How to read the King Henry VIII family tree
Read the King Henry VIII family tree from the top down, one generation to a row. Henry is the index person, drawn with a double frame. His wives stand in the order he married them, and the farther a wife stands from him, the lower the line of the marriage runs.
The Tudor family tree follows the dynasty over four generations, with the laws that settled the crown. This chart stays with Henry, so every child born to him has a place.
Two strokes across a line
A marriage declared void, as three of the six were.
A dashed line
The relationship with Elizabeth Blount, mother of Henry FitzRoy.
A line down from a couple
A child of that marriage. A crossed circle marks the stillbirth of 1510 and a dot the miscarriage of 1536.
A silhouette
No likeness survives of Elizabeth Blount or the son of 1511.
Henry’s parents, brother and sisters
Henry VII married Elizabeth of York, the eldest daughter of Edward IV, in 1486, uniting the houses of York and Lancaster.2 Four of their children stand in the second row of the King Henry VIII family tree.
Henry was born at Greenwich Palace on 28 June 1491, the second son.3 His elder brother Arthur married Catherine of Aragon, a daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain.5 A few months later both fell ill at Ludlow. Catherine recovered, and Arthur died in 1502, aged fifteen.10 His death made Henry the heir.1
His elder sister Margaret married James IV of Scotland, and Mary, Queen of Scots, descends from that marriage.2 His younger sister Mary married Louis XII of France in October 1514. Louis died less than three months later, and in March 1515 she married Charles Brandon in secret.13
The six wives on the King Henry VIII family tree
Henry succeeded his father in April 1509 and married his brother’s widow on 11 June. They were crowned together on 24 June.3 In May 1533 Archbishop Cranmer declared the marriage invalid, and her marriage to Arthur was the ground Henry gave.15
The sources do not agree on when Henry married Anne Boleyn. Hever Castle places a secret wedding at the end of 1532, and Royal Museums Greenwich in early 1533.75 She was crowned on 1 June 1533 and beheaded on Tower Green on 19 May 1536.37 Eleven days later Henry married Jane Seymour. She gave birth to Edward in October 1537 and died twelve days later.71
Anne of Cleves married Henry at Greenwich on 6 January 1540. The marriage was annulled in July, so she was never crowned.4 By 28 July 1540 Henry had married Catherine Howard at Oatlands Palace. A love letter she wrote to Thomas Culpeper was found, and she was beheaded in February 1542, aged eighteen or nineteen.9 Catherine Parr married Henry in July 1543 and outlived him.5 She then married Thomas Seymour and died at Sudeley Castle in September 1548, days after the birth of a daughter.11
| Wife | Married | How it ended | Children with Henry |
|---|---|---|---|
| Catherine of Aragon | 11 June 1509, Greenwich | Declared invalid by Cranmer, May 1533 | Mary I, the son of 1511 and a stillborn daughter |
| Anne Boleyn | Late 1532 or early 1533 | Annulled, then her execution, May 1536 | Elizabeth I and a son lost in 1536 |
| Jane Seymour | May 1536 | Her death, October 1537 | Edward VI |
| Anne of Cleves | 6 January 1540, Greenwich | Annulled, July 1540 | None |
| Catherine Howard | By 28 July 1540, Oatlands | Her execution, February 1542 | None |
| Catherine Parr | July 1543 | His death, January 1547 | None |
The rhyme for the six wives runs divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived. The two divorces were in fact annulments, and the King Henry VIII family tree draws them so.5
Every child on the King Henry VIII family tree
Catherine of Aragon gave birth to a stillborn daughter on 31 January 1510.12 Their son Henry, Duke of Cornwall, was born at Richmond on 1 January 1511 and died on 22 February at 52 days old.12 He is buried in Westminster Abbey, as are the three children of Henry who reigned.3 Royal Museums Greenwich counts three sons and a daughter of Catherine who did not survive infancy.6
Mary was born on 18 February 1516, the only child of Catherine who lived. Elizabeth, the daughter of Anne Boleyn, was born on 7 September 1533, and Edward, the son of Jane Seymour, on 12 October 1537.6 The three wives Henry married after 1537 had no children with him.5
Edward VIKing from 1547.
Mary IQueen from 1553.
Elizabeth IQueen from 1558.
Elizabeth Blount, Henry FitzRoy and Mary Boleyn
Elizabeth Blount was a lady-in-waiting to Catherine of Aragon. Her son Henry FitzRoy was born in secret on 15 June 1519. Henry acknowledged him, and he is the only son born outside marriage whom the king recognised. FitzRoy died on 23 July 1536, aged seventeen, of what was called consumption.6
Mary Boleyn, the elder sister of Anne, is not drawn. Hever Castle states that nobody knows when her affair with Henry began or how long it lasted. She married William Carey, and some historians believe that one or both of her children, Catherine and Henry Carey, were fathered by Henry, a view that is heavily disputed.8 Royal Museums Greenwich lists the two Careys among six people once said to be his children, none of them ever confirmed.6 The King Henry VIII family tree draws only the children the sources accept.
From Henry VIII to his three heirs
Henry died in London on 28 January 1547, and his son Edward became king.1 He was buried in St George’s Chapel at Windsor on 16 February, beside Jane Seymour, as he had asked.3 Mary reigned after Edward and Elizabeth after Mary.6 The Tudor family tree sets out that succession and the claim of Lady Jane Grey.
The line of Margaret Tudor outlasted the children of Henry VIII and gave England its next king, James VI and I.2
Questions about the King Henry VIII family tree
How many children Henry VIII had
Four lived beyond infancy, Mary I, Elizabeth I, Edward VI and Henry FitzRoy. The chart also draws the son of 1511 and two lost pregnancies.
Which wives of Henry VIII were executed
Anne Boleyn in May 1536 and Catherine Howard in February 1542.
People and sources
A page of its own lists all 18 people on the chart, each with a short note and the sources for it, and the 13 numbered sources this article cites. It also gives the credits of the portraits and this page as a reference in the APA, MLA, Chicago and Harvard styles, ready to copy.