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Title: The last days of Henry VIII
WonderClub
Item Number: 9780297846116
Number: 1
Product Description: The last days of Henry VIII
Universal Product Code (UPC): 9780297846116
WonderClub Stock Keeping Unit (WSKU): 9780297846116
Rating: 4.5/5 based on 2 Reviews
Image Location: https://wonderclub.com/images/covers/61/16/9780297846116.jpg
Weight: 0.200 kg (0.44 lbs)
Width: 0.000 cm (0.00 inches)
Heigh : 0.000 cm (0.00 inches)
Depth: 0.000 cm (0.00 inches)
Date Added: August 25, 2020, Added By: Ross
Date Last Edited: August 25, 2020, Edited By: Ross
Price | Condition | Delivery | Seller | Action |
$99.99 | Digital |
| WonderClub (9296 total ratings) |
Daniel Clarke
reviewed The last days of Henry VIII on March 11, 2017Right from the start I will say this is one of the best books about Henry VIII that I have ever read. I have always been interested in learning more about the famous King of England who had six wives and this book provided me with a wealth of information that I never knew before. This book focuses on the last few years of Henry VIII’s life, specifically from 1543 until Henry’s death. What I loved about this book is the detail that Hutchinson went into as he looked at all the different events that happened to Henry over the last four years of his life.
I have always thought of Henry as quite a tyrant in his final years, an aging man who was grossly overweight, unable to participate in the lively sports of his younger years, losing his youth, his moods swinging back and forth wildly. Hutchinson also puts forward this image of Henry, but what he does is look at the different reasons why Henry turned into an overweight tyrant obsessed with his image and power.
Hutchinson looks at Henry’s son, Prince Edward and how important this beloved son and future heir was to the King. Having only one son in a time where many children often did not live to adulthood must have been a very worrying thing for Henry. If anything happened to Edward, Henry would have no male heir to carry on the Tudor line. While Henry was a distant father Hutchinson showed the reader that Henry loved and treasured his son greatly.
Next Hutchinson looks at Henry’s religious beliefs and although he was now the Supreme Head of the English Church he believed quite strongly in the Catholic practices and beliefs. Hutchinson talks about how those around Henry were very influential in coercing the King to different religious reforms. It seems as though those within the Privy chamber had a great influence on the aging King and whispered a great deal into his ear about their own personal beliefs and ideas for England. Hutchinson goes into some detail about all the people who were influential in Henry’s political and religious decisions. He speaks about their own personal motives and how they used their influence and friendliness with the King to try and gain many advantages for the reformist religion.
Of course one cannot forget that in his final years Henry went to France looking for military glory. Hutchinson explores Henry’s passion for glory and how he nearly bankrupted England in an attempt to gain a great military reputation. All in all it really did not seem worth the expenses. Henry gained a town and claimed it as a great victory but the people of England were the ones that paid the price having to pay extra taxes and expenditures to fund Henry’s campaign.
There is a lovely section where Hutchinson talks about Henry’s marriage to Katherine Parr and their relationship. It really does seem as though Katherine became something of a friend and nurse to Henry in his final years. She was a very intelligent woman and unfortunately some people at court thought she had overstepped her status as a woman and there was at one stage an investigation to see if she was a heretic. Henry in his ever changing mood swings authorised the arrest of Katherine, but went back on his decision once she came to him and humbly submitted herself to his will. From what Hutchinson wrote it does seem as though Henry did care about his last wife and saw her as a very good and loving friend.
I thoroughly enjoyed the chapter that Hutchinson wrote about Henry’s decline in physical health. He talked a great deal about how Henry was very much invested in medicines and remedies to heal the body. The King made many medicines and concoctions which he believed would heal various illnesses and diseases. What alarmed me greatly was when Hutchinson talked about the regular enemas that Henry needed in his later life due to being extremely constipated! This of course was probably caused by his excessive over eating, and eating of foods such as meats which were not very good for the digestive system. This was another interesting (if perhaps a little gross) fact that I never knew before. Hutchinson also talked about the ulcer on Henry’s leg and how over time it grew worse and the pain increased in both legs making it very difficult for Henry to walk. By the end of his life Henry was grossly overweight, having difficulties walking, standing on his own and even at times breathing. Apparently his doctors tried to get him to eat healthier but clearly Henry did not heed this advice.
Hutchinson’s proposes the idea that Henry suffered from Cushings Syndrome, which symptoms include gross obesity around the trunk and neck of the body. People with this syndrome also have rather fat faces, with fat deposits under their eyes; their skin can be fragile and thin and take some time for wounds to heal. Bones become weaker, blood pressure rises and they also may suffer from depression, anxiety, insomnia and mood swings. Certainly reading through these symptoms they do sound quite a lot like Henry VIII! Henry was well known for his massive bulk, his bouts of depression, his anxiety and mood swings – he was known to lash out at his courtiers and strike them in anger! Hutchinson does add that there cannot be any affirmative diagnoses because we have no way of testing for this disease five hundred years after Henry’s death.
I am not completely sure I agree with Hutchinson’s theory – much of what he says does sound like Henry and his behaviour and physical appearance. But on the other hand, he could have simply been a man who had a great deal of pressure and responsibility upon his shoulders, a man who suffered many significant blows not only to his person but to his status, his manhood and his mental state. (Please read Suzannah Lipscombs book “1536 The Year that Changed Henry VIII†for more detail about the events that greatly impacted Henry’s personality). Henry VIII could simply have turned into a tyrant and with absolute, unquestioning power he had the ability to do whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted and no one dare question him for fear of their lives. I do not know if we can always lay the blame for his behaviour and actions on a medical illness. Nonetheless Hutchinson does put forward a very valuable and quite possible theory for Henry’s physical, mental and emotional state towards the end of his life.
Hutchinson looks at Henry’s final days and hours, his death and the controversy surrounding his will. Apparently there may have been some additions to the King’s will after Henry was dead. The use of a dry stamp was issued during Henry’s final few years so that the King would not have to read and sign every single document. Members of his Privy chamber were authorized to use the stamp in his name and then record the usage and show this to the King which he would sign at the end of each month. It is proposed that perhaps the dry stamp was used to alter the will somewhat to give a little extra benefits and power to those members of the reformist faction at court.
Henry’s funeral is also written about in great deal and as a reader I was able to create a detailed, and at times a rather chilling image of Henry’s great coffin and effigy moving through the streets to its final resting place at St George’s chapel where it was placed in a great vault next to Jane Seymour’s coffin. I also found it very interesting and informative that Hutchinson went into a some detail about what happened to all the major people who played a role in Henry VIII’s life during his final years. Giving a little information about what happened to Henry’s children, Katherine Parr and the members of his council gave the reader a nice conclusion to the life of Henry and what happened to everyone after the King had died and his son declared the next King of England.
In the end I felt quite sad for dear Henry. Perhaps he was a tyrant; or maybe he was just a pawn in all the political and personal battling at court. Perhaps he was a victim of the many tragedies and personal blows he suffered throughout the years. Or maybe he was just a mean, overweight, power hungry man facing his death. Whatever the case, I felt as though Hutchinson provided such a wealth of detail and information that the reader was able to make up their own mind about Henry VIII and the type of man he was in his final years. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and believe it is one of the best I have ever read about Henry VIII. Hutchinson has an easy and personal writing style where I felt as though instead of reading an information heavy book with lots and lots of details, I was reading a novel about a powerful King and his final years of life. I was captivated from the start and would strongly recommend this book to anyone interested in Henry VIII.
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