All Hail the King: Holbein and Rhys Meyers

[British School. The Family of Henry VIII (c. 1545), Haunted Gallery, Hampton Court Palace]

This is an important dynastic portrait of one of the most famous kings in history. Seated at center is Henry VIII of England (r. 1509-47), flanked by his third wife Jane Seymour and his only son, Prince Edward. On the far left is Princess Mary by Catherine of Aragon, and on the far right is Princess Elizabeth by Anne Boleyn. All of their clothing fits into Henrician sumptuary law, but a particular focus should be paid to Henry’s clothing. He sits at center, the obvious focal point, dressed in cloth-of-gold, royal red, and underneath the royal crest. Puffy sleeves, a jutting codpiece, and his bright clothing mark him as the greatest of any in this portrait. His reign changed England forever.

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Historic Henry -

[Right: Unknown. King Henry VII (1505), National Portrait Gallery, London; Unknown. Elizabeth of York (c. 1500), National Portrait Gallery, London]

There was pressure on Henry from the start. His father, Henry VII, had successfully overthrown the Plantagenets in the Wars of the Roses, secured a dynasty with Elizabeth of York, and had rejuvenated England.[1] Henry retained all the pleasures of royal youth and being a second son. He stood at six feet tall and was powerfully built from a regimen of sports, hunting, and dancing.[2] But in 1502, his brother Arthur passed away suddenly, and eleven-year-old Henry found himself as the sole heir. He seemed to make a promising king, undoing some of his father’s more tyrannical measures and securing victories in France.

According to Elton and Morrill, over the next fifteen years, Henry played an active role in the governing of his kingdom, but he also reserved time for pleasure. He waged three wars with France, had children by Catherine of Aragon, and even wrote a scathing attack on reformer Martin Luther.[3] Then things changed. By 1527, Henry began to pursue Anne Boleyn in his wife’s entourage. He believed his marriage to Catherine to be cursed, so he resolved to have it annulled.[4] Cardinal Thomas Wolsey oversaw the negotiations with an obstinate pope.[5] When those failed, Henry declared himself the supreme head of the new Church of England. He divorced Catherine, married Anne in 1533, and welcomed a baby girl into the family. He still needed a son though.

[Starting at Top Right: Henry and Catherine of Aragon (Showtime, 2007); Henry and Anne Boleyn (Showtime, 2007)]

A jousting accident in 1536 and another miscarriage angered Henry. He pursued another woman at court, Jane Seymour, and in the next six months, had Anne beheaded.[6] In October 1537, Jane bore him his son then died two weeks later. Inconsolable, his court found him a prospective fourth wife: Anne of Cleves. As a German Protestant, she was a political match whose purported features would dazzle the king. According to Henry, she was far from comely, and the marriage lasted only a short while before she too was divorced.[7] Louche, corpulent, and irascible, the king became a tyrant. His body swelled, his leg festered from the mistreated wound, and he pursued a young girl at court. Catherine Howard made the king feel young again, but youthful ignorance did not lend her well at court. She was beheaded for treason and adultery in 1541.[8]

[Henry and Jane Seymour (Showtime, 2008); Henry and Anne of Cleves (Showtime, 2009); Henry and Catherine Howard (Showtime, 2009); Henry and Catherine Parr (Showtime, 2010)]

Growing old and tired, Henry found an intelligent match in Catherine Parr, a widow and closer in age to the king. She helped the king reconcile with his two daughters, restoring them to the succession after his son.[9] The couple bore no children, and Henry died on January 28, 1547.

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Holbein's Henry -

Henry VIII was larger-than-life, a man of excess and luxury who also stipulated the sumptuary laws mentioned in the previous blog post. Fiscally responsible, but also keenly aware of court politics, Henry dictated the rules of fashion and became a fashion icon himself. And who better to capture the king’s style than Renaissance artists.

[Hans Holbein the Younger. Whitehall Mural (1537), Queen’s Collection, Hampton Court Palace]

Take a look at this iconic portrait of Henry, recreated from the Holbein mural destroyed in the Whitehall fire. This was a year after Anne Boleyn’s execution. He was now married to Jane Seymour. He wears a red velvet gown with a wide fur collar and golden guards decorate the hems. Underneath lays a brocade doublet with garnet embellishments, slashed to reveal a linen shirt. Long skirts cover white hose, and a codpiece protrudes from the folds. A dagger dangles from a simple girdle. A jeweled chain sits across his chest, a necklace falling down the front. He clutches a pair of gloves. The square-toed shoes fashionable at the time sit on his feet. A black bonnet with a feather adorns his head. Contemporary audiences have been conditioned to this portrait; this is Henry VIII.

