Henry made great use of heraldry, certainly the most political use as he changed wives, religions and political sides.
HM King Henry VIII
Henry was only two years old when granted the title of Duke of York, traditionally that of the second son, and not yet 5 when he was made Knight of the Garter. Henry's Coat of Arms shows his father’s Arms differenced by the then traditional Label for the second son of a sovereign, namely three Points ermine. Arthur, Prince of Wales, married Catherine of Aragon, daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain, in 1501 at the age of 15; although the marriage had been arranged a long time. The couple went Ludlow Castle in Shropshire, near the Welsh border but Arthur died there of an unknown ailment after six months and Catherine later firmly stated that the marriage had not been consummated. Henry VII dragged his heels over Catherine and her father made her an ambassador so she could remain in England. The younger Henry, now Prince of Wales, refused to marry her, but changed his mind shortly after his father's death and his own accession to the Throne |
Thus, Henry VIII's Supporters started off as the red Welsh Dragon - representing the Tudor Dynasty - and the white Greyhound, said either to come from the House of York through his mother, the House of Richmond through his grandfather or the House of Beaufort through his grandmother. Either way, this showed the Plantagenet descent of the King and the continuity of the royal lineage.
Sometime halfway through his reign, Henry dropped the Greyhound, swapped the red Dragon over to replace it, and introduced the gold, crowned Lion as the main 'English' Supporter. This would seem to illustrate the transition from Gothic Medieval to Renaissance style but may also have been compensation for no longer being the tall, strong, handsome 'most learned prince in Christendom'. The Motto remained Dieu et Mon Droit - 'God and My Right'.
Henry is best known for his six marriages in pursuit of a male heir to secure the dynasty, especially after he came to the Throne in 1509. It all started with his efforts to have his marriage to Catherine of Aragon annulled because she had ‘only’ born him a daughter who would go one to be Queen Mary I. His disagreement with Pope Clement VII on the question of such an annulment led Henry to initiate the English Reformation, separating the Church of England from papal authority. He appointed himself the Supreme Head of the Church of England and dissolved convents and monasteries, for which he was excommunicated. We will look at his six wives in more detail later on.
Domestically, Henry is known for his radical changes to the English Constitution, ushering in the theory of the divine right of kings and expanding royal power. He frequently used charges of treason and heresy to quell dissent, and those accused (even two of his wives) were often. He achieved many of his political aims through the work of his chief ministers, some of whom were banished or executed when they fell out of his favour. Thomas Wolsey, Thomas More, Thomas Cromwell, Richard Rich, and Thomas Cranmer all figured prominently in his administration.
Henry was an extravagant spender, using the proceeds from the dissolution of the monasteries and acts of the Reformation Parliament. He also converted the money that was formerly paid to Rome into royal revenue. Despite the money from these sources, he was continually on the verge of financial ruin due to his personal extravagance, as well as his numerous costly and largely unsuccessful wars. At home, he oversaw the legal union of England and Wales, and was the first English monarch to rule as King of Ireland. Henry invested heavily in the navy, increasing its size to more than 50 ships, and established the Navy Board.
Henry cultivated the image of a Renaissance man especially in the early years of his reign. He was an author and composer. His most famous composition is "Pastime with Good Company" ("The Kynges Ballade"), and he is reputed to have written "Greensleeves". An accident whilst jousting probably started off his ill-health and, as he aged, he became severely overweight. He is frequently characterised in his later life as a lustful, egotistical, harsh and insecure king.
His sixth and final wife, Catherine Parr, helped to reconcile Henry with his surviving children to the extent that he bequeathed succession to the Throne to each in turn unless any had children of their own who would intervene, which, of course, they did not.
Henry VIII made great use of Badges. Most of them he inherited from his father and are therefore heavily associated in reinforcing the authority of the Tudor Dynasty. These would include the Tudor Rose and the Portcullis. Others, such as the red Dragon and the white Greyhound, would seem, as badges, to confuse the borderline between Badges and Supporters.
Whilst it would appear that Henry did not share Badges with his subsequent wives, he did share two with his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. This would seem to confirm his initial good relationship with her, reinforced by her acting as regent whilst he was away at battle, etc.
Both Badges, as shown above, represent the Tudor Rose dimidiated (in other words, joined together with, half and half) with a Spanish symbol. The first is a Pomegranate which represents Granada and the other is a sheaf of Arrows on a green and blue background representing Catherine's father, Ferdinand of Aragon. (The Spanish for Arrows is Flechas which shares the same first letter as Ferdinand. Catherine's mother Isabella's badge was the Yoke which is Yugo in Spanish. This isn't as silly as it looks as Catherine's mother's name was spelt Ysabel.)
Both badges were used by Henry's elder daughter, Queen Mary I, just as Queen Elizabeth I used Anne Boleyn's Badges. Both, presumably, to reinforce their mothers' and their own legitimacy.
King's Beasts
- Lion of England - Shield with the Impaled Arms of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour
- Seymour Lion - Shield with the Phoenix and Castle Badge of Jane Seymour
- ‘Royal’ Dragon - Shield with the Royal Coat of Arms (Quarterly France (Modern) and England
- Black Bull of Clarence - Shield with a Tudor Rose
- Yale of Beaufort - Shield with Jane Seymour's Quarter of Augmentation
- White Lion of Mortimer - Unidentified Shield
- White Greyhound of Richmond - Shield with the Coat of Arms of England
- Tudor Dragon - Shield with the Portcullis Badge of Beaufort
- Seymour Panther - Shield with the Seymour Coat of Arms
- Seymour Unicorn - Shield with Jane Seymour's Coat of Arms (six Quarters)
Other Beasts have been added to the newly-created Tudor Garden at Hampton Court to commemorate the 500th anniversary of King Henry VIII’s accession to the throne in 1509. Designed by landscape architect Todd Longstaffe-Gowan, it fills the hitherto empty Chapel Court. Designs for the Garden are based on paintings of the time, especially painting hanging in the Palace that is known as The Family of Henry VIII, sometimes referred to as the Dynastic Portrait, which was featured in the Blog about Henry's children.
The Beasts are brightly painted and gilded. They each stand on a tall pedestal striped in the Tudor livery colours of green and white and each grasps a small banner on a tall pole with a badge painted on it.
Henry certainly left his mark, both on English/British heraldry for years to come and also physically on buildings, etc.