The Autobiography of Henry VIII: With Notes by His Fool, Will Somers By Margaret George - Book Report/Review Example

At the same time, through Henry VIII, England received one of the most charismatic rulers in the entire history of the nation. The King Henry VIII realized that dominance of the Roman Catholic Church would not only prove to be a threat against the monarchy but in due process of time it would also cast deep impact over lives of common people. Thus, he took strict steps to abolish the influence of Roman Catholicism from England. As a King, Henry VIII also introduced several legal reforms that aimed at attaining the goal of social dominance in an easier manner and power of the British Parliament was revived to a greater extent.

However, the contradicting nature of Henry VIII’s personality becomes more evident as, besides introducing all these reforms, his power mongering nature was executed through repeated declarations of war against France and Scotland; consequently leading the economic situation of the nation to a deep crisis. The contradicting nature of Henry VIII’s personality has made him one of the most interesting figures to analyze for historians and Margaret George’s famous novel, The Autobiography of Henry VIII: With Notes by His Fool, Will Somers can be regarded as an excellent effort in this context.

The commentary of Will Somers, the gesture at the king’s court, and who also was quite dear to him, within context of the novel, plays an important part in providing deeper understanding of the king’s nature. Irrespective of the fact that the author is not personally present in the contemporary socio-cultural and political situation as that of the King Henry VIII, however, her extensive research has successfully been able to provide a better understanding of unexplored dimensions of the king’s personality development. R. Parsifal Finch was so deeply impressed by narrative of the novel that in his commentary he clearly has opined that “ I am truly amazed at Margaret George’s