So I know it's not considered historically accurate overall (Henry was an older fatass in real life, had 2 sisters rather than 1, the costumes were not correct, etc.), but from what I gather, it was accurate on the fate of famous people. That if the show portrayed somebody getting beheaded, that person really did get beheaded.

If correct, then that means the life expectancy of somebody in Henry's court was pretty damned low. My question is this: was that typical for English monarchies? Or was his especially violent in that aspect? It was almost like watching the Sopranos. I know it was unusual that he went through wives like I change oil, but I'm wondering about the rest of the people around him. Was that normal?

Good show but it does take a lot of liberties and no not everyone died the way portrayed, a big example is Wollsey, who died in his bed of illness and did not commit suicide in the Tower.

What the show does well is what you allude to-- the uncertainty and unease anyone had living with or near Henry. He was both cruel and loving in one person and his mood could turn on a dime. He was more cruel than the average monarch of his time but he was also quite loyal and generous, definitely an enigma.

His jousting accident was probably an early case of CTE like some of the football guys get today and it definitely had something to do with his mood change in later life (just before he axed Anne).

A case could be made that he was no worse in the execution department than his daughters Mary and Elizabeth.

BQ78 said:

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Good show but it does take a lot of liberties and no not everyone died the way portrayed, a big example is Wollsey, who died in his bed of illness and did not commit suicide in the Tower.

What the show does well is what you allude to-- the uncertainty and unease anyone had living with or near Henry. He was both cruel and loving in one person and his mood could turn on a dime. He was more cruel than the average monarch of his time but he was also quite loyal and generous, definitely an enigma.

His jousting accident was probably an early case of CTE like some of the football guys get today and it definitely had something to do with his mood change in later life (just before he axed Anne).

A case could be made that he was no worse in the execution department than his daughters Mary and Elizabeth.

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I found this:

List of people executed by the Tudors

That only consists of "prominent people". Based on that Henry 8 "wins" big.

I know Mary earned the "bloody Mary" nickname. So maybe she killed a lot more commoners. But if the show is correct, Henry put down that rebellion with a lot of violence, so maybe he wins that too.

They only way that they could remain Kings and Queens was to strike real and perceived threats before the threats got them. This was specially true with the English crown because of the different families that had either real or contrived claims to the crown. (Example...Buckingham) . It was simply business as usual. Henry just didn't like "loose ends" when it came to his wives....

I found that I am a descendant of Henry VIII, fortunately far enough away that I don't need to worry about being beheaded.

Make Tudor Dynasty Great Again

Henry won the long game, Mary and her younger brother just had short, violent reigns that Elizabeth tried to remind people of regularly. You have to remember that the tudors became propaganda experts, and she, especially, tried to make sister and brother look like bloody buffoons that had been repressive and evil religious extremists. Ironically, the smearing of Richard the 3rd as twisted was believe to be propaganda for so long, and has turned out to be more accurate than believed!

While the costuming took liberties at times, if they would have just put chemises on the women, they would have been much better. They got close, but the boobs hanging out are a huge nono. Tudor women also tended to be at minimum a bit curvy, and the head pieces where definitely underused as well.

The thing that pisses me off from someone who does medieval reenactment (not well) in that time period(my harness is german landsknecht, my court dress is early Elizabethan english based on a portrait of her), is the damned armour. Henry was exceptionally famous for the magnificent armour's made in the Greenwich Armoury. Some of the finest armours of the period had been produced for him..... So they couldn't go to mac or one of the really good European armourers and have one &$&^@^#&# nice armour made that he could have worn through all the jousts, but have 48700980790 dresses made for anne that cost almost as much as a bloody harness...? Sorry, loved the series, but that just pisses me off!