I AM.
AND SO THIS WASN’T HENRY’S,
BUT IT WAS THE SITE OF HENRY’S COURT?
AND HE WAS HUGELY KEEN, WASN’T HE, ON TENNIS?
Ronaldson: OH, MASSIVELY.
HE WOULD HAVE PLAYED IT AS A CHILD,
BECAUSE HENRY VII, HIS FATHER, WAS AN ADDICT AS WELL.
AND IT WAS A WAY OF SHOWING OFF AS WELL AS KEEPING FIT,
AND HE OBVIOUSLY DID MANY THINGS TO KEEP FIT.
Borman: WELL, WE CAN SEE, JUST FROM LOOKING AT THIS COURT,
IT’S VERY DIFFERENT TO LAWN TENNIS, ISN’T IT?
IT SHARES THE SAME NAME,
BUT REAL TENNIS, IT LOOKS ALTOGETHER MORE COMPLICATED.
Ronaldson: THE MODERN GAME OF LAWN TENNIS,
WHICH SOME PEOPLE CALL TENNIS,
REALLY SHOULDN’T HAVE BEEN CALLED TENNIS AT ALL.
ITS SIMILARITIES ARE THAT THERE’S THE NET
AND IT SCORES IN 15s.
AND THIS IS THE TYPE OF BALL
THAT HENRY VIII WOULD HAVE PLAYED WITH.
IT’S MADE OF ANIMAL LEATHER
AND STUFFED WITH EITHER HUMAN OR ANIMAL HAIR.
Borman: IT’S QUITE A LOT LIGHTER AND SMALLER, ISN’T IT?
Ronaldson: THEY VARIED IN SIZE A BIT,
DEPENDING ON HOW THEY WERE SEWN,
BECAUSE IT WAS ALL HAND-SEWN OF COURSE.
BUT IT ACTUALLY BOUNCES STILL,
AND IF YOU TAKE A TUDOR-STYLE RACKET,
ROUND FACE WITH STRINGS,
IT DOES BOUNCE QUITE A LONG WAY. IT CAN BOUNCE...
YOU SEE, WHEN YOU ACTUALLY HIT IT,
IT BOUNCES QUITE WELL OFF THE STRINGS.
Selwood: HENRY HAD INTERESTS IN A NUMBER OF FIELDS.
HE WAS A VERY ACCOMPLISHED SPORTSMAN, DANCER,
HE EXCELLED IN PHYSICAL PURSUITS
AND THE PHYSICAL PURSUITS OF ROYALTY--
HORSES, FALCONRY, PROWESS.
THESE WERE THINGS THAT HE ACHIEVED IMMENSELY WELL.
AND AT THE SAME TIME, HE HAD A LIFE OF THE MIND.
McMahon: HE’S A RENAISSANCE MAN.
HE WRITES, HE PAINTS, HE JOUSTS, HE HUNTS, HE PLAYS TENNIS,
HE’S SPORTY, YOU KNOW, HE WRITES BOOKS ON RELIGION.
YOU KNOW, HE’S A GREAT GUY.
Borman: WHAT I AM INTERESTED IN IS HENRY HIMSELF
AS A TENNIS PLAYER.
SO DID PEOPLE LET HIM WIN, OR WAS HE ACTUALLY PRETTY GOOD?
Ronaldson: HE WAS VERY GOOD.
EVEN WITH THE SYCOPHANTS AROUND HIM,
HE PROBABLY WAS WORLD CLASS,
AND HE PERFORMED A LOT IN FRONT OF PEOPLE.
THE GALLERIES THAT YOU SEE TODAY AROUND US
ARE ACTUALLY MADE BECAUSE PEOPLE WANTED TO WATCH.
Borman: SO HENRY’S COURTIERS
WOULD HAVE BEEN LINING THE COURT HERE, UP IN THE GALLERIES.
THE LADIES, PRESUMABLY, WOULD HAVE BEEN WATCHING HENRY?
Ronaldson: OH, YES.
AND AMBASSADORS, LOTS OF THE COURT
WOULD HAVE PLAYED AGAINST HIM.
A LOT OF PLAYERS ACTUALLY, HE PLAYED WITH,
HE LOST A LOT OF MONEY TO, AND THEY LOST MONEY TO HIM,
BECAUSE YOU COULD PLAY OFF HANDICAP AS WELL.
Borman: SO THEY ALWAYS GAMBLED ON THE OUTCOME?
