Vatican offers new look at King Henry VIII's complicated divorce

22-05-2009

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- A meticulous restoration and reproduction of a precious document from the Vatican Secret Archives brings new attention to one of the most complicated divorces in history -- that of King Henry VIII from his queen, Catherine of Aragon.

The document, a letter written in 1530 by members of England's House of Lords, other nobility and members of the clergy, urged Pope Clement VII to annul the royal marriage because it had not produced a male heir, and warned that with no clear succession England could be plunged into chaos and bloodshed.

Pope Clement, as history shows, did not grant the divorce, and the ensuing rift with Henry led to the establishment of the Church of England.

During a press conference in May, Bishop Sergio Pagano, prefect of the Vatican Secret Archives, gave reporters a rare opportunity to see the restored parchment bearing the letter to the pope signed by 84 nobles and clergy and weighed down with more than six pounds of wax from the seals notarizing each signature.

He also unveiled an accurate, handcrafted replica of the document produced by Scrinium, the Venice-based publishing house that collaborates with the Vatican archives on the restoration and reproduction for sale of choice documents.

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