King Henry VIII was an intelligent, artistic and athletic man when he became king in 1509. He changed into a corpulent bearded tyrant famous for having six wives, a host of mistresses and a consuming paranoia that led a number of notable Tudors to their excruciating executions.
It’s well known that King Henry VIII went through wives like hankies. The ladies weren't all strangers to each other. Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour and Katherine Howard were their predecessors' ladies-in-waiting. You might argue that they were easy prey for Henry.
Henry's second and fifth wives, Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard, were nieces of Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, a key member of the Tudor court. Henry's sixth wife, Catherine Parr, was an acquaintance of Mary Tudor, later Queen Mary I, and Mary’s mother, Catherine of Aragon, had been a friend of Catherine Parr's mother, Maud.
Bessie Blount, the mother of Henry's illegitimate son Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond and Somerset, served in Catherine of Aragon's household. Henry Fitzroy married Mary Boleyn, the 3rd Duke of Norfolk’s daughter.
Henry raised career-men like Thomas Cromwell and Thomas More to important roles and he ruthlessly destroyed them when they didn’t fulfil his wishes.
Life with Henry was like navigating an emotional minefield.
Below are 5 lesser known facts about the best known Tudor king:
1. Henry VIII Bathed Infrequently
The Tudors believed that bathing opened the skin's pores and permitted airborne diseases into the body. Henry followed the medical advice and only took his luxurious sunken steam baths sparingly. Instead, he washed with cold water in the morning, the evening, before and after dining. Henry always kept a piece of real fur next to his skin so that disease carrying fleas would be tempted towards that and not his skin.
Despite the lack of bathing, Henry's court was obsessed with smelling "sweet" so liberal amounts of fragrances, including rose oil, were used to ensure that the royal nose met with no unpleasant aromas.
Rose oil was apt; the emblem of the family was the Tudor rose, an amalgamation of the white and red roses of the formerly warring houses of York and Lancaster. The oil would have done little to cover the stench of the human waste that lay in the cellars awaiting collection.
Undergarments were changed frequently, and outer garments were well laundered, even if the body wearing them was not as fortunate.
2. Henry's Courtiers Wore Padding To Help Him
For most of his life, Henry VIII was slim, athletic, and deemed as handsome as his grandfather Edward IV. He was unusually tall for the time at six-foot-two. After his 1536 jousting accident that restricted his movements, Henry found a way to fill his days. He ate a lot. His waist expanded to approximately 89 centimetres. His irascibility increased with his appetite. His courtiers wore padding so that their girths were as expansive as his to help him feel better about himself.
Henry understood the need to appear invincible and unattainably rich, so he spent a great amount on clothing, jewels and artwork that enhanced his image. He had an eye for the aesthetic, and portrait painter Hans Holbein the Younger designed unique pieces of jewellery for him. The king "out-blinged" everyone.
3. Henry VIII Had His Own Pewter Thrones
Henry VIII had a private toilet in each of his palaces. No one was permitted to use them except for him. The facilities were guarded by soldiers. His stool chambers contained shelves of books and they had paintings on the walls to keep him amused.
The toilets were pewter with a velvet cushion seat stuffed with swans feathers and these were studded with gilt nails. Only the Groom of the Stool was admitted into this intimate space. His team of privy chamber attendants was urged never to talk about his visits.
Whilst on a royal progress around the country, it was expected that his hosts would provide a similarly luxurious close stool for his sole use. Even if that bankrupted them.
4. Henry Didn’t Compose Greensleeves But He Loved The Arts
We forget that Henry was a well-educated and creative man. He impressed the philosopher Erasmus as a child, and early in his reign, he wrote Defence of the Seven Sacraments in response to Martin Luther's theological text. He was a committed Catholic until he decided that marrying Anne Boleyn and having a male heir was more important than pleasing the pope.
Henry VIII's musical skills were admired. He could sight-read music, and there was a long-held mistaken belief that he wrote "Greensleeves." It actually dated from the Elizabethan era. He composed numerous songs, hymns and music and he was an accomplished poet.
His palaces housed over 2,000 tapestries, splendid pieces of art, symbolism and displays of wealth. 1519 records revealed that Henry had received a unique present: an elephant to add to the Royal Menagerie.
5. No One Wanted To Tell Henry VIII He Was Dying
You can’t blame them. It was treason to talk about the king’s death so none of his physicians were brave enough to break the bad news to him and risk an execution. Eventually, his groom of the stool, intimate servant (yes, toilet tasks), Sir Anthony Denny informed him. Ailing Henry agreed to see Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Henry’s last words were, “I will take a little sleep.” He went into a coma before Cranmer arrived in his bedchamber and the archbishop sat with him as he passed away in the early hours of the 28th January 1547.
Henry had planned a magnificent tomb for himself. He never used it; the partly constructed tomb was destroyed in 1646. He still lies with his third wife Jane Seymour at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.
He remains one of the best known, if not infamous, monarchs in British history.
Sources:
https://www.hrp.org.uk/hampton-court-palace/history-and-stories/life-at-the-tudor-court/#gs.hay27r
https://www.history.com/news/royal-palace-life-hygiene-henry-viii
https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/greensleeves-did-henry-viii-write-song/
https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1509-1558/member/denny-anthony-1501-49