Ronaldson: ALWAYS GAMBLED.
IT WAS VERY MUCH A GAMBLING GAME,
AND OF COURSE, ANNE BOLEYN WAS WATCHING A GAME OF TENNIS
WHEN SHE WAS TAKEN TO THE COUNCIL AND THEN ARRESTED.
Borman: OH, REALLY?
Ronaldson: SHE COMPLAINED THAT SHE HADN’T WON HER BET.
Borman: SHE HAD HER PRIORITIES RIGHT.
Ronaldson: YEAH.
Borman: SO IT SEEMS TO ME
THAT HENRY’S PUTTING ON A BIT OF SHOW?
Ronaldson: ABSOLUTELY.
IT’S EXTRAORDINARY THAT SO MANY AMBASSADORS CAN REPORT
ON HIS TENNIS EVEN THOUGH THEY WEREN’T PLAYING THEMSELVES.
OBVIOUSLY A LOT OF PEOPLE WERE WATCHING.
ALTHOUGH HE USED IT FOR ENERGY AND ATHLETICISM AS WELL.
HE WAS A GREAT ATHLETE.
Borman: BUT IT’S FAR MORE THAN JUST A GAME TO HENRY, ISN’T IT?
Ronaldson: OH, ABSOLUTELY.
A) MONEY; AND B) TO SHOW OFF THAT HE COULD WIN
AND BEAT THESE OTHER GUYS.
[SCREAMING]
Borman: SADLY, THE ATHLETIC, HANDSOME HENRY
WAS ABOUT TO HAVE HIS LIFE TURNED UPSIDE DOWN
BY AN EVENT THAT HELPED TRANSFORM HIM
INTO THE MONARCH WE ALL RECOGNIZE TODAY.
ON THE 24th OF JANUARY, 1536, WHEN HENRY WAS AGED 44,
AN ACCIDENT OCCURRED DURING A JOUSTING TOURNAMENT
AT GREENWICH PALACE.
HENRY WAS THROWN FROM HIS HORSE, WHICH THEN LANDED ON TOP OF HIM.
ONE REPORT CLAIMED HE WAS UNCONSCIOUS FOR TWO HOURS,
AND IT WAS FEARED HIS INJURIES WOULD PROVE FATAL.
♪
THE KING DID OF COURSE RECOVER,
BUT THE ACCIDENT CAUSED SERIOUS LEG PROBLEMS
WHICH PLAGUED HIM FOR THE REST OF HIS LIFE.
THE FACT THAT HE WAS IN CONSTANT, OFTEN ACUTE PAIN
BROUGHT ABOUT PROFOUND CHANGES IN HIS PERSONALITY.
HENRY WAS BECOMING THE BRUTAL, CRUEL, PARANOID MAN
THAT HE IS REMEMBERED AS TODAY.
[SCREAMING]
McMahon: ONE THING THAT COMES OUT OF THAT ACCIDENT
IS THIS HORRENDOUS INJURY ON HIS LEG WHICH BECOMES ULCERATED.
IT’S AN OPEN GASH.
AND THERE’S ALL SORTS OF BARKING-MAD MEDICAL TREATMENTS
ABOUT DRAINING THE HUMORS AND STICKING RED HOT POKERS IN IT.
Rubenhold: IT’S SUPPOSED THAT THEY WERE EXACERBATED
BY THE TIGHT GARTERS HE WORE AROUND HIS LEG,
WHICH MAY HAVE CUT OFF CIRCULATION.
WE DON’T ACTUALLY KNOW WHAT IT WAS
THAT CAUSED THESE LEG ULCERS.
BUT THEY SEEM TO BE INCURABLE, AND THEY FESTERED,
AND YOU COULD SMELL THIS FROM ROOMS AWAY,
WHICH WAS ABSOLUTELY NAUSEATING, AS YOU CAN IMAGINE.
♪
Borman: ONE OF THE WAYS IN WHICH WE CAN CLEARLY SEE
HOW THE KING CHANGED OVER HIS LIFETIME
IS IN THE CLOTHES HE WORE.
HENRY, ALWAYS THE EXTRAVAGANT SPENDER,
SPARED NO EXPENSE WHERE HIS WARDROBE WAS CONCERNED.
BUT AS HE GREW OLDER, STYLE DEFINITELY GAVE WAY TO COMFORT
AS HENRY’S WAISTLINE EXPANDED AND INFIRMITY SET IN.
