Henry VIII and the politics of magnificence

Learning outcomes:

1. to consider the development of Henry VIII’s reign through art and architecture
2. to assess how Henry VIII made use of art and architecture to reinvent Tudor kingship

Session titles:

1. Henry Tudor, Virtuous Prince 

This session will examine the fragility of the Tudor dynasty and Henry VIII’s own unlikely path to the English throne. It will focus on art and sculpture to demonstrate the nature of Henry’s upbringing and the dramatic circumstances that led to his coronation in 1509.

2. A Golden Age

This session will look at the early years of Henry’s reign, when the young king dazzled Europe with his glamour and intellect. We will focus on Henry’s attitude towards kingship and consider his involvement with the Field of Cloth of Gold (500 years ago this year).

3. The King’s Great Matter  

This session will examine how and why Henry VIII caused a schism by breaking with the Roman Catholic Church. We will consider how the king used art to provide an explanation of the new religious reality to his uneasy and confused subjects.

4. Reinventing the Monarchy

This session will examine how Henry VIII used art and architecture to demonstrate his reinvention of Tudor monarchy. It will consider how the king viewed the Royal Supremacy as the bedrock of his dynasty’s future.  The role of Hans Holbein as the King’s Painter will be explored.

5. Securing the Succession

The final session will consider how Henry wanted to be viewed by posterity and what he intended for the future of the Tudor dynasty. It will look in particular at Henry’s two big projects of the 1540s: war and architecture. It will conclude by considering how far Henry VIII achieved his aims.

All course content will be delivered online via the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). You will be taught largely through a series of pre-recorded talks (which may be audio and/or video), designed to help you address different aspects of the main topic. You will normally have access to a range of useful resources and suggested activities.

There will also be an element of interactive work, and the opportunity for you to engage in written form with other course participants and discuss questions set by the Course Director via the Course Forum. The Course Director will generally respond to a selection of key questions and comments on a daily basis.

Some courses may also have elements of optional live discussions via Zoom.

There are no pre-requisites for courses, unless specified, and all are open to adult learners over 18 years old. Courses are taught at approximately first-year undergraduate level.

Content will be made available on each day of the course, Monday to Friday, from 8.00am BST. Course content will normally amount to c 1.5hrs per day across the 5 days, comprising of material delivered by the Course Director and activities/reading set, which would include discussions via the course forum. You may also need to complete reading or other preparation suggested in advance of the course.

We therefore suggest that you set aside approximately 1.5 hours of study per day to complete each day’s content and activities. However, this does not need to be done in one sitting, and you have the flexibility to access content when and where you want, and to go back and review it as often as you wish. Each course runs for one week and content will remain available to access on the VLE for 2 weeks after the course has finished.

A Certificate of Participation for the course(s) will be sent electronically, upon request via email, after the end of the Summer Festival. Details will be provided on the VLE.