1 "In Cold Blood"
Henry's uncle, Ambassador to Italy, is assassinated by the French
and Henry seizes upon this event to plan a war with France to
establish his immortal reputation and seize back the title of King
of France. More interested in his own ambitions, the Lord Chancellor,
Cardinal Wolsey, manipulates the young king to propose a "Treaty of
Universal Peace" with France instead. Thomas More, Henry's teacher
and a humanist, is in favour of the treaty which further convinces
a reluctant Henry to abandon his war plans. A summit is to take place
in France, and . against Katherine's express wishes . their daughter
Mary is to be betrothed to the Dauphin of France, also still a child.
Meanwhile, Henry has a rival to the throne in the Duke of Buckingham,
a blood relative to earlier Kings. Buckingham plots to murder Henry
and thus grab the throne for himself, letting Thomas Boleyn and the
Duke of Norfolk in on his plan. Boleyn's beautiful daughters Mary and
Anne prepare to meet King Henry; meanwhile, Henry discovers that Lady
Elizabeth Blount, his mistress and one of the Queen's ladies-in-
waiting, is pregnant with his child.
2 "Simply Henry"
With Thomas More's encouragement, King Henry prepares to meet King
Francis of France and sign Cardinal Wolsey's peace treaty. Henry had
promised the hand of his daughter, Princess Mary, to the Dauphin of
France, which caused strife between Henry and his queen, Katherine
of Aragon. In France, Thomas Boleyn maneuvers his elder daughter
Mary into Henry's bed in an effort to secure favor for the family.
The Duke of Buckingham plots against the King, claiming a better
right to the throne than Henry Tudor; but his purpose is betrayed
by Thomas Boleyn. Katherine of Aragon continues to pray for Henry
to give her a live, healthy son, but Henry wrestles with the theo-
logical problem of having married his brother's wife, and questions
whether his lack of sons could be God's punishment. There is much
celebration as Lady Elizabeth Blount gives birth to Henry's illegiti-
mate son, to Katherine's pain.
3 "Wolsey, Wolsey, Wolsey!"
As Cardinal Wolsey has lost his chance to be Pope with King Henry's
decision to go to war against France, a new accord with Spain and
Queen Katherine's nephew Charles, Holy Roman Emperor, offers him
fresh hope. Thomas More is knighted by Henry, and charged with
destroying any copies of the Lutheran "heresy" he can seize,
obviously paining More (although he, too, considers it heretical).
Princess Mary's engagement to the Dauphin of France is broken off
in favour of a marriage to Charles of Spain; and Henry's elder
sister, Princess Margaret, is to marry the King of Portugal.
Charles Brandon, Henry's friend, is made Duke of Suffolk in order
to be able to escort her to Portugal.
4 "His Majesty, The King"
As a reward for his denunciation of Martin Luther in his book,
the Defence of the Seven Sacraments, the Pope christens Henry
"Defender of the Faith", but a brush with death causes the King
to seek a solution to his lack of an heir. Princess Margaret
reluctantly marries the decrepit King of Portugal, but the union
is short-lived; Henry's desire for Anne Boleyn intensifies.
5 "Arise, My Lord"
King Henry is stunned by a reversal in his alliance with Emperor
Charles and forced to look elsewhere for European support, while
Anne Boleyn refuses his offer of mistress status, inflaming his
desire to marry her. Katherine of Aragon's alliance with Charles
and her hatred for Cardinal Wolsey intensify.
6 "True Love"
As King Henry gains in confidence, his displeasure with the way
the Catholic church handles his request for an annulment of his
marriage to Katherine of Aragon grows. As a result, Cardinal
Wolsey's position is weakening, leaving him vulnerable to his
enemies.
7 "Message to the Emperor"
William Compton dies of the "sweating sickness" at Compton
Wynates, his house in Warwickshire. As King Henry VIII receives
positive news of his war against Emperor Charles, the sickness
spreads wildly. Henry flees the palace and London, and starts
having doubts about the future and his ability to rule the country.
Both Anne Boleyn and Cardinal Wolsey are stricken with the disease.
8 "Truth and Justice"
The Pope's legate Cardinal Campeggio arrives to hear the case for
King Henry VIII's divorce from Katherine of Aragon. Cardinal Wolsey
intimidates Campeggio: "Let me make certain things plain to you. If
you do not grant the King his divorce, papal authority in England
will be annihilated!" Wolsey has assured Henry that the divorce will
be granted, but the Pope and Campeggio are not so easily swayed.
A desperate Wolsey begs Queen Katherine to abdicate the marriage,
but she ultimately refuses. Wolsey's enemies circle; Anne Boleyn
plants more doubt in Henry's mind about Wolsey, who soon threatens
Campeggio both physically and politically. A Legatine Court convenes
at Blackfriar's Church, and both Henry and Katherine plead their
cases.
9 "Look to God First"
The legatine trial on the legitimacy of King Henry's marriage to
Katherine continues despite the queen's refusal to attend, but the
papal envoy receives notice to return to Rome and place the evidence
to the judgement of the Curia. The king engages in frantic diplomacy
with the French king, but he aligns with the Holy Roman Emperor
instead. The pope procrastinates and Henry, goaded by the conspir-
ators Thomas Boleyn, the Duke of Norfolk and Charles Brandon, strips
Wolsey of his temporal power and properties, bans him from court and
instructs him to resume his now sole role as Archbishop of York.
Thomas More reluctantly succeeds Wolsey as Chancellor of the realm
and Princess Margaret falls ill with tuberculosis and dies. Anne
Boleyn subtly and opportunely asks the king to reacquaint himself
with the subject of Lutheranism.
10 "The Death of Wolsey"
Wolsey, now acting solely as the Archbishop of York and living in
relative poverty, is repudiated by Anne Boleyn and writes to Queen
Katherine instead, trying to gain her support. Thomas More uses
his new powers as Chancellor and starts actively persecuting
prominent Lutherans. King Henry finds his new Privy Counsellors
less proficient than Wolsey was in running the country. He also
starts finding elements much to his liking in the teachings of
Luther, and dispatches Thomas Cromwell to various faculties of
theology, hopefully to obtain favourable opinions regarding his
intended divorce. Wolsey's secret communication with the Queen is
uncovered and he is arrested and charged with high treason; his
fall from grace complete, Wolsey laments his decadent lifestyle
and commits suicide en route to London. Anne Boleyn engages Henry
in a sexual encounter, but forces him to perform coitus interruptus
after which a furious Henry storms off.
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