ELERI LYNN KNOWS ALL ABOUT HENRY’S DRESS SENSE
AND HAS AGREED TO TAKE ME THROUGH WHAT HE WOULD HAVE WORN
IN HIS LATER YEARS.
Eleri Lynn: SO, TRACY, THIS IS RICH,
WHO IS GOING TO BE OUR KING HENRY FOR THE DAY.
AND THIS IS JO, WHO IS KING HENRY’S DRESSER,
WHICH IS SORT OF WRONG FOR KING HENRY,
BECAUSE OF COURSE HE WOULD HAVE HAD
ALL MEN TO DRESS HIM.
SO THE ROOM WOULD HAVE BEEN ABSOLUTELY FULL OF GENTLEMEN
READY AND EAGER TO DRESS THE KING.
Borman: WOULD HIS DRESSERS HAVE BEEN UNDER PRESSURE
TO GET A MOVE ON,
GIVEN THE KING’S SO UNCOMFORTABLE STANDING?
Lynn: I IMAGINE SO.
WE KNOW THAT HE WAS IN A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF PAIN,
AND WE KNOW THAT HIS LEG WAS NOT IN A GOOD STATE
A LOT OF THE TIME,
SO I IMAGINE IT MUST HAVE BEEN QUITE DIFFICULT TO DRESS HIM,
AND WE KNOW THAT HE GOT QUITE BAD TEMPERED.
Rideal: THE EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT THERE WAS A SHIFT
IN THE WAY THAT HIS PERSONALITY WAS WORKING
AFTER THE JOUSTING ACCIDENT.
HE SEEMS TO BECOME MOODIER.
HE SEEMS TO BE, TO HAVE A SHORTER TEMPER.
HE SEEMS TO NOT TOLERATE AS MUCH AS HE HAD DONE BEFORE.
AND OF COURSE, WE KNOW THE FAMOUS STORIES
ABOUT HENRY VIII AND HIS WIVES.
THIS ALL HAPPENS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THAT WEIRD HINGE
IN THE MIDDLE OF HIS LIFE, WHICH WAS THE JOUSTING ACCIDENT.
Borman: SO HE’S ALREADY PRETTY WELL DRESSED.
CAN YOU TALK ME THROUGH WHAT HE’S WEARING NOW?
Lynn: SURE. HE’S IN HIS SORT OF BASIC STATE OF DRESS NOW.
YOU CAN SEE HE’S GOT HIS LINEN UNDERSHIRT,
WHICH IS SORT OF HIS BASIC GARMENT OF UNDERWEAR,
WHICH IS REGULARLY WASHED,
AND IT’S KEEPING HIM CLEAN AND SMELLING FRESH.
IT’S DECORATED AS WELL, SO YOU CAN SEE THAT’S A SORT OF SIGN,
A STATUS SYMBOL, BECAUSE IT’S DECORATED IN FINE SILKS.
AND THEN HE’S ALSO WEARING HIS DOUBLET AND HOSE.
IT’S WOVEN IN A CLOTH OF GOLD,
WHICH BY SUMPTUARY LAW IS RESERVED
ONLY FOR IMMEDIATE MEMBERS OF THE ROYAL FAMILY,
SO AS SOON AS YOU SEE THIS,
YOU KNOW YOU’RE LOOKING AT THE KING.
AND OF COURSE, WE CAN’T NOT MENTION THE HENRICIAN CODPIECE,
AND SO IT WAS A VERY FASHIONABLE ITEM IN THE 16th CENTURY,
BUT FOR HENRY, PROBABLY MORE SO THAN AT MOST OTHER ROYAL COURTS,
BECAUSE HE REALLY HAD SOMETHING TO PROVE,
BECAUSE HE DIDN’T HAVE A SON FOR THE MAJORITY OF HIS REIGN,
AND THEN WHEN HE DID, ONLY ONE.
AND SO HE WAS REALLY AT PAINS
TO SHOW HIS VIRILITY AND HIS MASCULINITY.
Rubenhold: AS HENRY’S LEG REALLY IMMOBILIZED HIM,
HE STARTED TO PUT ON ENORMOUS GIRTH,
WHICH EXACERBATED THE LEG EVEN FURTHER,
AND HE BECAME SO AWKWARD AND DISGUSTING
AND DIFFICULT TO MANEUVER
THAT THERE NEEDED TO BE SEVERAL PEOPLE
WHO HELPED HIM DO ANYTHING THAT HE WANTED TO DO.
