Henry VIII (June 28, 1491 – January 28, 1547) was the second King of England of the Tudor dynasty (reigned from April 22, 1509 to January 28, 1547) and the first King of Ireland (reigned from 1541 to January 28, 1547). He is the second son of King Henry VII and Queen Elizabeth of England.
After the death of Henry VII, Henry VIII succeeded to the throne on April 22, 1509.
As the second king of the Tudor dynasty and also a lord of Ireland, he later became the king of Ireland. Henry VIII, in order to divorce his wife and marry a new empress, opposed the Pope at the time and implemented religious reforms. He passed important laws allowing himself to remarry and appointed the then Bishop of England as the Archbishop of the Church of England, breaking away from the Roman Catholic Church and becoming the highest religious leader in England. He also dissolved the monastery, thus bringing the power of the British royal family to its peak. During his reign, he incorporated Wales into England.
On January 28, 1547, Henry VIII passed away at Whitehall Palace and was buried in St. George's Church in Windsor Castle, alongside his third wife Jane Seymour. His only legitimate son, Edward VI, inherited his throne according to the Third Law of Succession to the Throne.

Background
Henry VII, the father of Henry, was a descendant of the Lancaster royal family in England. In 1485, Henry VII defeated Richard III in the Battle of Bosworth and immediately proclaimed himself king, taking over England, Wales, and Ireland, establishing the Tudor dynasty. In order to ease political conflicts and strengthen his legitimacy as the King of England, on January 18, 1486, at Westminster Abbey in London, Henry VII married Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV of the York dynasty.
On June 28, 1491, Henry was born in the Palazzo Plassenshire in Greenwich, London. He was the third child of Henry VII and Queen Elizabeth. Before his birth, Queen Elizabeth had already given birth to her eldest son, Prince Arthur Tudor of Wales, and her eldest daughter, Princess Margaret Tudor.
Adolescence
Henry received a good education from a young age, and the poet Skelton was his teacher. Over time, he met and consulted with Desiderius Erasmus and some Renaissance figures. He knows Latin, French, Italian, as well as some Spanish and Greek, has a love for poetry and music, and can compose and play. He also enjoys hunting and is skilled in equestrian, archery, wrestling, and royal tennis. [1]
In 1493, Henry was appointed as the Governor of Dover and the Commander of the Five Ports Alliance. In 1494, Henry was appointed Duke of York.
In 1501, Henry VII betrothed his eldest son Arthur to the Spanish princess Catherine of Aragon, in order to form an alliance with King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile.
In 1502, four months after Arthur married Catherine, Arthur died suddenly. Due to the early death of his elder brother Arthur, 12-year-old Henry became the heir to the throne, succeeding the Prince of Wales.
In order to maintain the friendly relationship obtained through marriage with Spain, Henry VII convinced Catherine to stay and engaged Catherine to her second son Henry.
At that time, this marriage violated Catholic rules, and Catherine of Aragon claimed that she had not reconciled with Arthur. Later, Catherine's mother Isabella I sought the Pope's decree to allow this marriage.
In 1505, Henry VII did not want to continue his alliance with Spain, so Prince Henry of Wales announced that he did not agree to his engagement with Catherine. Spain engaged in diplomatic mediation with England for this, and the engagement was not terminated.

