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    House of Tudor

    Henry VII became King of England, founding the Tudor dynasty, when he defeated Richard III at what final battle of the Wars of the Roses?The Tudors of England

      Bosworth Field. Henry, a Lancastrian, cemented his claim to the throne by marrying Elizabeth of York, Richard's heiress since the time Richard had (in all probability) murdered her young brothers.

    Henry VIII had a little-remembered older brother, who married Catherine of Aragon and would have become king before him, had he not been a sickly youth and died in his teenage years. What was this brother's name?The Tudors of England

      Arthur.

    Think back to the old rhyme, still used by schoolchildren to remember Henry VIII's wives: 'Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived.' Who was his fifth wife, the second to be beheaded?The Tudors of England

      Katherine Howard. She had apparently neglected to inform her husband the King that she was actually also the common-law wife of one of his courtiers. A slight matter of adultery, that she was probably actually guilty of -- unlike another of Henry's wives.

    Wife Number Five was cousin to another of Henry's wives. Which wife was #5's cousin?The Tudors of England

      Anne Boleyn . They were both beheaded. So were various of their other relatives. There was just something about that Boleyn and Howard clan . . .

    Henry VIII married Anne of Cleves (Wife Number Four) largely on the basis of a portrait Hans Holbein had painted of her. Sadly, however, Anne and Henry were not quite as impressed with each other when they met in real life. By what unflattering name did Henry reportedly refer to his bride?The Tudors of England

      Flanders mare. According to legend, Holbein's portrait left out evidence of pockmarks on Anne's face, souvenirs of a bout of smallpox. There may have been other reasons for the bridal couple's disaffection; some argue that Henry may have been frustrated with her lack of education and erudition (a duke's daughter, her upbringing had centered on needlework). Or perhaps it was Anne who disliked Henry's looks; she may have set out to be as charmless as possible. Their marriage ended, apparently unconsummated, seven months after it began. Anne lived in England for the rest of her life, supported in style by Henry.

    Henry VIII's final wife (Number Six) survived him, despite frequent arguments on religion. After Henry's death she married a courtier, Thomas Seymour (later beheaded for conspiring against King Edward VI) and died giving birth to his daughter. Who was this Dowager Queen?The Tudors of England

      Katherine Parr. There's a story that at one point Henry actually made out a death warrant for Katherine Parr, but that a sympathetic Palace guard informed her of the plan and she was able to talk her way out of it. The daughter she bore Thomas Seymour -- first child for both of them -- survived the birth, but is lost to history.

    After Henry VIII's death, his son -- still a child -- succeeded him. What was the son's name?The Tudors of England

      Edward . Edward VI was Jane Seymour (Wife Number 3)'s son.

    One of the very few lasting achievements of Henry's son's reign was a prayerbook for the Anglican Church. What was the name of this prayerbook?The Tudors of England

      Book of Common Prayer. The Psalter was a product of the Plymouth Bay Colony. The Book of Kells was an illuminated Roman Catholic manuscript, hidden for centuries in people's attics from royal soldiers who would have burned it. (Aren't religious wars a wonderful thing?) Another achievement of Edward's reign was the establishment of a number of grammar schools throughout England.

    When Henry's son died, there was a brief plot by Lord Northumberland to lock both of Henry's daughters out of the succession by placing a cousin on the throne. What was the name of this girl, who reigned for nine days and was then imprisoned and beheaded by Mary?The Tudors of England

      Lady Jane Grey. Northumberland was executed too.

    Mary I caused quite a stir not only because she was Catholic, but also because she married a man who would in a few months' time become Philip II of what nation, the on-again, off-again enemy of England?The Tudors of England

      Spain . This is the same Philip II who later sent the Great Armada against Mary's sister Elizabeth. At the time of his marriage to Mary (in 1555), he was king of Naples and of Sicily; he became king of Spain in January 1556 when his father, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, abdicated. Many thanks to deanovc, who kindly pointed out that Philip was not yet king of Spain at the time of his marriage to Mary.

    One of the most terrible failures of Mary's reign was the loss of what French city, the last English foothold in France?The Tudors of England

      Calais. Mary mourned for Calais the rest of her life.

    When Mary died, she was succeeded by her sister Elizabeth I, otherwise known as Good Queen Bess and other titles inappropriate for this family website. What Crown colony, now a U.S. state, was named for her -- or, more accurately, for an aspect of her character?The Tudors of England

      Virginia. She was the Virgin Queen - hence, Virginia.

    The closest Elizabeth I ever got to marriage was with a French duke, brother of the King and son of Catherine de'Medici, with whom she actually contracted a marriage before things fell apart. What was he duke of?The Tudors of England

      Anjou and Alencon. His name was Francois, and he died about a year after the marriage fell through. Otherwise he would have succeeded to the throne of France.

    In a stirring speech to her soldiers before the Spanish Armada was to land - and before the English had word the Armada had been defeated at sea -, Elizabeth I urged them to fight for their country to the last man. Said she, 'I know I have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a _______________...' What word finishes the quote?The Tudors of England

      king. This was before the age of female empowerment, but she did a good enough job, don't you think?