Lynn: SO NOW WE NEED THIS CHAIN WITH THE "H" ON IT.
SO HENRY DID LIKE TO PROMOTE HIS OWN NAME AT COURT.
AT HAMPTON COURT WE KNOW THERE ARE LOTS OF H’s
AND THEN ALSO THE LETTERS OF HIS VARIOUS WIVES,
DECORATING THE BUILDING.
BUT HERE WE HAVE THE H CHAIN
AND ALSO THE SYMBOL OF THE ORDER OF THE GARTER.
Borman: THE HIGHEST MILITARY ORDER IN THE LAND, OF COURSE.
Lynn: ABSOLUTELY.
SO HE IS PROJECTING HIMSELF AS A WARRIOR
AND A MEMBER OF THAT CLASS.
Borman: WELL, I MEAN, HE’S LOOKING PRETTY MUCH READY,
BUT THAT’S NOT QUITE IT, IS IT?
Lynn: IT’S NOT QUITE IT. THE COURT IS COLD.
HE’S STILL GOT A BIT MORE SHOWING OFF TO DO.
SO THE NEXT LAYER IS THE GOWN ITSELF,
WHICH IS WHAT ADDED SO MUCH BULK
TO THE SORT OF FINAL FINISHED LOOK.
AND HERE YOU CAN SEE IT’S TRIMMED WITH A LOT OF FUR,
IN THIS CASE, SABLE, WHICH WAS RESERVED FOR THE UPPER,
THE UPPER ECHELONS OF THE ARISTOCRACY.
Selwood: HENRY WAS AN IMMENSELY TALL MAN.
HE WAS PHYSICALLY IMPOSING.
HE WAS SIX-FOOT-TWO,
WHICH IN THE AGE WITH THE DIETS THAT PEOPLE HAD THEN,
WAS HEAD AND SHOULDERS ABOVE MOST PEOPLE.
BUT BY THE END OF HIS LIFE, HIS DISSOLUTE LIFE,
HE ALSO WEIGHED AROUND 28 STONE.
Green: IF YOU’RE A KING OR A QUEEN,
THEN THERE’S ALWAYS GONNA BE THE OPTION
TO GORGE YOURSELF ON FOOD.
NOW YOU DON’T HAVE TO TAKE UP THAT OPPORTUNITY.
BUT THAT WAS ONLY AFTER HIS ACCIDENT
WHEN HE COULD NO LONGER REALLY TAKE EXERCISE,
HIS METABOLISM WAS SLOWING DOWN,
AND ALSO HIS WHOLE PSYCHOLOGY HAD CHANGED BY THAT POINT.
YOU KNOW, HE WAS AN ANGRY MAN, AND THIS WAS A PERFECT STORM,
WHICH MEANT THAT INSTEAD OF PICKING,
YOU COULD ACTUALLY PICK UP THE WHOLE KIND OF TRAY OF FOOD
AND POUR THE WHOLE THING INTO HIS MOUTH AND JUST EAT.
IT BECAME SOMETHING OF AN ADDICTION,
WHICH IS WHY HE BECAME MORBIDLY OBESE,
JUST LIKE GEORGE IV DID,
AND KIND OF IN A SIMILAR WAY TO QUEEN VICTORIA AS WELL,
WHO PUT ON A LOT OF WEIGHT IN HER LATER YEARS.
♪
Borman: SO NOW PRESUMABLY IT’S TIME FOR THE HAT?
Lynn: ABSOLUTELY.
SO ONE OF THE FINAL PIECES OF THE PUZZLE IS THE HAT.
Borman: AND THIS IMMEDIATELY CREATES THAT ICONIC IMAGE
THAT’S SO FAMILIAR FROM ALL THE PORTRAITS OF HENRY.
Lynn: ABSOLUTELY.
AND HE WOULDN’T BE SEEN SORT OF IN PUBLIC,
AROUND THE COURT WITHOUT A HAT.
SO, YES, NOW WE HAVE THE SORT OF ICONIC HOLBEIN LOOK.
Borman: SO HENRY’S ALL SET.
HE’S LOOKING SPLENDID.
PRESUMABLY DRESSED NOW FOR SOME GREAT OCCASION.
Lynn: ABSOLUTELY.
THIS IS DEFINITELY FOR ON SHOW, AT COURT.
Borman: IT’S MONEY WELL SPENT.
THANKS, ELERI.
