Reasons for the Annulment

• Male heir

  SK1 = Catherine was beyond child bearing age - 47 by the time Henry divorced her and had already had 4 miscarriages - was clear she wouldn’t be able to give Henry a son

  SK2 = Henry had even considered promoting his illegitimate son Henry Fitzroy to heir status - sent him to run the Council of the North to gain experience of government - shows his desperation

  CSK = Mary was able to be used as a negotiation tool in foreign relations - Henry had arranged potential marriages to Charles V and the French heir
• Love for Anne Boleyn

  SK1 = Henry wrote her a series of passionate love letters proving his infatuation with her - “henceforth, my heart shall be dedicated to you alone”

  SK2 = In Easter 1527 Henry tried to persuade Anne to be his mistress but she refused - wanted to be his wife. Secret arrangements for annulment began in May. July 1527 both agree to marry once annulment is complete

  CSK = Henry beheaded her after just 3 years of marriage in 1536 - love was temporal
• Religion

  SK1 = Leviticus 20:21 states that a man marrying his brother’s widow is ‘unclean’ and will make the couple barren - Henry interpreted this as having no son as some translations used male pronouns

  SK2 = The Pope had named Henry ‘Defender of the Faith’ in 1521 after he wrote an essay criticising Martin Luther - was clearly very religious and didn’t want to do anything that would upset God

  CSK = Henry had many mistresses and even had an illegitimate son, the aforementioned Henry Fitzroy - if he could have sex outside of marriage his faith clearly wasn’t that important to him