Children of Henry VIII facts for kids
Henry VIII of England had several children. The best known children are the three legitimate offspring who survived infancy and would succeed him as monarchs of England successively, Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I.
His first two wives, Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn, had several pregnancies that ended in stillbirth, miscarriage, or death in infancy. Henry acknowledged one illegitimate child, Henry FitzRoy, as his own, but is suspected to have fathered several illegitimate children by different mistresses. The number and identity of these is a matter of historical debate.
There are many theories about whether Henry VIII had fertility difficulties. His last three wives, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard and Catherine Parr are not known to have conceived by him, although Parr conceived in her next marriage.
None of Henry's acknowledged children (legitimate or otherwise) had children of their own, leaving him with no direct descendants after the death of Elizabeth in 1603.
Legitimate children
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| By Catherine of Aragon (married Palace of Placentia 11 June 1509; annulled 23 May 1533, upheld by the Catholic Church until her death on 7 January 1536) | |||
| Unnamed daughter | 31 January 1510 | stillborn at 7 months, the first child | |
| Henry, Duke of Cornwall | 1 January 1511 | 22 February 1511 | died aged almost two months |
| Henry, Duke of Cornwall II | 17 September 1513 | born prematurely and lived only a few hours | |
| Unnamed son | November/December 1514 | stillborn at 8 months | |
| Queen Mary I | 18 February 1516 | 17 November 1558 | married Philip II of Spain in 1554; no issue |
| Unnamed daughter | 10 November 1518 | stillborn in the 8th month of pregnancy | |
| By Anne Boleyn (married Westminster Abbey 25 January 1533; beheaded on 19 May 1536) | |||
| Queen Elizabeth I | 7 September 1533 | 24 March 1603 | never married; no issue |
| Unnamed child | 25 December 1534 | stillbirth or false pregnancy | |
| Unnamed son | 1535 | Miscarried son | |
| Unnamed son | 29 January 1536 | miscarriage of a child, believed male, in the fourth month of pregnancy | |
| By Jane Seymour (married Palace of Whitehall 30 May 1536) died 24 October 1537 | |||
| Unnamed child | 25 December 1536 | miscarriage | |
| King Edward VI | 12 October 1537 | 6 July 1553 | died unmarried, age 15; no issue |
| By Anne of Cleves (married Palace of Placentia 6 January 1540; annulled 12 July 1540) | |||
| no issue | |||
| By Catherine Howard (married Oatlands Palace 28 July 1540; beheaded on 13 February 1542) | |||
| Unnamed child | 1541 | Miscarriage or false pregnancy | |
| By Catherine Parr (married Hampton Court Palace 12 July 1543; Henry VIII died 28 January 1547) | |||
| no issue | |||
Illegitimate children
Henry VIII of England had one acknowledged illegitimate child, as well as several others who are suspected to be his, by his mistresses.
Henry VIII acknowledged Henry FitzRoy (15 June 1519 – 23 July 1536), the son of his mistress Elizabeth Blount, and granted him a dukedom; FitzRoy married Lady Mary Howard, but had no issue.
Others speculated to have been Henry VIII's illegitimate offspring include:
- Thomas Stukeley (c. 1520 – 4 August 1578), his mother being Jane Pollard, the wife of Sir Hugh Stukeley
- Richard Edwardes (1523? – 1566), born to Mrs. Agnes Edwardes
- Catherine Carey (c. 1524 – 15 January 1569), daughter of his mistress Mary Boleyn, the sister of his second wife, Anne Boleyn, and wife of William Carey.
- Henry Carey (4 March 1526 – 23 July 1596), brother of Catherine Carey
- Ethelreda Malte (born c. 1527 – c. January 1559), born to Joan Dingley, alias Dobson. Paternity was claimed by John Malte.
- John Perrot (November 1528 – 3 November 1592), his mother being Mary Berkeley the wife of Sir Thomas Perrot
See also
- Wives of Henry VIII
- Mistresses of Henry VIII
- Category:Lists of children by person