IN OCTOBER 1537,
HENRY’S THIRD QUEEN, JANE SEYMOUR,
DIED OF POSTNATAL COMPLICATIONS
A COUPLE OF WEEKS AFTER GIVING BIRTH
TO HENRY’S ONLY LEGITIMATE SON, EDWARD.
SO HENRY WAS BACK ON THE MARKET AGAIN.
SPOTTING AN OPPORTUNITY,
THOMAS CROMWELL, HENRY’S CHIEF MINISTER,
PLAYED MATCHMAKER.
HE PROPOSED A POLITICAL MARRIAGE BETWEEN HENRY AND ANNE,
THE DAUGHTER OF THE DUKE OF CLEVES.
IN AN AGE BEFORE SELFIES,
FINDING OUT WHAT SOMEONE LOOKED LIKE BEFORE MEETING THEM
WAS FAR MORE DIFFICULT.
SO HENRY DISPATCHED HIS COURT PAINTER,
HANS HOLBEIN, TO PAINT ANNE’S PORTRAIT,
AND THIS IS WHAT HOLBEIN CAME BACK WITH.
HENRY WAS DELIGHTED WITH THE RESULT,
AND THE MATCH WAS CONFIRMED WITH A TREATY
SIGNED ON THE 4th OF OCTOBER, 1539.
ANNE ARRIVED IN ENGLAND ON NEW YEAR’S EVE,
AND IN TRUE CHIVALRIC TRADITION,
HENRY, IN DISGUISE, HASTENED TO MEET HER.
UNFORTUNATELY, HENRY WAS APPALLED BY WHAT GREETED HIM.
THIS WAS THE TUDOR EQUIVALENT OF A FIRST DATE
WITH SOMEONE YOU’VE MET ONLINE,
ONLY TO FIND OUT THAT THEY DON’T EXACTLY LOOK LIKE THEIR PHOTO.
HENRY SHOUTED AT CROMWELL, "I LIKE HER NOT!"
♪
McMahon: ANNE OF CLEVES IS OFTEN THE SKIPPED-OVER WIFE.
YOU KNOW, BECAUSE HENRY BASICALLY HAS
A VERY NICE PORTRAIT SENT OF HER BY HOLBEIN,
AND HE FEELS THAT HE’S PRESSURED INTO MARRYING HER.
SHE TURNS UP.
HE SEES HER IN THE FLESH AND GOES, "OH, MY GOD!
THAT’S NOT WHAT I WAS EXPECTING.
THAT’S NOT WHAT I ORDERED."
BUT THAT PICTURE OF, YOU KNOW, THE FLANDERS MARE,
THE UGLY WOMAN WHO HENRY SPURNS
BEFORE HE GOES ON TO HIS NEXT WIFE,
THAT’S ALL BEEN CHALLENGED NOW.
Rideal: WHEN HENRY VIII AND ANNE OF CLEVES MET,
INITIALLY, HE WAS IN DISGUISE,
BECAUSE HE WANTED TO SEE WHAT SHE THOUGHT OF HIM,
AND SHE WASN’T IMPRESSED WITH WHAT SHE SAW,
AND SO HE WAS OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, HAD HIS FEELINGS HURT
AND DECIDED THAT HE DIDN’T LIKE HER EITHER.
SO THIS IS A MYTH THAT ANNE OF CLEVES WAS UNATTRACTIVE
AND UNAPPEALING TO HENRY AS A WIFE.
♪
Borman: BUT WHERE TODAY WE MIGHT SEND A TEXT AFTERWARDS TO SAY,
"THANKS, BUT NO THANKS," IT WASN’T SO SIMPLE FOR HENRY.
IT WOULD HAVE CAUSED A MAJOR DIPLOMATIC INCIDENT
IF HE’D RENEGED ON THE TREATY,
AND ENGLAND COULD NOT AFFORD TO LOSE ALLIES.
SO VERY BEGRUDGINGLY, HENRY MARRIED ANNE SIX DAYS LATER.
OF COURSE, AFTER THE WEDDING COMES THE WEDDING NIGHT,
AND HERE, TOO, HENRY HAD DIFFICULTIES.
WHEN HE RAN HIS HANDS ALONG HIS NEW WIFE’S BODY,
HE’S SAID TO HAVE BEEN SO REPELLED
THAT HE COULD DO NO MORE.
HE SAID TO CROMWELL, "SHE IS NOTHING FAIR
AND HAS VERY EVIL SMELLS ABOUT HER."
