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Article CHARACTER OF HENRY VIII. Page 1 of 2 →
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Character Of Henry Viii.
CHARACTER OF HENRY VIII .
VERY different characters have been given of Henry VIII . by different authors . Some have represented him as a brave , wise , just , and merciful prince , with few vices or imperfections ; while others have painted him in the blackest colours , as a cruel unrelenting tyrant , with few or no virtues or good qualities . Those , however , who have delineated his character with the greatest care and candour , have pursued a middle courseIn * doing justice to his good actions
, and commendable qualifications , while the 3 * have not overlooked his criminal passions and his vices . The following short description of the most striking features iu the character of this prince may * , it is imagined , be justified b 3 authentic monuments and the real transactions of his reign . He was vety tall , and in his 3 'outhwas uncommonly handsome , strong , and active . He deli ghted and excelled in
all manly exercises ; as riding , tilting , hunting , hawking , leaping , wrestling , & c . His gait was statety , and his air majestic . ' Who , ' sa 3 »* s a contemporary writer , ' is so dull as not to see in that most serene ' countenance the signs of a king ? Who can behold , even afar off , ' that august majesty of his whole person , ancl not say- he was born to ' a diadem ? ' These personal charms and accomplishments being visible to all , gained him great admiration and popularity in the first part of his reign . He was fond of music , a good performer on several instruments , and no contemptible composer . Great pains had been
taken with his education , and he had a genius capable of acquiring knowledge . He spoke several languages fluentty , particularity Latin af . ' J French : but unfortunately his favourite study was school-divinity ; in which he imagined himself so great a doctor , that he entered the lists with Martin Luther , in his famous book De Sept em Sacramcnlis ; for which he received such n deluge of praise as no author of an inferior rank must ever expect . We have no reason to suspect that he
was deficient in personal courage , though he was not forward in exposing himself to danger . His understanding was good , when it was not blinded by * some reigning passion . The truth seems to be , that the ungovernable impetuosity of his passions was the great defect in his character , the source of all his errors and of all his crimes . In his 3 » outh the love of pleasure was his reigning passion , and an
extravagant fondness for royal feasts , tilts , tournaments , disguising , and the other pompous expensive diversions of the great in those times . About these he employed his thoughts ; in these he spent his time , and squandered away the treasures that had been hoarded b 3 * his father . To this he was also prompted by * his vanity , and encouraged by his ministers , particularly by his great favourite , Cardinal Wolse 3 * , for very obvious reasons . As he advanced in years , and began to interfere more in business , passions of a darker complexion and more dausjerous tender ^ ' appeared . From his fuller he inherited an ex-
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Character Of Henry Viii.
CHARACTER OF HENRY VIII .
VERY different characters have been given of Henry VIII . by different authors . Some have represented him as a brave , wise , just , and merciful prince , with few vices or imperfections ; while others have painted him in the blackest colours , as a cruel unrelenting tyrant , with few or no virtues or good qualities . Those , however , who have delineated his character with the greatest care and candour , have pursued a middle courseIn * doing justice to his good actions
, and commendable qualifications , while the 3 * have not overlooked his criminal passions and his vices . The following short description of the most striking features iu the character of this prince may * , it is imagined , be justified b 3 authentic monuments and the real transactions of his reign . He was vety tall , and in his 3 'outhwas uncommonly handsome , strong , and active . He deli ghted and excelled in
all manly exercises ; as riding , tilting , hunting , hawking , leaping , wrestling , & c . His gait was statety , and his air majestic . ' Who , ' sa 3 »* s a contemporary writer , ' is so dull as not to see in that most serene ' countenance the signs of a king ? Who can behold , even afar off , ' that august majesty of his whole person , ancl not say- he was born to ' a diadem ? ' These personal charms and accomplishments being visible to all , gained him great admiration and popularity in the first part of his reign . He was fond of music , a good performer on several instruments , and no contemptible composer . Great pains had been
taken with his education , and he had a genius capable of acquiring knowledge . He spoke several languages fluentty , particularity Latin af . ' J French : but unfortunately his favourite study was school-divinity ; in which he imagined himself so great a doctor , that he entered the lists with Martin Luther , in his famous book De Sept em Sacramcnlis ; for which he received such n deluge of praise as no author of an inferior rank must ever expect . We have no reason to suspect that he
was deficient in personal courage , though he was not forward in exposing himself to danger . His understanding was good , when it was not blinded by * some reigning passion . The truth seems to be , that the ungovernable impetuosity of his passions was the great defect in his character , the source of all his errors and of all his crimes . In his 3 » outh the love of pleasure was his reigning passion , and an
extravagant fondness for royal feasts , tilts , tournaments , disguising , and the other pompous expensive diversions of the great in those times . About these he employed his thoughts ; in these he spent his time , and squandered away the treasures that had been hoarded b 3 * his father . To this he was also prompted by * his vanity , and encouraged by his ministers , particularly by his great favourite , Cardinal Wolse 3 * , for very obvious reasons . As he advanced in years , and began to interfere more in business , passions of a darker complexion and more dausjerous tender ^ ' appeared . From his fuller he inherited an ex-