Henry VIII focuses on the fluctuating, often fraught relationships between the king and his court, his Church and his people--and with the other powers of continental Europe, relations with whom were thrown into turmoil by Henry"s successive marriages. It explores Henry"s policies and strategies and his manipulation of key players such as Wolsey, Cromwell, Fisher and More, as well as the shaping of his royal image of the decades of change. It also probes the intriguing nature of the man behind the monarch, especially his complex religious beliefs that changed the direction of England"s history. David Loades, an authoritative historian of Tudor England, begins by explaining how historians have treated Henry and the expectations contemporaries had of the renaissance prince who ascended the throne. He describes the England that the young king inherited and explores his rich and varied reign in detail. Henry VIII considers the king"s role in the wars, law enforcement, the succession question, the court, the rebellions and the problem of Ireland, illustrating the narrative with original National Archives documents and full color portraits of those involved. Finally Loades unravels the ambiguous but still tangible legacy that his most high-profile of monarchs has left us.