APPARENTLY HE COULD NEVER BE STIRRED TO KNOW HER CARNALLY,
AND SO "LEFT HER AS GOOD A MAID AS I FOUND HER."
THE MARRIAGE WAS ANNULLED IN JULY, AND SO THAT WAS THAT.
HENRY MARRIED THE INFINITELY MORE DESIRABLE CATHERINE HOWARD
AND GOT OUT OF HIS MARRIAGE TO THE UNBECOMING ANNE OF CLEVES.
♪
BUT WAS THAT REALLY THE WHOLE TRUTH?
I ACTUALLY THINK HISTORY HAS BEEN RATHER UNKIND TO POOR ANNE.
IN FACT, I’D GO FURTHER.
I’D SAY SHE COULD JUSTIFIABLY CLAIM
TO BE THE MOST SUCCESSFUL OF ALL HENRY’S LIVES.
FOR A START, HENRY WAS THE ONLY PERSON TO HAVE CALLED HER UGLY.
THERE ARE NO OTHER DISPARAGING ACCOUNTS ABOUT HER APPEARANCE.
AND AS FOR HENRY’S INABILITY TO CONSUMMATE THE MARRIAGE,
WELL, PERHAPS IT WAS HIS FAULT AND NOT HERS.
HE WAS TWICE HIS BRIDE’S AGE
AND HAD BECOME INCREASINGLY IMMOBILE IN RECENT YEARS.
RUMORS OF HIS IMPOTENCE HAD PERSISTED FOR YEARS.
AND AN ACCOUNT OF THE WEDDING NIGHT
PROVES THAT HE WAS UNABLE TO "STIR UP LUST."
BESIDES, HENRY HAD ALREADY FALLEN IN LOVE
WITH CATHERINE HOWARD BY THE SPRING OF 1540
AND WAS KEEN TO GET RID OF ANNE,
INVENTING ALL SORTS OF REASONS WHY THE MARRIAGE COULDN’T STAND.
ANNE OF CLEVES,
FEARING THE SAME FATE AS HER NAMESAKE, ANNE BOLEYN,
COMPLIED AND WAS REWARDED WITH A STRING OF PROPERTIES--
RICHMOND PALACE AND HEVER CASTLE TO NAME JUST TWO.
SHE MANAGED TO DODGE THE AXE
AND OUTLIVED ALL OF HENRY’S OTHER WIVES.
Green: BY THIS STAGE HENRY IS AILING.
HE’S GOT THIS GAPING WOUND IN HIS LEG.
HE’S NOWHERE NEAR AS VIRILE AS HE ONCE WAS.
HE WAS IMPOTENT.
HE COULDN’T HAVE SEX WITH HER,
SO IN ORDER TO PROTECT HIS KIND OF MANLY STATUS,
THE STORY WAS PUT OUT BY HIS COURTIERS
THAT SHE WAS TOO UGLY FOR HIM TO BEAR THE SIGHT OF.
SHE WAS A FLANDERS MARE, AS HE PUT IT.
AND THAT WAS EXPEDIENT FOR BOTH OF THEM.
SHE GOT OUT OF THE MARRIAGE,
AND HE DIDN’T HAVE TO SUFFER THAT INDIGNITY ANY LONGER.
Rideal: ACTUALLY, ANNE OF CLEVES PROBABLY GOT THE BEST DEAL
OUT OF ALL OF HIS WIVES,
BECAUSE SHE MANAGED TO DETACH HERSELF FROM HENRY VIII
AT A TIME WHEN HE PROBABLY WOULDN’T HAVE BEEN
THE BEST HUSBAND TO BE AROUND ANYWAY.
AND SHE LIVED A FINE LIFE.
HE THOUGHT OF HER AND REFERRED TO HER AS BEING LIKE HIS SISTER,
AND HENRY THEN WENT ON TO MARRY HIS SUBSEQUENT WIVES.
SO SHE WAS PROBABLY A LOT MORE INTELLIGENT AND CANNY
THAN WE’VE GIVEN HER CREDIT FOR.
McMahon: ANNE OF CLEVES WAS CLEARLY
A VERY INTELLIGENT WOMAN,
AND IN FACT, MAY HAVE BEEN A VERY GOOD-LOOKING WOMAN,
AND INDEED, HENRY MIGHT HAVE
ACTUALLY GOT ON QUITE WELL WITH HER.
