Summer Book Review…

Henry VIII and the Rabbis or “How the King Relied on Jewish Law to End His First Marriage - and Why He Failed” by Jerry Rabow

Every British school child knows the familiar mnemonic referring to what happened to the six wives of Henry VIII “Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived”. But what is probably less well known is the role played by Jews in Henry’s efforts to divorce his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, so that he would be free to marry Anne Boleyn.

In a new book written by retired lawyer Jerry Rabow, the author examines how Henry sought Jewish advice to find a legal loophole to rid himself of Catherine. After six years of bribery, wheeling and dealing, Henry was still not able to invoke Jewish law as a reason to obtain the divorce.

The Pope at the time was Clement VII who was determined not to give Henry what he so ardently desired. The main problem for Henry was that he decided to use the Old Testament to back up his claim that his first marriage was void as he had married his dead brother’s wife. The problem was the interpretation of two biblical injunctions, one in Leviticus and one in Deuteronomy. One said it was a violation and the other stated that the brother of the man who died without children would be obligated to marry the widow.

Unfortunately for Henry, there was no one at court to tell him that these strictures did not apply to Christians. Henry had no local Jewish community to consult as there were no Jews left in England. They had been expelled from the country in 1290 and were not allowed back until around 1656 under Oliver Cromwell.

Henry instead had relied on Christians who had limited knowledge of Jewish law. However, all was not lost as there were still rabbis in Italy. Tudor courtiers then spent years flitting back and forward trying to find a compliant rabbi who would support Henry.

In the end, after six fruitless years of argument, Anne fell pregnant resulting in a quick divorce and a hasty wedding. Henry appointed Thomas Cranmer as Archbishop of Canterbury who implemented the King’s wishes and even crowned Anne Queen of England. The irony is that Cranmer was burnt at the stake in 1556 on the orders of Queen Mary, Catherine of Aragon’s daughter with Henry. Sweet revenge.

Ann Englander