Ascend to the throne as king
On April 21, 1509, Henry VII passed away.
On June 11, 1509, Henry and Catherine officially held their wedding ceremony.
On June 24, 1509, Henry held a coronation ceremony at Westminster Abbey in London, inheriting the throne as Henry VIII.
Young King Henry VIII, with a burly figure and the ability to be both civil and military. In the early years of his reign, some of his actions were influenced by the new ideas of the Renaissance. He wrote two books and also composed poetry and music. The folk song "Green Sleeves" he created shortly after ascending the throne has become a popular song passed down by everyone.
Henry VIII personally visited Thomas More, the author of Utopia, and consistently appointed him as a trusted minister.
He also supports the maintenance of British judicial power, opposes interference from the Roman Catholic Church, and claims that "in England, besides God, the king is the highest authority."
Henry VIII founded the Royal Navy of England with his own hands, ordering the construction of fast and flexible new warships, with guns installed inside the cabins and specialized combat sailors, and the construction of several naval shipyards. He issued a license to the Trinity Company in 1514, granting it the authority to specialize in the navigation industry and to levy taxes to support navigation and set up lighthouses.
Henry VIII was also deeply influenced by the old traditions of feudal aristocracy. He spends a lot of time competing with noble knights, hunting, and playing, unwilling to deal with daily affairs. He issued laws strictly stipulating the hierarchy of nobility in clothing, and prohibiting civilians from overstepping in clothing display. He often showcases his royal demeanor at court events to conquer courtiers and guests.
In 1517, Henry VIII held a knightly competition in Greenwich. When he appeared, he wore golden armor, a purple satin robe adorned with various jewels, and his warhorses were also adorned with gold and silver. A foreign envoy exclaimed, "The wealth and civilization of the world are all here. Some people see Britain as a barbarian land, but in my opinion, they are the barbarians."

Six marriages
First Marriage
Catherine of Aragon was the first queen of Henry VIII, and she was the widow of Henry VIII's brother, who was also Henry VIII's sister-in-law.
Queen Catherine had multiple miscarriages, with one baby girl dying prematurely and three baby boys dying prematurely. The only surviving child, Mary Tudor, was born on February 18, 1516 at the Prestige Palace in London, later known as the "Bloody Mary" of Mary I.
In 1525, Henry VIII determined that Catherine could not give birth to a male heir for him and had an extramarital affair with the female attendant Anne Boleyn (also known as Anne Boleyn). Henry VIII requested divorce on the grounds that the Bible stated that those who marry siblings would have no offspring. But Catherine insisted that she was the queen and refused to divorce Henry VIII. Because Catherine is a Spanish princess, the Pope did not approve Henry's divorce. So Henry VIII asked Justice Walsey to negotiate with the Pope, hoping to obtain his consent. Walsey, who failed negotiations with the Pope, was exiled, and his successor Thomas Moore was soon dismissed and appointed as the Archbishop of Canterbury by Thomas Kramer.
In January 1533, without the permission of the Pope, Henry VIII secretly married Anne Boleyn, and the Pope announced his expulsion from the Church. As retaliation, the British Parliament immediately legislated to break away from the Roman Catholic Church, and Archbishop Clement declared Henry's marriage to Catherine invalid and Anne Boleyn's marriage legal. [5]
Second Marriage
Anne Boleyn, the second queen of Henry VIII, according to BBC English history, Mary Boleyn, Anne Boleyn's sister, was Henry VIII's mistress. After Anne returned from studying in France, she entered the British court and fell in love with Henry VIII.
On June 1, 1533, Anne Boleyn was crowned Queen of England. Catherine was stripped of her title as queen and imprisoned in a lowly estate. Mary Tudor was also demoted as an illegitimate daughter and was not allowed to meet her mother.
In September 1533, Anne Boleyn gave birth to her daughter Elizabeth, who later became the "Virgin Queen" Elizabeth I. Similarly, because Anne did not give birth to a son, Henry VIII shifted his focus to Anne's maid, Jane Seymour.
In 1536, Henry VIII ordered the arrest of Anne Boleyn and her brother Viscount George. George is accused of having an affair with Anne Boleyn with three of his friends and planning to assassinate the king. George and his friends were executed, while Anne Boleyn was convicted of adultery with her brother and imprisoned in the Tower of London.
On May 19, 1536, Anne was beheaded. Henry VIII declared his marriage to Anne Boleyn invalid.