    When she died childless in 1603, Elizabeth I left her throne to James of Scotland, son of Mary, Queen of Scots. Thus, the crown of England passed from the Tudor dynasty to what other dynasty?The Tudors of England

      Stuart. The Bourbons ruled France. The Hanovers ruled England in the 18th century, and the Windsors (formerly Saxe-Coburg-Gotha) rule England now.

    Who was the mother of the first Tudor, King Henry VII?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Margaret Beaufort. Margaret Beaufort was married to Edmund Tudor, the king's half- brother and bore his son Henry shortly after he died in battle.

    Who was the wife of Henry VII?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Elizabeth of York. Henry VII swore that if he defeated Richard III and became King he would marry Richard's niece Elizabeth of York (daughter of Elizabeth Woodville)to unite the Houses of York and Tudor and end the long War of the Roses.

    Henry VIII's sister Mary was married to the King of which country?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      France. Mary Tudor was married twice. She first was forced by her brother Henry to marry the old King Louis of France, but swore the next time she married it would be to a man of her choice. Louis died 3 months after the marriage. Henry sent a group of courtiers to return his sister to England. Among them was Henry's friend Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk whom Mary married before returning to England. Although in disgrace for a time, Henry forgave them and by marriage, Mary was now only a Dutchess, she was always known as the French Queen.

    What was the name of Henry VII's eldest son and the name of that son's wife?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Arthur and Katherine. Arthur married the Spanish Princess Katherine of Aragon three months before he died. Katherine later became the first wife of Henry VIII.

    Who was the only child of Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon that survived beyond infancey?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Mary. Although Katherine had at least six known pregnancies, only one resulted in a child that lived for more than a few weeks.

    What was the name of Henry's illegitimate son by Bessie Blount?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Henry Fitzroy . Fitzroy is the traditional way of saying 'son of a king.' The title the Duke of Richmond was created for him and he had a noble marriage. He died shortly after Anne Bolyen.

    Who was the powerful churchman who was the sworn enemy of Anne Bolyen for his role in breaking up her marraige to Henry Percy (This man was also the designer and original owner of Hampton Court)?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Cardinal Wolsey . Cardinal Wolsey dominated English politics during the early part of Herny VIII's reign. The rise of Anne Bolyen spelled the fall of the Cardinal. After being sent from court in disgrace after failing to get Henry his divorce, he was arrested for treason but died before being returned to the king.

    Who was his only wife to give Henry VIII a son that survived beyond infancy?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Jane Seymour. Jane Seymour ended up trading her life for the birth of her son. She died of childbirth fever less than two weeks after giving birth to Edward.

    Which two wives of Henry VIII were executed for adultery?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard. Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard were cousins, and both were executed for adultery. They are buried side by side. Anne fell out of the King's favor after giving birth to Elizabeth and then miscarrying the son she had promised. She was wrongly accused and convicted of having affairs with five men including her brother George. She was executed by a special swordsman from France. Katherine Howard was the King's fifth wife and she was young and foolish. She was guilty of her crimes and also beheaded.

    Which wife of Henry VIII was nearly executed for heresy?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Katherine Parr. Although trained to be a priest, Henry became a king but remained a very 'religious' man. He wrote a book entitled 'In Defense of the Seven Sacred Sacrements' against Luther and the Protestants for which he was rewarded by the Pope with the title Defender of the Faith. He broke from the Catholic Church in 1533, when he was denied a divorce from Katherine of Aragon. He created himself head of the church and granted himself his divorce. He was excommunicated. Although he was a heritic in the mind of the rest of the world, he never saw it that way and continued to execute people he though guilty of heresey. Katherine Parr saved herself only by groveling.

    Who was the first Protector of the Realm during the reign of Edward Tudor?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Edward Seymour. Edward Seymour, Edward Tudor's uncle, was the first Protector of the Realm. He was followed by John Dudley. Thomas Seymour, also a brother of Jane, married Henry VIII's widow Katherine Parr the Dowager Queen. Both Thomas and Edward were executed during Edward Tudor's reign.

    To whom was Elizabeth referring when she said, 'Today dies a man of much wit and very little judgment'?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Thomas Seymour. Thomas Seymour had flirted a great deal with Elizabeth when they were both living in the house of the Dowager Queen. When the Queen died in childbirth, Thomas tried to marry Elizabeth without the approval of the Privy Council. This led to his death on the block.

    Who was Queen of England for just nine short days?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Jane Grey. Lady Jane Grey, The Nine Days Queen, was forced against her will to marry Gilford Dudley the son of John Duke of Northumberland and to become Queen of England. Mary raised an army to gain the throne she deserved and Jane, Gilford, and John were thrown in the Tower. All were later executed.

    What religion was Mary Tudor?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Catholic . Mary, like her mother Katherine of Aragon, was a devout Catholic. This caused many problems between Mary and her half-sister Elizabeth, who was a Protestant like her mother Anne Boleyn and her converted father Henry VIII.

    What nickname did Mary Tudor receive?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Bloody Mary. Mary was a fanatical Catholic and had over 350 Protestants burned at the stake during her five-year reign.

    Mary Tudor married Prince Phillip. What country was Phillip from?The Tudor Monarchs of England

      Spain. Mary married Phillip of Spain who was the Great Nephew of her mother Katherine of Aragon. Phillip like his wife was a fanatical Catholic. The English people hated Phillip.

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