That violent and erratic husband, Henry the VIII, was a molder of history, a power-impelled dynast who influenced the destiny of England. Opportunist, bully and intriguer, political strategist and despot, self-appointed head of the national religion, executioner on a large scale, a man of insatiable lusts and uninhibited will, he ruthlessly dominated the country over which he reigned for thirty-eight years. Francis Hackett's chronicle of his varied life and loves is a magnificent historical pageant and one of the most vivid and colorful biographies of modern times.