Fan Casting King Henry VIII in A Tudor Tale: Henry VIII

Henry is best known for his six marriages, and his efforts to have his first marriage annulled. His disagreement with Pope Clement VII about such an annulment led Henry to separate the Church of England from papal authority. He appointed himself Supreme Head of the Church of England and dissolved convents and monasteries, for which he was excommunicated by the pope. He frequently used charges of treason and heresy to quell dissent, and those accused were often executed without a formal trial by means of bills of attainder. 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.