Henry VII was the founder of England’s most famous dynasty and his son, Henry VIII, one of the most famous English kings of all time yet both shared the same crushing burden of dynastic expectation. This was a newly established dynasty, with a tenuous claim to the throne of England, and both kings would work tirelessly to build an enduring myth of legitimacy for their family. Our collective memory of the now famous, almost celebrity status, family can sometimes forget these shaky foundations.
When the 28 year old Henry Tudor landed at Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire in August 1485 ready to raise support through his native Wales to take on Richard III in battle, he hadn’t set foot in his country for 14 years. Since the age of 14 he had lived in exile in France. He may have been the only Lancastrian figurehead left but his claim to the throne was so tenuous that establishing the Tudors as rightful rulers of England was a dominant theme which ran through his reign and onto that of his son’s.
When the 28 year old Henry Tudor landed at Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire in August 1485 ready to raise support through his native Wales to take on Richard III in battle, he hadn’t set foot in his country for 14 years. Since the age of 14 he had lived in exile in France. He may have been the only Lancastrian figurehead left but his claim to the throne was so tenuous that establishing the Tudors as rightful rulers of England was a dominant theme which ran through his reign and onto that of his son’s.
The two Henry Tudors, Kings Henry VII and Henry VIII
The Tomb of Arthur Tudor at Worcester Cathedral, nearby is the tomb of King John
His death represented a massive change for the two Henrys, the Tudor dynasty and, although it wouldn’t be felt until further into the future, the country.
No one could have predicted the even greater turmoil that the second Henry would bring to the country and the very souls of his subjects! But, when the young Henry accended to the throne on the death of his father in 1509, he represented hope for the future.
The final decade of Henry VII’s reign had become increasingly oppressive as his suspicious character and paranoid temperament dominated more and more. The death of Arthur followed by the death of his wife in childbirth a year later, only exacerbated matters.
The passing of the crown from the elder to younger Henry, in 1509, was the first peaceful transfer of power in living memory. The sharp contrast in characters of the two Henrys gave contemporaries hope that the accession of a new Henry would herald the dawn of a new epoch of rule, one where subjects openly loved their king without fear of his actions. Henry VIII died on what would have been his father’s 90th birthday, the crown of England once again passing from father to son. Only 56 years later the Tudor dynasty was to end with the death of the last surviving child of Henry VIII, the childless Elizabeth.
The passing of the crown from the elder to younger Henry, in 1509, was the first peaceful transfer of power in living memory. The sharp contrast in characters of the two Henrys gave contemporaries hope that the accession of a new Henry would herald the dawn of a new epoch of rule, one where subjects openly loved their king without fear of his actions. Henry VIII died on what would have been his father’s 90th birthday, the crown of England once again passing from father to son. Only 56 years later the Tudor dynasty was to end with the death of the last surviving child of Henry VIII, the childless Elizabeth.