Third Marriage
On May 30, 1536, Henry VIII and Jane Seymour held his third wedding.
On June 4, 1536, she was publicly proclaimed as the queen, but due to the spread of the plague in the city of London at that time, she was not officially crowned.
On October 12, 1537, Edward Tudor (later Edward VI), the son of Jane Seymour, was born in a room at Hampton Palace in Middlesex. He was the male heir that King Henry VIII of England and the English royal family finally hoped for. Jane Seymour recovered rapidly after giving birth and delivered the second "Law of Succession to the Throne" signed in 1536, officially announcing the birth of a prince born from the legitimate marriage between His Majesty the King and me. England was in full celebration, with a hymn of praise sung in the church and a bonfire lit in the city to celebrate the birth of Edward.
However, on October 23, 1537, Jane Seymour experienced a sudden puerperal fever and passed away the following night. In his letter to King Fran ç ois I, Henry VIII mentioned, "... She brought me joy, but God mixed it with the pain of her death."
Fourth Marriage
Painter Hans Holby came to England in 1532 to escape the religious wars in Europe and was hired as a court painter. He recommended Anne of the small country of Crevis, located between France and the Netherlands, to Henry VIII. Although Henry VIII did not like Princess Anne's appearance, the two got married on January 6, 1540. Due to Henry VIII's dislike of Queen Anne and unwillingness to touch her, he turned to pursue Queen Anne's maid Catherine Howard (Anne Boleyn's cousin).
Henry VIII once again declared his marriage to Queen Anne invalid and demanded a divorce. He gave Annie the title of "King's sisters" and gave her a large sum of money to live in seclusion in England. In July 1540, Queen Anne divorced Henry VIII and lived in London until her death in 1557. [5]
Fifth Marriage
On July 28, 1540, Henry VIII married Catherine Howard. However, Catherine had an extramarital affair with her minister Thomas Carpper after marriage, and even appointed her former lover Francis Durham as her secretary. Someone secretly informed Thomas Kramer, who was then the Archbishop of Canterbury, about Catherine's relationship with others, and Kramer then reported the Queen's adultery to Henry.
Henry VIII arrested all Catherine's lovers. In 1543, Catherine was hanged.

Sixth Marriage
In 1543, elderly Henry finally married Catherine Parr, who served in the court, as his sixth wife. Catherine Parr is a widow who has been married twice. Her religious views are radical, but Henry is conservative. The two of them often argued and almost killed her several times, but she always made timely concessions.
Influenced by the queen, Henry reconciled with his two daughters Mary and Elizabeth. Catherine Parr took good care of Henry's children Mary, Elizabeth, and Edward, providing them with a good education. She also took good care of Henry, who was plagued by illness and easily angered in his later years. [9]
Suspicion of old age
Henry VIII was overweight in his later years, and one time he got injured while riding a horse. Since then, he has been in a state of despair and is prone to suspicion and anger.
He arrested anti reformist leaders such as the Duke of Norfolk and prepared to be executed, but before execution could be carried out, Henry VIII passed away on January 28, 1547 at Whitehall Palace in Windsor Castle. His will appointed sixteen new nobles, mainly reformists, to form the Privy Council and assisted 9-year-old Edward VI in inheriting his throne. [1]
Henry VIII was buried in St. George's Church in Windsor Castle, together with his third wife Jane Seymour.
For over a decade after the death of Henry VIII, all three of his legitimate children ascended to the English throne, but none had any heirs.

