Simon Ward

In the third season premiere, Henry VIII weds a third time, to shy, demure noblewoman Jane Seymour - a union that he and his advisors pray will result in a male heir; once-loyal subjects rebel against Henry's crusade against Catholicism.

Henry is a king of passion and perseverance. Efforts at alliances – both personal and political – face setbacks, but the King remains undeterred. When his ally, Emperor Charles V, releases Francis I, their mutual enemy, from prison, he is stunned -- but resolves to redirect his European ambitions. And when Anne Boleyn is insulted by his offer to make her his sole and unique mistress, it merely doubles his passion and resolve to one day marry her. However, his separation from the most powerful political figure in Europe may prove easier to affect than an annulment from his wife.

Henry is named “Defender of the Faith” by the Pope who is grateful for his spiritual and political loyalty, although fidelity is scarce in Henry’s court. His sister, Princess Margaret, marries the decrepit King of Portugal, only to murder him soon after and returns to the lustful arms of Charles Brandon. The Duke of Norfolk and Sir Thomas Boleyn continue to conspire against Cardinal Wolsey. And the King grows ever more enamored of Anne Boleyn. His increasing disinterest in his Queen, and the realization that he still hasn’t produced a legitimate heir to the Tudor dynasty, conjure an urgent desire for radical action.

King Henry VIII, the young and ambitious monarch of England, prepares for war with France but is dissuaded by the diplomatic manipulation of his powerful Lord Chancellor, Cardinal Wolsey, who proposes that the King sponsor a “Treaty of Universal Peace.” The harmony of the King's domestic affairs is threatened, however, when he discovers that Elizabeth Blount, the young and beautiful lady-in-waiting to his Queen, Katherine of Aragon, is pregnant with his child.

A new and important ally sweeps into Henry’s court in the form of Charles V, the most powerful man in Europe and nephew to Henry’s wife, Katherine of Aragon. To protect the very significant alliance he hopes will aid in his bid for an English role in European affairs, the King is careful not to reveal to Charles the growing distance between himself and the Queen. However, affairs of the heart are more likely to unsettle Henry’s resolve as he comes face-to-face for the first time with the beautiful Anne Boleyn. Unbeknownst to the King, he is being seduced by forces more calculating than any young woman.

The persecution of the Catholic Church reaches its pinnacle as Thomas Cromwell reports on the institution's accounts and confiscates its wealth for the crown, making Henry the richest English king in history; Katherine dies in pious poverty and obscurity, leaving Anne, newly pregnant, a firmer grip on power; a new lady in waiting catches Henry's eye: Jane Seymour.

His patience at an end, Henry marries Anne in secret, appoints his Lutheran chaplain Thomas Cranmer the head of the Church, and strips Queen Katherine of her title and status; the king and new queen have their first child, and are disappointed that it's a girl...whom they christen Elizabeth.

The brief resurgence of Anne at court is short-lived, as Jane Seymour rapidly replaces her in the king's affections, a process speeded up by Henry's near-fatal jousting accident and Anne's hysteria-induced miscarriage; now that Katherine is dead, Henry attempts to renew his alliance with her nephew Charles, the Holy Roman Emperor, who makes an intriguing proposal.

Divorce, Tudor style. As the Catholic Church struggles in vain to control Henry VIII's (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) demands for an annulment, the King appoints himself head of the Church of England. A cook is blackmailed into poisoning a high-ranking bishop, then boiled alive for his crime. When Anne Boleyn (Natalie Dormer) insists Henry break all contacts with Katherine, (Maria Doyle Kennedy) the noble Queen is banished from court. The Reformation has begun.

The country is asked to swear an oath recognizing the new royal succession, and Henry as the supreme authority in England; Anne becomes pregnant again and schemes to ensure that she controls her randy husband's mistresses; Sir Thomas More refuses to swear to all aspects of the oath and is jailed in the Tower of London.

The second season finale, Anne awaits her execution in the Tower of London as Henry's marriage to her is annulled and he proposes to Jane Seymour, who accepts; baby Elizabeth is removed from the line of succession; after several delays that give her false hope of a reprieve, Anne Boleyn is beheaded - while her ex-husband and king feasts on a royal delicacy: roasted swan.

The power and influence of Thomas Cromwell spreads as he investigates the Catholic Church for evidence of corruption, even as Pope Paul III denounces the execution of Sir Thomas More; the queen is rebuffed in her efforts to betroth Elizabeth to the French dauphin after the king of France refuses to recognize her daughter's legitimacy.