Henry VIII, born in 1491, was the second son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. Henry VIII began his reign in 1509 at the age of 18 years old. He seemed to be the perfect king: handsome, rich, athletic and intelligent; he loved music and wrote some as well. Henry married Catherine Aragon, the widow of his brother, who then divorced in 1533.In the first years of his reign Henry relied on his minister Thomas Wolsey, who is said that governed England for him. Henry military's campaigns against France and Spain were a national disaster, questionable in motivation and caused a big loss of money. The separation of the Church of England from Roman Catholicism was a significant point during his reign. This break with Rome is considered to be political in nature, not religious. This event established Henry VIII as head of the Church of England. There is debate about whether the break with Rome was caused by Cardinal Wolsey, who used to take many decisions for him. This question is the focus of this analysis. .
To understand the break with Rome, we have to take into account the relation between Henry and the church. Henry considered the church was a barrier to good government. In the middle ages, the church was very wealthy, it took money from people and this money was taken to Rome. Popes were involved in politics and "by the end of the fifteenth century they were regarded by many Englishmen as Italian princes rather than as the spiritual leaders of Cristendom"i. Henry's personal religious beliefs remained Catholic, despite the growing number of people at court and in the nation who had adopted Protestantism. Argues between the pope and the king occurred when the papacy was weakened and had no prestige. Henry brought back old disputes with the church like the benefit of clergy, for instance. According to Henry's view, everybody in England had to owe him allegiance and the conflict of jurisdictions ought to end in a victory of the Crown; Henry therefore did not allow an opponent during his reign.