THERE IS THE SUGGESTION
THAT ACTUALLY HENRY’S UNDERLYING PROBLEM WAS IMPOTENCE,
THAT HE MOVED ON FROM HER
BECAUSE HE SIMPLY, AS WITH HIS OTHER WIVES,
HE STOPPED PERFORMING VERY WELL IN THE BEDROOM.
WHATEVER HIS FEELINGS, I MEAN, SHE IS ALLOWED TO RETIRE.
SHE’S REFERRED TO AS HIS SISTER.
SHE HAS VERY GOOD RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE CHILDREN.
YOU KNOW, SHE’S A WIFE ACTUALLY
WHO HE SEEMS TO LIKE HAVING AROUND,
EVEN AFTER HE DIVORCES HER.
SO CLEARLY EVERYTHING WASN’T QUITE AS BAD
AS POOR OLD ANNE OF CLEVES HAS BEEN DEPICTED.
Borman: WHETHER OR NOT ANNE WAS THE FLANDERS MARE
HISTORY PAINTS HER AS,
IT CERTAINLY SEEMS THAT HENRY LIKED HER ENOUGH
NOT TO CHOP OFF HER HEAD.
AND SINCE HIS ACCIDENT,
HE WAS GOING THROUGH WIVES AT AN INCREDIBLE PACE.
McMahon: I MEAN, IT’S VERY TELLING.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE TIMELINE, FROM THE JOUSTING ACCIDENT,
WHERE HE CLEARLY NOT ONLY INJURES HIS LEG,
BUT HE INJURES HIS HEAD AS WELL,
IT PROBABLY AFFECTED HIS ABILITY TO PERFORM IN BED.
IT CERTAINLY SEEMS TO HAVE IMPACTED HIS MEMORY.
I MEAN, HIS LAST WIFE
HE SENTENCES TO BE PUT ON TRIAL FOR TREASON,
THEN WHEN THE SOLDIERS TURN UP,
HE CAN’T REMEMBER THAT HE DID THAT.
HE CAN’T REMEMBER PEOPLE WHO’VE BEEN EXECUTED.
HE’S GOT APPALLING TEMPER TANTRUMS.
SO HE BECOMES A VERY DIFFERENT PERSON.
HE BECOMES CANTANKEROUS, UNBEARABLE, VERY VOLATILE,
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY OF ALL,
HE GOES THROUGH FIVE WIVES AFTER THIS JOUSTING ACCIDENT.
Green: HE WASN’T A SERIAL WIFE HATER.
HE WAS MARRIED TO CATHERINE OF ARAGON
FOR OVER 20 YEARS, AND IT WAS FINE.
IT’S ONLY WHEN SHE CAN’T BEAR HIM A MALE HEIR.
THAT’S THE MAIN CONCERN.
THAT’S PARAMOUNT IN HIS MIND, AND WHEN THAT’S NOT HAPPENING,
THAT’S WHEN HE BEGINS TO LOOK TO DIVORCE THEM.
YOU KNOW, HE ONLY KILLS TWO OUT OF SIX WIVES.
AND OF COURSE, HE’S NOT THINKING STRAIGHT BY THAT POINT,
’CAUSE HE’S GOT THIS HORRIFIC LEG INJURY.
AND HE’S MUCH MORE MANIPULABLE BY THAT STAGE
THAN HE HAD BEEN AS A YOUNG MAN.
♪
Borman: TOWARDS THE END OF HIS LIFE,
THE KING HAD ENDURED MANY YEARS OF AGONIZING PAIN
FROM THE FESTERING SORE ON HIS LEG.
IT WAS A CONSTANT REMINDER OF HIS LOST YOUTH
AND SERVED TO MAKE HIM A BITTER AND ANGRY MONARCH.
HENRY HAD BECOME LESS MOBILE, TREMENDOUSLY OVERWEIGHT,
AND WAS SO INFIRM THAT EVEN WALKING UP STAIRS
HAD BECOME TOO MUCH FOR HIM.
SO HE HAD A STAIR LIFT MADE
TO HAUL THE ROYAL BODY BETWEEN FLOORS.
Selwood: TOWARDS THE END OF HIS LIFE,
HENRY CUT A VERY PATHETIC FIGURE.
HE WAS MASSIVE. HE WAS SORRY FOR HIMSELF.
HE WAS THE VICTIM IN HIS OWN EYES OF ALL THESE THINGS.
