| DATE | BRIEF DESCRIPTION |
| 1491 | Born June 28 in London. |
| 1509 | Succeeds to the throne and marries Catherine of Aragón. |
| 1512 | Joins the Holy League against France. |
| 1513 | Defeats and kills James IV of Scotland at Flodden. |
| 1520 | Meets Francis I of France at the Field of Cloth of Gold. |
| 1527 | Announces his desire to divorce his wife. |
| 1532 | Having failed to obtain a decree of divorce from the pope, Henry secures control of the clergy and begins to dissolve ties to the papacy. |
| 1533 | Secretly marries Anne Boleyn. Marriage to Catherine declared invalid by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer. |
| 1534 | Repudiates papal jurisdiction and makes himself the supreme ecclesiastical authority in England. |
| 1536 | Orders the dissolution of the monasteries. Executes Anne Boleyn on a charge of adultery and marries Jane Seymour. |
| 1537 | Jane Seymour dies after bearing his only legitimate son, Edward. |
| 1540 | Marries Anne of Cleves to forge a political tie with Germany but divorces her several months later when the alliance is no longer to his advantage. Marries Catherine Howard. |
| 1542 | Catherine executed on a charge of adultery. Defeats Scots at Solway Moss. |
| 1543 | Marries sixth wife, Catherine Parr, who survives him. |
| 1546 | Peace made with France. |
| 1547 | Dies January 28 and is succeeded by his son, Edward VI. |
