Henry VIII & his Rabbis

Not Just the Tudors

History Hit

History

4.8 • 3K Ratings

🗓️ 20 March 2025

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Henry VIII's desire to divorce Catherine of Aragon changed England; it could be justified by a biblical law that prohibited a man from marrying his brother's widow, yet another passage seemed to suggest otherwise. In a surprising move, Henry called upon Italian rabbis to interpret these ancient laws.

Professor Suzannah Lipscomb delves into the turbulent world of the Tudors, where the lines between faith and politics blurred. She's joined by Jerry Rabow to explore how Jewish, Catholic and Protestant perspectives intertwined and ultimately raised more questions than answers.

Presented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Alice Smith, audio editor is Amy Haddow and the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.

All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, I'm Professor Susanna Lipscomb.
0:02.6	If you'd like not just the Tudors ad-free to get early access and bonus episodes, sign up to History Hit.
0:10.5	With a History Hit subscription, you can also watch hundreds of hours of original documentaries,
0:16.0	including my own recent two-part series, A World Torn Apart, The Dissolution of the Monastries, and enjoy a new release every week.
0:25.2	Sign up now by visiting historyhit.com forward slash subscribe.
0:29.9	This episode of Not Just the Tudors is brought to you by Audible, because there's more to imagine when you listen.
0:36.8	As a historian, I love stumbling across hidden stories from the past, and Audible lets because there's more to imagine when you listen. As a historian, I love stumbling
0:38.1	across hidden stories from the past, and Audible lets me do just that. My latest discovery?
0:43.7	Hidden Histories with Nova Reed, a remarkable series exploring the unsung black women who shaped history.
0:50.5	In one episode, Nova takes a look at the hidden histories of disobedient women, the resistance of nameless enslaved women who stood up for themselves through small but mighty acts of protest.
1:01.3	With Audible, there's always something new to learn, whether through best-selling books, thought-provoking podcasts or immersive audio dramas.
1:09.5	And the best part, your first audiobook is on Audible.
1:13.1	Listen on Audible now. Subscription required. See audible.combe.combe.
1:20.8	Hello, I'm Professor Susanna Lipscomb and welcome to not just the Tudors from HistoryHit.
1:26.4	The podcast in which we explore everything from Anne Boleyn to the Aztecs, from Holbein to the Huguenose, from Shakespeare to Samarise.
1:35.6	Relieved by regular doses of murder, espionage and witchcraft.
1:39.9	Not in other words, just the Tudors, but most definitely also the Tudors.
1:50.3	Henry VIII sought an annulment of his marriage to his first wife, Catherna of Aragon, from 1527.
1:56.7	But did not receive it until six years later, and then only after creating his own Church of England
2:02.2	and appointing his own Archbishop of Canterbury to grant it.
2:06.4	Along the way, Henry and his team adopted a range of strategies in the hope of achieving their
2:10.9	desired goal, but one of the most surprising and little known is that in a Catholic England
	...

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