Politics
At the beginning of Henry VIII's accession to the throne, the British Parliament was composed of dozens of nobles, bishops, and abbots. Due to the fact that the power to appoint and summon its members belonged to the king, it was more easily controlled by royal power. The members of the House of Commons are elected by local gentry with an annual income of 40 shillings or more from various counties across the country. In principle, two members are elected from each county, while the other is elected by the town granted a charter by the king according to their respective customs. There are more than 300 members, most of whom are small nobles, gentry, businessmen, and lawyers, representing the interests of the gentry and bourgeoisie to a large extent.
Henry VIII highly valued the clergyman Thomas Walsey, who came from a merchant background. Since 1515, Walsey has served as the Grand Justice, Archbishop of York, Cardinal, and representative of the Pope, overseeing the power of domestic and foreign affairs.
Henry VIII also began to use reformists to hold various important positions. He discovered Thomas Cromwell, a businessman and lawyer. From 1532 to 1540, he was appointed as the Treasurer of the Royal Family, Minister of the Treasury, Secretary of State, Minister of the Seal, and representative of the Church's leaders, giving Cromwell control over various powers including administration, judiciary, finance, diplomacy, and religion.

Starting from 1522, Henry VIII sent troops to invade France for several years and provided military expenses to Charles V in order to provide support. The enormous expenditure exhausted the treasury reserves, and Henry VIII had to convene a parliament to levy taxes and demand donations. This infringed on the interests of the gentry and bourgeoisie, and there was a nationwide outcry of opposition. Henry VIII had to make concessions.
At that time, not only was Britain's diplomacy thwarted, but its internal affairs also fell into chaos. Thomas Walsey ignored the interests and demands of the gentry and bourgeoisie, leading to the neglect of many urgent internal affairs issues. With the introduction of religious reform ideas into England, the anti Catholic sentiment among the general public grew stronger. Many more radical advocates for reform emerged among the gentry and bourgeoisie, demanding the destruction of the Catholic Church and the exclusion of interference from the Roman Catholic Church. At this time, the divorce of Henry VIII became the catalyst for the outbreak of the British reform movement.
With the increasing complexity of internal affairs, diplomacy, finance, judiciary, military, and religious affairs, the old institutions of the court and aristocratic advisory houses can no longer meet the needs. Reformists such as Cromwell carried out government reforms. The Privy Council is composed of more than ten major full-time ministers, including the Grand Justice, the Minister of Finance, the Privy Council, the Minister of Seal, the Secretary of State, the Minister of Police, the Accounting Officer, and the Imperial Minister, becoming the core of the central government. Henry VIII, as the king, had full authority to appoint and dismiss Privy Councillors, and was the nominal presiding officer of the Privy Council.
The various financial courts established by parliamentary bills are responsible for managing various revenues and expenditures, while the king's court becomes a government department that specializes in the personal affairs of the king. The judicial system has also undergone reforms, with privileged courts such as the Star Court and the Requesting Court becoming powerful tools for promoting government policies and implementing repression, making up for the outdated and inefficient traditional courts. These reforms resulted in a strong centralization, giving Henry VIII authoritarian power that previous kings had never obtained.
Henry VIII made no achievements in domestic and foreign policies in his later years. He attempted to control Scotland but was unsuccessful, and subsequently returned to war with France between 1542 and 1546. Relying on large-scale taxation and borrowing to sustain the war resulted in nothing but financial bankruptcy, soaring prices, currency depreciation, and the royal family confiscating the real estate obtained from monasteries, most of which were sold to the new aristocracy and bourgeoisie.