IT WAS TERRIBLY SAD HE’D HAD TO EXECUTE THESE WOMEN,
BUT THAT WAS THEIR FAULT, NOT HIS.
AND YET HE WAS STILL INCREDIBLY PROUD.
HE STILL WANTED TO PROJECT THIS IMAGE
OF BEING THE MAN THAT HE WASN’T.
THAT AMAZING HENRY EGO MEANT THAT HE WASN’T GONNA LET ANYONE
KNOW ABOUT OR SEE THE FACT THAT HE COULDN’T WALK UP THE STAIRS.
Green: HE WAS MONSTROUSLY OBESE,
SO WHAT HE HAD WAS THIS CHAIR HOIST
WHICH HE USED TO USE AT HAMPTON PALACE,
AND HE WOULD KIND OF BE KIND OF HOIST DOWN FROM THE FIRST FLOOR
TO THE GROUND FLOOR
AND THEN KIND OF, LIKE, PUSHED ALONG
ON THIS KIND OF GLORIFIED TROLLEY OR LITTER.
BUT NO ONE WAS ALLOWED TO SEE THAT.
YOU KNOW, WHEN HE ACTUALLY MET DIGNITARIES,
HE MET IMPORTANT AMBASSADORS,
HE WAS ALWAYS KIND OF SITTING ON HIS GRAND THRONE.
SO THIS ALL TOOK PLACE BEHIND THE SCENE.
BECAUSE THE WHOLE POINT OF BEING A MONARCH
WAS YOU WERE MEANT TO PROJECT AN IMAGE OF POTENCY AND POWER,
AND THAT WAS DIRECTLY LINKED TO THE PHYSICAL BODY OF THE KING.
McMahon: THE TROUBLE WITH HENRY
AND THE REASON I THINK HE ENDS UP AS A VERY BITTER OLD MAN
AND VERY BITTER ON HIS DEATHBED,
HE BASICALLY BETRAYS EVERYBODY
WHO LOVED HIM OR RESPECTED HIM.
I MEAN, YOU CAN INCLUDE THE POPE.
POPE LEO ACTUALLY BESTOWED AN HONOR ON HIM,
DEFENDER OF THE FAITH, FOR HIS DEFENSE OF CATHOLICISM.
THEN HE BETRAYS THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.
YOU KNOW, THE WIVES HE LOVED AND CATHERINE OF ARAGON,
A FAITHFUL WIFE, DIVORCED.
ANNE BOLEYN LOVES HIM, EXECUTED.
YOU KNOW, THOMAS CROMWELL, FAITHFUL SERVANT, EXECUTED.
BY THE END OF HIS LIFE, YOU KNOW,
NOBODY WANTS TO BE HENRY’S FRIEND,
BECAUSE YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS TO HENRY’S FRIENDS.
Rubenhold: THE IMAGE OF HENRY VIII
IS ONE THAT’S ALMOST LAUGHABLE.
YOU KNOW, IT’S THE BIG, FAT MAN EATING THE TURKEY.
AND THE REALITY WAS TO A CERTAIN DEGREE
SOMETHING APART FROM THAT.
YOU KNOW, HE WAS NOT COMICAL.
HE WAS A TYRANT.
HE WAS AN UNREASONABLE MAN
WHO EXECUTED HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE DURING HIS REIGN...
WHO WAS RUTHLESS, WHO WAS NOT A GOOD LEADER,
BUT HE STARTED OUT WITH A LOT OF PROMISE AND A LOT OF POTENTIAL,
BUT HE ULTIMATELY WAS DESTROYED BY HIS OWN EGO.
Borman: HENRY VIII DIED
ON THE 28th OF JANUARY, 1547, AGED 55,
FOREVER TO BE REMEMBERED AS AN OBESE, CRUEL TYRANT.
THE YOUNG, HANDSOME HENRY WAS LONG FORGOTTEN.
SO HENRY’S PRIVATE LIFE
WAS MUCH MORE INTERESTING
THAN HIS PUBLIC ONE.
IT’S ACTUALLY BY LOOKING
BEHIND THE SCENES
THAT WE GET A REAL GLIMPSE
OF HENRY THE MAN,
NOT JUST HENRY THE KING.
BUT THEN, IT’S THE SAME STORY
WITH SO MANY KINGS AND QUEENS.
IT’S WHAT MAKES THE PRIVATE LIVES OF MONARCHS
SO FASCINATING.