Henry VIII (English Monarchs Series) (Paperback)

~ J. J. Scarisbrick (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Written by a British academician, this first comprehensive life of Henry VIII to appear in sixty-five years presents a new viewpoint of the "bullock-like" monarch and his reign, based on modern thinking and present-day research. The author, presupposing a general knowledge of Henry on the part of his readers, deals in detail with the political, religious and international aspects of his reign rather than with the more lurid incidents of his personal life. The picture which emerges from this study is of a vacillating man, believing scurrilous rumors, and brutal to those he considered his enemies, but probably less bloodthirsty than history has painted him. Henry became king at the age of fifteen, on the death of his older brother Arthur. When he died, thirty-seven years later, England had endured and survived costly and futile wars with France, embroilments with Spain and Scotland, and an overwhelming political and religious revolution brought about by the split with the Papacy over his divorce from his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, and his marriage to Ann Boleyn. The fortune he amassed through carnage went to wage useless wars, but out of the turmoil England gained a sense of national unity, and on Henry's death in 1547, he was "revered and in a strange way, even loved." This scholarly, well-written and copiously documented book is essential for all libraries of Tudor history and all students of the subject; it is not for bedside tables. (Kirkus Reviews) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description

First published in 1968, Jack Scarisbrick's "Henry VIII" is a book which focuses on the personality of this flamboyant and forceful monarch, exploring an impulsive interventionist king whose impact on the government, society and religion of England is felt more than four centuries on. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 561 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press (October 1, 1972)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520011309
• ISBN-13: 978-0520011304
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #842,323 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exhaustive and exhausting, July 22, 1999

By A Customer

Prof. Scarisbrick has written the definitive biography of Henry VIII and his times, even though this book is about 30 years old. Scarisbrick brought an interesting view to the subject: as a Roman Catholic he was the first British author granted access to Vatican archives for his research on the subject. The result is a still cogent, absolutely exhaustive book on the subject. Entailing a practically week by week account of Henry VIII's reign is overwhelming but of the upmost help for students of the subject. If you are looking for a light introduction to Henry VIII, this is probably not the place. But if you want *all* the (mind-numbing) details on Henry VIII, look no further than Scarisbrick's brilliant work.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Solidly researched and well-written, February 15, 2003

By	Schmerguls "schmerguls" (Sioux City, Ia USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

I read this book right after reading Carolly Erickson's biography of Henry VIII, and on balance this book is better and easier to read. I love that Scarisbrick has modernized the spelling and punctuation of the original documents he quotes. I think the picture of Henry presented is well-balanced, and does not minimize the faults of the subject of the biography. The careful examination of the question of the validity of the marriage of Henry and Catherine of Aragon is the best I have ever read, and partisans on either side of that question will see that there is indeed another side to the view they favor. The examination of the religious views of Henry is detailed and enlightening. I have always had a negative view of Henry VIII and I still have after reading this book, but the book was instructive and enlightening. The footnotes are where they belong (at the bottom of each page) and the bibliography is detailed though of course a bit dated in the 1968 edition I read. After you read this book you will know that you have read a really good biography of this important figure in world history.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A uniquely valuable work, August 19, 2008

By	Elizabeth A. Root (Laurel, MD USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Anyone wanting to seriously study Henry VIII will need to read this book. I think that it takes a number of books to get an idea of "Great Harry's" life, but this has unique information. I believe that Scarisbrick was the first historian permitted to use the Vatican archives to research Henry's annulment/divorce. Scarisbrick, for example, analyzes the divorce/annulment of Henry and Catharine of Aragon in careful details, and comes to a somewhat surprising conclusion. Also very carefully examined are the course of the Henrician church, and Henry's ever-shifting foreign policy.

I have one small comment. Scarisbrick expresses surprise that Henry persisted in using the somewhat eccentric argument from Leviticus. I think the reason is clear: Henry wanted something that could not be resolved by dispensation. As Retha Warnicke says in The Rise and Fall of Anne Boleyn: Family Politics at the Court of Henry VIII (Canto): "[...] Cardinal [Wolsey] [...] could and did find better reasons than Henry's for ending his marriage, but his arguments (like those of other scholars) can all be characterized as legal technicalities that are by their nature subject to retroactive dispensation. In contrast, Henry's reasoning is straightforward: the pope could not dispense from Biblical law [...]." This cavil does not diminish Scarisbrick's achievement.