International Relations
Henry VIII continued to implement the foreign policy of opposing France and uniting with Spain left by Henry VII in his early years. After ascending to the throne, he married Catherine of Aragon, the widow of his deceased elder brother Arthur. [12]
The policy implemented since 1515 was to take advantage of the conflict between Spain and France, with the call to support the Pope, in an attempt to expand the territory occupied in France and promote trade interests in the Spanish Flanders region. Henry VIII, as king, often personally engaged in diplomatic activities. His opponents were King Fran ç ois I of France and King Carlos I of Spain. Several kings have conducted multiple visits and meetings, negotiated alliances, concluded peace treaties, and intermarried.
However, Henry VIII expelled Catherine and broke with the Pope, causing a rift in the relationship between England and Spain. After Henry VIII broke away from the Roman Catholic Church, he made enemies on all sides, and Britain became a target of criticism for European powers. [1]
military
Arms
Henry VIII inherited a royal fleet: a total of 15 ships of various types, but only two were warships with a displacement of over 500 tons. Henry VIII invested heavily in expanding the Royal Shipyard of Portsmouth, and the Deptford Dockyard, which began construction in 1517, has a total area of 8 acres and a water depth capable of carrying thousands of tons of ships. During the 38 years of Henry VIII's reign, the Royal Fleet expanded to 53 ships, including 13 warships weighing over 500 tons. The giant battleship Henry Grace a Dieu, launched in 1514, had a displacement of 1000 tons and was equipped with 43 bronze heavy guns and 141 various small guns.
Before Henry VIII's accession to the throne, the British artillery was completely dependent on imports. In 1496, the King of England's Director of Arms counted the inventory and obtained a total of 63 types of artillery, 406 barrels of gunpowder, 9253 long bows, and 27804 feather arrows. After Henry VIII succeeded to the throne, he heavily hired French and Italian experts to teach the art of casting cannons. In 1529, the Owen brothers in London began casting bronze cannons for the royal family. In the middle of Henry VIII's reign, the royal arsenal had 2250 large and small cannons and 6500 firearms.

Warfare
During the reign of Henry VIII, there was no standing army and the country implemented a system of recruiting mercenaries.
At the beginning of Henry VIII's accession to the throne, Europe entered a period of struggle between the two great powers. France and the Holy Roman Empire went to war over Italy, and both countries attempted to seek British aid. In November 1511, Henry VIII officially allied with the Holy Roman Empire and declared war on France.
In June 1513, Henry VIII, under the pretext of protecting the Pope, joined forces with Spain to wage war on France, leading 25000 British troops to invade France. This was the first time in 60 years since the end of the Hundred Years' War that British troops had set foot on French territory. At this time, the main force of the French army was fighting fiercely in Italy, and Henry VIII's army encountered weak resistance. They advanced for over a hundred kilometers, captured the small town of Truen, and defeated the French cavalry who came to rescue them. They defeated the French army in Guinegat (the Battle of the Spurs) and captured the French general Paris and the famous Knights of Bayar alive. In the autumn of 1513, Henry VIII returned with honor.
In the Battle of Florence in September 1513, Count Surrey (second Duke of Norfolk) defeated his French ally Scotland and killed their king James IV, and the good news continued to spread.
In 1522, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, who had just ascended to the throne, led Henry VIII to wage war against France again through a treaty of alliance. In 1523, Henry VIII launched multiple attacks, and the Duke of Suffolk attacked from afar on land, leading his army to invade France; The British Navy competed with both the French and Scottish navies at sea. However, the UK's finances were unable to support such a large-scale war, and a few months later the treasury ran out. When the Duke of Suffolk's expedition advanced fifty miles outside Paris, supplies and supplies were cut off and they had to retreat. [15]
In February 1525, the imperial army of Charles V decisively defeated the French army in Pavia, northern Italy, and captured King Francis I of France (Battle of Pavia). In 1526, Charles V concluded a separate treaty with France, ending the state of war. He firmly refused Henry VIII's request to continue the war and broke his engagement with his eldest daughter, Princess Mary Tudor, and instead married Princess Isabella of Portugal.
In 1543, the war between England and France resumed, and Henry VIII issued a large number of privateering permits to crack down on French shipping. British pirates attacked in all directions and were ordered to plunder. These pirates use the excuse of banning French goods and seize ships as soon as they see them. Spain and the Netherlands, as neutral countries, are also not immune to its harm.
In 1544, Britain and France went to war again. France assembled 200 warships carrying 30000 troops to invade Britain and landed on the nearby island of Witt. The scale of this invasion far exceeds that of the Spanish Armada 44 years later. The navy built by Henry VIII with great funds lived up to expectations and defeated the French army in the Battle of Spyhead, forcing them to return in vain. However, it paid a huge price: the battleship "Mary Rose" with a displacement of 800 tons sank, resulting in the death of 400 people. [16]

