In these 24 historically rich lectures, meet England's most famous monarch, who provokes questions such as: What is greatness? How should we judge character? Who or what can be said to "make" or cause history?
As you plunge into the story of Henry VIII and the age he created, you'll encounter an interpretation of British history often different from the traditional approach, thanks to Professor Hoak's pursuit of the latest scholarly research. From Henry VIII's vast possessions to his role as a history-defining figure, you'll examine thought-provoking issues in a way that arises naturally out of the story Professor Hoak tells from primary historical sources. What made each of Henry VIII's s six wives so remarkable? How historically accurate are the impressions of Henry VIII that we take away from plays and films and Holbein portraits? How did he claim "imperial" kingship and then bring most of the English-speaking world into the Protestant camp during the early decades of the Reformation? What did Henry VIII do with the fabulous wealth he gained from his seizure and dissolution of England's monasteries? What it would have been like to visit Henry VIII? The monarch who emerges from these lectures, as you'll discover, is a man of both great charm and terrifying, self-pitying ferocity. Which characteristic predominates is for you to decide.
