On this day, Henry VII passed away at the age of 52. He was succeeded by his son, Henry VIII who broke his betrothal to Eleanor of Austria and married Catherine of Aragon instead. As we all know, this led to the King’s Great Matter and the split between the Church of England and the Catholic Church back in Rome. But what if never happened? What if Henry VII lived as long as his mother, dying sometime in 1523 at the age of 66?
Obviously Henry is going to marry Eleanor of Austria in around 1512 here and have a children with her by 1515 at the latest. Henry VII is going to want a grandson asap after all. Secondly, James IV probably survives his otl death date since without Catherine of Aragon Flodden is butterflied. Speaking of which, would England still get involved in the War of the League of Cambrai in alt? In otl, Henry VIII wanted to restore England’s possessions in France and get in the pope’s favour. I’m not sure if Henry VII would do that here though, he’d little interest in warfare and would probably try and wrangle some trade deal or similar with France in this scenario. How does Henry VII handle Charles V wavering on whether to marry Mary Tudor here? Would he wait until he makes a decision or break the betrothal and marry her to someone else here? I could see it going either way tbh.
Lastly, as Henry VIII reaches adulthood, would he try to get more involved in the governance of the realm or would he simply wait until Henry VII croaks it? I could see Henry VII giving Henry VIII more freedoms here as he ages. Also, might Henry VII remarry here or would he remain a widower? Could an alt English reformation occur and if so, how?
Obviously Henry is going to marry Eleanor of Austria in around 1512 here and have a children with her by 1515 at the latest. Henry VII is going to want a grandson asap after all. Secondly, James IV probably survives his otl death date since without Catherine of Aragon Flodden is butterflied. Speaking of which, would England still get involved in the War of the League of Cambrai in alt? In otl, Henry VIII wanted to restore England’s possessions in France and get in the pope’s favour. I’m not sure if Henry VII would do that here though, he’d little interest in warfare and would probably try and wrangle some trade deal or similar with France in this scenario. How does Henry VII handle Charles V wavering on whether to marry Mary Tudor here? Would he wait until he makes a decision or break the betrothal and marry her to someone else here? I could see it going either way tbh.
Lastly, as Henry VIII reaches adulthood, would he try to get more involved in the governance of the realm or would he simply wait until Henry VII croaks it? I could see Henry VII giving Henry VIII more freedoms here as he ages. Also, might Henry VII remarry here or would he remain a widower? Could an alt English reformation occur and if so, how?