Economics
During the reign of Henry VIII, England remained an agricultural society and the woolen textile industry was not well-developed. The total population of England and Wales is about three million, less than half of Spain's and only one sixth of France's. Almost all the resources needed for war need to be purchased at a high cost from overseas. The ropes, masts, asphalt, and tar required for shipbuilding come from Baltic countries; Canvas comes from Brittany, Spain, and the Netherlands in France; The pig iron required for casting cannons comes from the Basque region of Spain, and the brass comes from Central Europe; The anchor of the ship comes from Flanders; Armor, firearms, and swords mostly need to be imported from Italy and the Netherlands; The nitrate required to manufacture gunpowder is unheard of in the UK. Most British soldiers were recruited from Italy and Germany, and military supplies were purchased from Danzig and the Netherlands. In the later period of the Henry VIII dynasty, the annual military expenditure was as high as 650000 pounds, while the annual fiscal revenue was only 250000 pounds.
During the last few years of Henry VIII's reign, he simultaneously deployed troops to France and Scotland, with a military expenditure of up to 3.2 million pounds. In order to solve the financial crisis, Henry VIII dissolved a large number of monasteries, confiscated church properties, auctioned two-thirds of them, and earned £ 1.4 million, with the remaining portion earning £ 150000 annually. Despite this, Henry VIII still couldn't make ends meet, was forced to depreciate his currency, and borrowed heavily from the financial markets in Antwerp at an annual interest rate of 14%.
In 1545, due to British pirates plundering a Spanish treasure ship carrying silver from the Americas at Cape Saint Vincent. Charles V ordered the detention of all British merchants in Spain and strictly prohibited trade with Britain. Until diplomatic mediation to resolve the dispute, British overseas trade had been interrupted for over a year, and the market was firmly occupied by German Lufthansa merchants. The goods of British merchants were confiscated, and after being released from prison, they became insolvent. The British woolen textile industry has lost overseas markets, suffered a severe blow to its vitality, and the British economy has suffered a heavy blow. [17]
cultural education
During the reign of Henry VIII, humanism emerged in England and received support from renowned scholars and the court of Henry VIII. In order to promote the dissemination of humanism and internalize it into the cultural character of the British, which in turn affects British society, many scholars and political figures have introduced humanism to the University of Oxford and Cambridge by setting up lectures on classical language and humanities, adjusting university courses, and other means. Due to the influence of humanism, Oxford and Cambridge universities have undergone significant changes in academic, academic organization, student family backgrounds, and their relationship with politics.

