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The Tudor dynasty ruled England from 1485 to 1603. Their story encompasses some of the most dramatic and unforgettable events in European history . Their dynasty was full of colourful characters and big events . The Tudors were able to establish England as a world power . They also gave England a century of dynastic stability . Most Tudor monarchs came to the throne - and remained on the throne - unchallenged . Henry VII possessed only his ability and the ancient name and audacity of his Welsh ancestors . His grandfather had married the widow of Henry V , and his father had married Margaret Beaufort , who was descended illegitimately from Edward III . Henry's only claim to the throne was his victory at Bosworth and his subsequent success . Henry got rid of his Yorkist rivals , including some impostors . He married Elizabeth ( 1465-1503 ) , Edward IV's daughter , and soon had a nursery full of babies , the only Tudor so blessed . He gained recognition abroad , from Spain in 1489 by the Treaty of Medina del Campo , and then from France , the Netherlands , and Scotland . He restored strong , efficient government , such as England had once enjoyed but lacked for many years . He promoted English trade , which he could tax , avoided foreign wars , and saved money . He became rich and powerful , commanding England's respect if not its love . Ruthless , ambitious and bold , Henry VIII was a vivid contrast to his careful , father . Humanist scholars praised him ; one of them , Thomas More , served in his government . Almost as a gesture of how his reign would proceed , one of Henry's first decisions was to order the arrest and the execution of Sir Richard Empson and Edward Dudley - the two men who had been responsible for implementing Henry VII's financial measures . ( Collection of taxes ) In 1513 Henry won the Battle of the Spurs in France and beat the Scots at Flodden . He exhausted his inherited wealth , but won fame and discovered the talents of Cardinal Thomas Wolsey , who as chancellor and archbishop of York dominated the years 1514-29 . The blight on Henry's reign was his desire for a male heir . Although his wife , Catherine of Aragón , bore him six children , only one , later Mary I survived infancy . Wanting a son , and smitten by the dark eyes of Anne Boleyn , Henry appealed to the pope for a divorce . When the all - capable Wolsey could not obtain it , Henry dismissed him and summoned the Reformation Parliament . The result was the Church of England , with Henry as supreme head , separate from Rome but otherwise Catholic . Anne Boleyn , whom Henry was now free to marry ( 1533 ) , gave birth not to a son but to another daughter , Elizabeth . Anne soon lost the king's favour and was beheaded for alleged adultery . Henry's third wife , Jane Seymour , died giving birth to Edward , his only surviving son . Three later wives , one of whom he divorced and another of whom was beheaded , had no children . Thomas Cromwell , Henry's second administrative genius , oversaw the revolutionary changes of the 1530s : the break with Rome and dissolution of the monasteries , the new growth of Parliament , especially the House of Commons , and the creation out of the old King's Council of a new bureaucratic structure including the Privy Council and the prerogative courts , which were controlled by the Crown . Under Edward VI , a minor dominated successively by Edward Seymour , duke of Somerset , and John Dudley , duke of Northumberland , the English Church became Protestant . Parliament's Acts of Uniformity enforced the Book of Common Prayer . When Edward died at the age of 16 , Northumberland tried to save Protestantism and himself by placing Edward's Protestant cousin , Lady Jane Grey , on the throne instead of his Catholic Princess Mary . The attempt failed and Jane ' who ruled for 9 days only , was arrested and executed . Mary 1 , the daughter of Catherine of Aragón , restored the Roman Catholic Church and married her cousin , Philip II of Spain . Her burning of almost 300 Protestants made the people hate her and Rome , however , and her marriage led to war with France and the loss of Calais . When Bloody Mary , as she was known , died in November 1558 , England rejoiced in the accession of her half sister Elizabeth . Elizabeth I , one of England's greatest sovereigns , had her grandfather's frugality and care and her father's imperious manner and his ability to charm and overwhelm . She had a sense of what people wanted and would allow and had the judgment to pick able and devoted ministers . Cooperating with Parliament , she settled the church in 1559 on a moderate course . She neutralized the Scottish threat by helping the Protestant and pro - English faction to win dominance there . She assisted the Protestant rebels in the Spanish Netherlands and encouraged English sailors to raid Spanish ships on the high seas . Her navy defeated the Spanish Armada in 1588 and prevented the invasion of England . Ireland , increasingly rebellious and vulnerable as a possible point of foreign attack , was finally completely conquered in 1603. Elizabeth presided over England's rise to glory abroad and to prosperity and literary achievement at home , justifiably giving her name to England's golden age .