Was Henry VIII a good king?

Answer 1

Brilliant, especially considering he was only a 'locum'. His elder brother was supposed tobe king, and Hal was raised for the priesthood, until his brother died.

Answer 2

Certainly one who will not be forgotten and quite possibly the most talented king Britain has ever had, being intelligent, sporty, musical, witty. He left a great legacy behind him.Together with Alfred the Great, Henry is traditionally called one of the founders of the Royal Navy. There are good reasons for this - his reign featured some naval warfare and, more significantly, large royal investment in shipbuilding (including a few spectacular 'great ships' such as the Mary Rose), dockyards (such as HMNB Portsmouth) and naval innovations (eg the use of cannon onboard ship - although archers were still deployed on medieval-style forecastles and bowcastles as the ship's primary armament on large ships, or co-armament where cannon were used). However, it is a misnomer since Henry did not bequeath to his immediate successors a 'navy' in the sense of a formalised organisation with structures, ranks, formalised munitioning structures etc, but only in the sense of a set of ships (albeit some spectacular ones). Elizabeth I still had to cobble together a set of privately owned ships to fight off the Spanish Armada (which was consisted of about 130 war ships and converted merchant ships) and in the former, formal sense the modern British navy, the Royal Navy, is largely a product of the Anglo-Dutch naval rivalry of the seventeenth century.

By his break with Rome, Henry incurred the threat of a large-scale French or Spanish invasion. To guard against this he strengthened existing coastal defence fortresses (such as Dover Castle and, also at Dover, Moat Bulwark and Archcliffe Fort - he personally visited for a few months to supervise, as is commemorated in the modern exhibition in Dover Castle's keep there). He also built a chain of new 'castles' (in fact, large bastioned and garrisoned gun batteries) along Britain's southern coast from East Anglia to Cornwall, largely built of material gained from the demolition of monasteries. These were also known as Henry VIII's Device Forts.

In 2002, Henry VIII placed 40th in a BBC-sponsored poll on the 100 Greatest Britons.

Answer 3

This entirely depends on your definition of “good.” From the perspective of the Catholic Church, he took an entire nation away from the Church, so no, he was not. From the perspective of the majority of his wives and several of his ministers, such as Thomas Cromwell and Thomas Moore, most definitely not. But from the perspective of the English people, yes he most definitely was.

Henry VIII’s father, Henry VII was a frugal king, inheriting a nation devastated by civil wars. He kept a weather eye on possible future uprisings and hoarded wealth in case he needed to pay for an army. As a result, the people, especially the growing merchant class and the nobility who invested in their ventures, did not benefit much during his reign, and the English economy stagnated.

By contrast, his son, Henry VIII spent lavishly, making strong investments and ties to the powerful merchant guilds of Europe such as the Hanseatic League. As a result, the English economy flourished and the years of his reign were regarded as a golden age by the English people. This is borne out by the fact that the common people of London would cheer Elizabeth the First when she passed by calling “long live you good King Harry”, both a confirmation of her legitimacy as his daugher and in gratitude for her restoration of the golden age after enduring years of terror under her sister, Bloody Mary Tudor.

While the split with Rome and the sack of the monasteries were indeed problematic, the people were well aware that they were better off than their European neighbors, who endured reformation sparked wars throughout Northern Europe. Henry VIII was close friends with Erasmus, but most where thankful he had no dealings with those perceived as radicals such as Luther, Calvin, Knox or Zwingli.

Perhaps Henry’s greatest investment was one that did not pay off until well after his death. Henry VIII was a heavy investor in naval enterprises, from fortifications along the English coast to the building of a merchant marine. By the time he died, most English ships were no more than a few years old and were outfitted with the latest weapons and technologies. When the Spanish Armada sailed against England during the reign of Elizabeth the First, England’s modern fleet, faster and smaller than the Spanish warships, and armed with modern long-range guns, tore the Spanish to bloody pieces, decimating Spain militarily and effectively ending any Spanish threat to England.

From the perspective of the common Englishman, Henry VIII was a very good king indeed.

Answer 4

In my estimation , he was a good king, a bit of a womaniser but certainly not a wimp, when England went to war in his day Henry was out there at the head of his troops, not sat at home all safe and warm, like the two wimps " Blair & Bush."

Answer 5

Henry viii was highly intelligent, sporty and only became king when his brother arthur died. he is much maligned for having so many wives but to be fair, he was just desperate to produce a son and heir which back then was vitally important, it was this that lead to him parting from rome who would not grant him a divorce.

Answer 6

Yes. People should not confuse being a bad Husband with Being a bad King. Ironically it was being such a good king that mad him such a bad husband. His marital affairs were conducted with politics in the backgroung and if push came to shove he always put the good of the country before the good of his wives.

Answer 7

It seems that Henry the VIII should have been tried for murder and found guilty! I would sat integrity is key to a leader and he had very little integrity.

Answer 8

Subjective, as many other people said. Also consider the fact that his legacy, even during his lifetime, consurned his treatment of his wives more than anything else. Also, a lot of the good that he left behind was ruined by his young son's regents and Queen Mary. Elizabeth took a lot of her good policys from his book, so I guess he lived on and did good in that way.

Answer 9

depends on who you are. i dont think he was anything amazing, but he was not anywhere near the worst. he did some good things, married, spent a lot of money, got married,did some not so bright things, married, spent even more money, got married did some other things that are debatable on whether or not they were good, got married, spent money, got married....see a pattern?
i personally think he was an asshole, but hey.

Answer 10

Ah, the Tudor thug.
Seen as a hero by oafish little englanders.
He was a vile human being only interested in himself and his childish pleasures.
Bit like the little englanders.