Henry VIII. ascended the throne, when he was about 18 years of age, with every advantage that a young prince could possess, and with the fairest prospects of a happy reign. Uniting in his person the claims of the houses of Lancaster and of York, his title was indisputed, and all factions were extinguished. Beautiful in his form, expert in every manly exercise, accomplished in ah the. literature of the times, and even an adept in school divi nity, he was regarded by his people with indulgent affec tion and high expectation. At peace with all Europe, and in possession of a well-stored public treasury, he found his subjects advancing in commerce and the arts, and was himself fuinished with the means of contributing to their power and prosperity. His first measures were dictate d by the wisest policy, and were at the same time well suited to increase his popularity. Ile chose as his ministers, men of eminent abilities and experience ; con firmed, by proclamation, the general pardon granted by the late king ; and renewed the treaties of peace which his father had concluded with Scotland, France, and Spain. But, destitute of wisdom to improve his advantages, and of virtue to prosecute the welfare of his subjects, he be came negligent of public affairs; and abandoning himself to idle dissipation, entrusted the government of the state to the hands of his ministers. Even in gratifying the wishes of the nation, he shewed himself more oppressive than just. Empson and Dudley, the instruments of the late king's rapacity, were brought to trial ; hut, as they could not be impeached for having merely put the laws in execution in obedience to the will of their sovereign, and as they had cautiously preserved the royal orders for all their proceedings, they were charged with a treason able design to seize the administiation of the govern ment upon the decease of their late master, and, by the weight of popular prejudice and of court influence, with out either probability or proof, were condemned and exe cuted.
One of the first and most important matters, which engaged the attention of the council, was the marriage of the king to his brother's widow, Catherine, the Infanta of Spain, to whom he had formerly been contracted, and a dispensation for the union obtained from the Pope. Though Henry himself was averse to the match, and it was opposed by Warharn, archbishop of Canterbury, as an incestuous alliance, yet the majority of the council, for political reasons, recommended the completion of the contract. The royal nuptials were solemnized at Green wich, June 7, 1509, and the ceremony of the coronation was soon afterwards performed with the most extraordi nary pomp and magnificence. Engaged in a succession of expensive amusements, the young king seemed to think nimself horn for no other object, than to dissipate the treasures which his father had amassed ; but not con tented with his own private extravagance, he proceeded to involve his people in the heavier burdens of an un meaning and unnecessary war. Seduced by the artifices of Pope Julius II. and or Ferdinand king of Spain, he entered into a league with them against Louis XII. of France. He was flattered with the idea of being the pro tector of the church, and of receiving the title of " The Most Christian King," which the pope had promised to transfer from the French to the English monarch. He
was so far blinded by Vanity and ambition, as even to announce an intention of conquering France, and annex ing it to the English crown. The parliament and the nation entered with sufficient alacrity into his views, and granted the most liberal supplies for prosecuting the war. In 1513. having appointed the queen regent of the king dom, Henry landed at Calais with a powerful army ; and after an easy victory over the French, a few useless sieges, and an expensive display of his magnificence at Tournay, he returned to England, with sufficient honour to his troops, but with no advantage to his kingdom, His un provoked attack upon the Ft ench king had involved him in a war also with James IV. of Scotland : and, though his arms were here attended with greater military suc cess, by the fall of the Scottish king, with the flower of his nobility, in the memorable battle of Flouden-ficid ; yet little political benefit accrued to his subjects to compen sate the death of his sister's husband, who might have proved one of his most faithful allies. Discovering. however, the selfish views of his confederates, who were severally negotiating secret treaties with the French king, lie readily listened to the overtures of Louis, with whom he not only concluded a peace, hut also formed a family alliance, by giving him in marriage his youngest sister, the Princess Mary.
Henry, now left at liberty to indulge his love of ex pensive pleasures, soon exhausted all the treasures which he had inherited from his father, or obtained from his parliament; and lie had found a minister ready to gratify his most extravagant demands, and to execute his most tyrannical measures. Thomas \Volsey, (the son of a private gentleman, or, according to others, of a butcher at Ipswich.,) who had successfully executed some public commissions in the late reign, had been introduced to Henry, by Fox, bishop of Winchester, as a proper person to assist him, in his insinuating arts, in drawing the king's favour from his rival the Earl of Surrey ; and so com pletely did he fulfil, or rather exceed the wishes of Ilk patron, that, in a few months, he supplanted all former favourites and counsellors of the king ; became the com panion of his pleasures, the repository of his secrets, his sole and absolute minister. (See WoLsEy.) At once archbishop of York, bishop of Durham, a cardinal, pope's legate, lord-chancellor of England. prime minister of state, and master of Henry's thoughts and affections, he directed the affairs of England with the authority of a sovereign, and attained a degree of opulence, power, and influence in the affairs of Europe, which no BritiSh sub ject had ever possessed. Under his administration, how ever, as chancellor, justice was ably and impartially ad ministered, and the public tranquillity so well established, that the king and his minister might have ruled without either domestic disturbance or foreign alarms, had they from avaricious measures, and ambitious projects.