Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-08-23

was at this time very beautiful, in the Spanish
style. TALL and of stately person, with profusion
of magnificent black hair. Henry was much pleased
with her
IF had to choose again." he said on one occa-
sion, Il should take her"
For eighteen years in fact. he appears to have
been fairly content with his wife. and to have had
no serious thought of divorcng her. During this
time he had a succession of mistresses: but had
met whom he wished to make his wife.
About 1877 however. the King began to think
all but Mary, sickly child had died in infancy.
With the exception of Matilda's stormy reign some
centuries before, there was no precedent for a
woman's occupying the English throne. and the
lack of and heir gave rise to serious apprehen-
sons But doubtless a stronger motive with the
King lay in the fact that he had conceived violent
passion for young maid of honor named Anne
Boleyn sister of one of his former mistresses.
Anne a wide awake young woman. with an eye
to the main chance From mercenary motives.
rather than from any feelings of virtue. she reso-
lutely refused to become the King mistress After
a time Henry realized that if he expected to prevail
this wful beauty he must make her his wife
Il believe said he, piouSly crossing himself.
that great sin committed when married
my brothers widow. 1 will ask the Pope for
divorce"
The Pope found himself in unpleasant predica-
ment Catharne's nephew the powerful Charles
V. If the Pope refused the divorce, Henry would
be he M ahe ope pe
tinated. In few years. he reasoned. Henry might
die, or Catharine might die. or Anne might die or
a number of contingencies that would relieve the
situation might occur For five years the Pope
managed to postpone decision. much to the dis
gust of the impatient Henry Growing desperate
at last and having obtained from some of the Euro
pean universities opinions to the effect that the
Pope not competent to grant permission tor
man to marry his brother widow; the King, on
January 2s 1898, cut the Gordian knot by
privately marrying Anne. Shortly afterward the
complaisant Archbishop of Canterbury, although
under the rules of the church he had no jurisdiction
declared that the With Cathar1ne was
illegal and void
Up to the time the divorce question arose Henry
had been in form good Catholic. He had had no
sympathy with Luther and the Protestants. and had
written against them dull book entitled de Septe,f
Sacramento" work which had so pleased the Pope
that he had conferred upon him the title of De
fender of the Faith "a title curiOuSly enough still
borne by English rulers But the Pope's unwilling
ness to grant the divorce proved too much for Henrys
religious loyalty He initiated series of acts that
tore England from the tiara. and in place of the
Pope the pious and godly Henry made himself head
of the church.
This change was the direct outgrowth of Henry's
nfatuaton for Anne. Doubtless England would
in time have become Protestant anyway; but it is
safe to say that the change would not have come
under Henry, and that when it did come its course
would have been very different. Still another re-
suit was the birth of Elizabeth one of England 5
greatest rulers The marriage also brought death
to Anne herself; for Henry was sorely disappointed
because she did not present him with son, and be-
sides his passion for her proved short as 1t had
been violent and sinful In $50 she was accused OF
the most odious crimes, and was condemned and
beheaded few days later Henry married Jane
Seymour, the third of his six wives two OF whom he
beheaded and two divorced.
The Greatest Love Affair of All
NUMEROUS instances might be cited to prove
~ the decisive influence that love affairs have
had in determining the Of world history:
but the author need cite only one other. He is
to stiAe all desire for protest What he asks would
the history of mankind have been if Adam and