King Henry marries for the third time. A blonde, shy noblewoman by the name of Jane Seymour. The king's decision to abandon the Catholic Church causes an uproar.

The uproar caused by the King's decision to break with the Catholic Church turns into a full-blown rebellion that comes to be knows as "The Pilgrimage of Grace". Because the king is hampered by an old jousting injury, he sends Charles Brandon to deal with the uprising.
However, the injury does not interfere with his love life because the newly-wed king finds a new mistress, the Lady Ursula Misseldon.

It's almost Christmas time again and after having been estranged for years, Henry reunites with his daughters Mary and Elizabeth.
Despite attempts at reconciliation with the leaders of the rebellion, there is betrayal and brutality.

The leaders of the uprising meet their fate but Charles Brandon is disturbed by the cruelty involved. King Henry finally gets his wish, a male heir. However, the consequences of this birth are considerable.

After the passing of his wife, Henry mourns in solitude. His enemies use this opportunity to cuddle members of the royal entourage. Cromwell is upset that the Church of England still closely resembles the Catholic Church.

In another bid to rid the kingdom of Catholicism, Cromwell arranges for the king to marry a protestant. The king's leg wound takes a turn for the worse and actually threatens the king's life.

England is threatened by an alliance between France and Spain, backed by Rome, so Henry agrees to marry Anne of Cleves, a German protestant, without even meeting her beforehand.

Henry annuls his marriage and finds a teenage mistress instead. Princess Mary falls in love with a foreign duke, Duke Philip of Bavaria.
Cromwell loses the king's favour.