Religious reform
In 1533, Henry VIII promoted the reformist clergyman Thomas Kramer as the Archbishop of Canterbury, leading the Church of England and reusing many reformist figures in government and church positions, replacing the old aristocrats and clergy who opposed reform.
The parliament held eight consecutive sessions from 1529 to 1536, and under the instigation of reformists such as Cromwell, a series of parliamentary bills were passed to implement religious reform. According to parliamentary bills, Henry VIII was successively ordered to collect large fines from the church, withhold annual tribute to the Pope, obtain full authority to formulate church regulations and appoint bishops, obtain the highest judicial power of the church, replace the Pope as the highest leader of the Church of England, take the bishop's first year salary and tithes as his own, dissolve all monasteries, and take over his huge land and property to the royal family. From then on, Britain broke away from the Roman Catholic system and established the Church of England controlled by the state power, with the king as the supreme ruler.
The religious reform has aroused strong opposition from domestic and foreign anti reform forces. The Pope excommunicated Henry VIII, and the Holy Roman Empire threatened to invade and cut off trade. Henry VIII strengthened his suppression within the country. In 1534, the parliament passed the "Rebellion Act", which stipulated that anyone who falsely accused the king of being a heretic, apostate, tyrant, or other evil name through speech, words, or actions, did not recognize the king as the leader of the church, and denied the legitimacy of the king's marriage, were all considered rebellious and should be executed for their crimes. According to this bill, a large number of anti reform clergy were killed, and Thomas More was executed for not recognizing the power of parliament to carry out religious reform. But at the same time, some people who believe in various reformist sects are also burned as "heretics".
From 1536 to 1537, the old aristocrats and church forces in the north took advantage of the dissatisfaction of the peasants and launched a rebellion called the "Prayer for Grace Tour". They marched south, demanding the cancellation of all reforms and punishing the reformists. Henry VIII resolutely suppressed, killed and abolished a group of old northern nobles, and established the "Northern Court" presided over by reformists for governance. In Wales and the Western Border Region, the Welsh Border Court, chaired by reformists, was established to punish a large number of lawless old nobles and promote the administrative justice system in Britain. The parliament passed bills in 1536 and 1543, officially integrating Wales into England. Due to the achievements of the reformists, the Parliament Act of 1536 stipulated that all existing feudal privilege zones in England must be governed under the name of the king and implement a unified administrative and judicial system. From then on, the feudal separatism within Britain was basically eliminated. From 1536 to 1537, Henry VIII also suppressed the anti reform rebellion of the old aristocracy in the English occupied areas of Ireland, sending reformists as representatives to rule. He himself became the King of Ireland in 1541.
The religious reform movement, especially the confiscation of a large number of monastery properties, brought about profound socio-economic changes. Due to financial needs and seeking political support, the royal family resold or gifted a large amount of real estate to the new aristocracy and industrial and commercial bourgeoisie, making these emerging forces wealthy and becoming vested interests in religious reform. They engaged in large-scale land enclosure, increased land rent, drove out tenants, causing a large number of farmers to be displaced and social order to be unstable.

In 1531 and 1536, the parliament passed bills to brutally suppress homeless people through bloody means such as corporal punishment, slave labor, and execution. The power to punish vagrants, resettle labor, levy relief taxes, maintain public order, and manage local administrative and judicial affairs is entrusted to security judges and parish staff appointed by local gentry, enabling them to replace secular feudal lords and become tools for the central government to exercise rule in the local areas.
The religious reform also had a significant impact on the field of ideology and culture. Under the advocacy of Cromwell, Kramer, and others, the English Bible was widely distributed and some Protestant doctrines were adopted in worship ceremonies. Eliminated superstitions such as idols, shrines, and pilgrimages. The spread of emerging bourgeois ideology and the awakening of the lower class made Henry VIII feel fearful, believing that further reforms would endanger his rule. In 1539, he personally presided over the formulation of the "Six Creeds Law", which stipulated that the Trinity, the doctrine of transformation, mass, repentance, and celibacy, among other major Catholic doctrines and rituals, must be followed. Violators were punished to death. In 1540, instigated by anti reformists, Henry VIII executed Cromwell, burned and persecuted reformists, and ordered the general public to read the English Bible. The Book of Kings, formulated in 1543, further affirmed the basic doctrines and all sacraments of Catholicism. However, the trend of reform was unstoppable, and the majority of reformists did not yield. Henry VIII also knew that he could no longer compromise with the Roman Catholic Church and had to waver between reformists and anti reformists.
During the reform, over 70000 people were executed, which was about 2% of the British population at that time. From then on, the Church of England became the Anglican Church, a separate denomination of Protestantism.

During the reign of Henry VIII, he implemented religious reform, which led to the separation of the Church of England from the Roman Catholic Church and made him the highest religious leader in England. He comprehensively reformed the national government institutions and protected his political and economic interests in Europe through military foreign policy. These have led to significant changes in the socio-economic situation, political system, culture, ideology, and religion of Britain, and ultimately led to the formation of a unified and centralized modern nation-state, creating favorable conditions for the further development of capitalist factors. During this process, Henry VIII played a significant role as an autocratic monarch with unprecedented power.