Ask anyone to name the first King of England that comes to mind, and they will probably tell you Henry VIII. Known best for his outsize lifestyle, which included a total of six wives, and his break with the Catholic Church when they would not grant him the divorce he wanted, he was actually widely acclaimed when his father was still king. Henry was the first heir to the throne whose education was influenced by the Renaissance, and he was already an accomplished writer and linguist when he took the crown.

On this day, April 22, in 1509 took the crown as the ruler of all England. Among his first actions was to find a wife: Catherine of Aragaon, a marriage of alliance rather than love. Catherine’s father, Ferdinand, was the husband of Spain’s ruler Queen Isabella, and the royal marriage (Catherine was first betrothed by Henry’s older brother, who died before Henry took the throne) sealed an alliance. At least for a while.

When Henry saw that Catherine could produce him a male heir, he petitioned the Pope to grant him permission for a divorce. Not surprising, the Pope refused — it took a special Papal dispensation in the first place to allow Henry to marry Catherine; going back on that decision was unthinkable. So Henry abolished Papal rule in England, reduced the power of the clergy, and prepared for a relationship with Rome under his own terms.