Henry VIII and His Wives Authors: Biserova Elina Chuvakova Vika Class 7A Secondary school № 6 Gavrilov-Yam 2009
Our purposes We want to know: about the King of England Henry VIII; about his wives; about his interests; about his houses; about his life.
The King of England Henry VIII was the King of England 1509-1547. He is one of the most famous he had 6 wives. As a young man Henry was known for his love of hunting, sport and music, but he did not rule well and the country was in a weak and uncertain state when he died.
MEET HIS SIX WIVES Wife No 1 Catherine of Aragon When Henry became king at 18 he married Catherine of Aragon. She was the daughter of the King of Spain and the widow of Henry’s elder brother Arthur. She was older and often gave him advice on how to rule. They were married for 18 years and had one daughter, Mary. But Henry wanted a son, he decided to divorce Catherine.
Wife No 2 Anne Boleyn Henry married Anne Boleyn in 1533. She had a girl, Elizabeth, but no sons. Henry soon got fed up with Anne, so he arrested her on charges of being a witch - she had six fingers on her left hand. In 1536 she was beheaded. Eleven days later Henry married his third wife.
Wife No 3 Jane Seymour Jane Seymour was one of Anne Boleyn’s ladies – in – waiting. She was from an old and noble family. She gave birth to a sickly son in 1537, Edward, but died soon after. It is said that Jane was Henry’s favorite wife and he waited two years before marrying again.
Wife No 4 Anne of Cleves Henry wanted another queen. He saw a picture of a German princess, Anne of Cleves, and decided to marry her without seeing her! But when he met her, Henry didn’t fancy Anne at all. He couldn’t break his promise to marry her but their marriage only lasted six months.
Wife No 5 Katherine Howard Katherine Howard was a cousin of Anne Boleyn and was only about 16 when she married Henry. (He was 49!) Very soon Henry found out that Catherine had been seeing other men and she was beheaded. The following year he married for the last time.
Wife No 6 Catherine Parr Catherine Parr was Henry’s sixth and last wife. She had already been married twice before, but both her husbands had died. Henry was very fat and ill by now and Catherine was as much a nurse as a wife. When Henry died in 1547, she quickly married Thomas Seymour (her fourth husband).
A rhyme There is a little rhyme British kids learn to remember what happened to each of Henry’s wives: Divorced, beheaded, died Divorced, beheaded, survived.
Henry VIII`s Haunted Home Along with wives, King Henry VIII collected palaces. By the time he died, he had more than 60 houses but the most magnificent of them was Hampton Court. The Great Hall is the largest room in the palace. It is 32 meters long, 12 meters wide and 18 meters high. Henry VIII had his meals there. Hampton Court has seen many dramatic royal events.
The Ghosts of Henry’s wives The Ghost of Jane Seymour The ghost of Catherine Howard Jane Seymour, is said to walk Staff, visitors and through the cobbled courtyard workmen have reported carrying a lighted candle. seeing Catherine’s ghost and hearing her terrible cries. In more recent years she has also been seen walking in the gardens. Lady in Grey The ghost of Sibell Peen nurse of Prince Edward returned to the rooms she once lived in.
The Wosley Study The room has a “strange atmosphere”. A phantom dog has been seen and heart here on more than one occasion. Who could it be? Last year, a mysterious figure dressed in a long black coat, was caught on the palace security cameras. It was spooky because the face just didn’t look human.
Our results We’ve found that Henry VIII was a very cruel king. We are very sorry for his poor wives. But we think that this information will be useful for us. We can use it on our English and History lessons.
Literature. “The world of English.”- Mark Farrell. “Speak Out.”- Magazines. CD. Encyclopedia “Britannica 2004”,2007” “Extra-Curriculum Work” K.V. Veselukhna. Internet: http://www.rambler.ru http://www.google.ru http://www.yandex.ru http://mail.ru http://school.holm.ru