All of these garments swell Henry’s presence, enlarging his body. He is already at a substantial weight, but the billowed shoulders, large codpiece, and hands-on-hips stance inflate his size. The hose flash shapely legs to females who saw how strong he was. His hands-on-hips stance is one of a powerful man; it consumes the viewer’s vision. Red, gold, jewelry, and headwear are all hallmarks of royalty. Where a crown was inappropriate, a cap replaced it. Bejeweled fabrics beget how many coins were in the treasury. It was a game of power, a game of thrones, and Henry played it well.

[Left: Jean Clouet. Francois I, King of France (1527-30). Louvre Museum, Paris; Center: Jakob Seisenegger. Portrait of Emperor Charles V with Dog (1532). Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna; Right: Holbein's Whitehall mural]

Other key players were Henry’s contemporaries on the continent: Francis I of France (r. 1515-47) and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V of Spain (r. 1519-58). These men not only vied for power, but they competed on a fashion runway as well. In Clouet’s portrait of Francis, the French king wears an outfit similar to Henry’s Whitehall clothing. Cloth-of-gold and cream fabrics color his doublet and puffy sleeves. His arms are slashed to reveal the undershirt, and a pendant dangles from his neck. He also wears a bonnet with a white feather. He too sports a beard, though less impressive than Henry’s. In Seisenegger’s portrait of the emperor, Charles wears a cream and cloth-of-gold gown with puffy sleeves and a fur collar. A cloth-of-gold doublet sinks into white breeches, a codpiece, and white hose. He also wears a bonnet with a white feather. He too sports a beard. Holbein’s Whitehall mural and Clouet and Seisenegger’s portraits were all painted around the same time, and next to each other, one might think they were brothers. They certainly fought like brothers.

[Left: Hans Holbein the Younger. Portrait of Henry VIII of England (c. 1537), Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid; Right: Holbein Studio. Henry VIII of England (c. 1542), National Portrait Gallery, London]

These last two portraits come from Holbein’s studio. In the portrait at left, Henry wears a cloth-of-gold gown with sable fur over a rich, cloth-of-silver doublet and partlet combination. The beautiful, arabesque scrollwork traces the sliver, while his linen undershirt peaks through the holes. Gold studs inlaid with rubies adorn the seams. A gold necklace tumbles down his chest and wraps around the gold collar of his shirt. A black bonnet with a white feather sits on his head. The portrait at right transitions into a different color palette. Henry wears a crimson cassock with a high, ermine neckline. Half-length sleeves reveal a cloth-of-gold doublet with jeweled fasteners. The doublet guard down the center of the cassock also has jeweled fasteners. He clutches gloves in one hand and a staff in the other. A black bonnet sits on his head. These portraits are later in his life, depicting an older king, one whose red hair is starting to rust.

Henry dressed richly and in regal colors like gold, silver, and red, indicative of wealth and status. Jewels appear in all of his outfits. He is also fashionable and trendy, as contemporary audiences can see in his portraits. He already had a fashion sense that completed his look. The black bonnets, square-toed shoes, and puffy shoulders were popular in the Henrician period. His full beard would have been recognizable in any court. And as seen in the portraits of Francis and Charles, his fashion (and their fashion) influenced one another.

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Rhys Meyers' Henry -

[Promotional Photo for The Tudors (Showtime, 2007)]

Jonathan Rhys Meyers played Henry VIII in Hirst’s Showtime series The Tudors (2007-10). The Irish actor stands below six feet tall, already shorter than the historic king. He sports little facial hair, various hairstyles, and the clean-shaven appearance of a young man. Rhys Meyer’s waistline barely budges, lending to a husky Henry rather than a corpulent Henry. He looks more like the stream-lined soccer players from Bend It Like Beckham than the burly king.[9] Already, things are off to a rocky start.

The Tudors refrains from telling a historic narrative though. The show is about sex and power, more like a soap opera than a historical drama.[10] The last blog post detailed how sexy Charles Brandon faired poorly in comparison to his actual portrait. Rhys Meyers does the same. He appeals to a young audience and barely ages (apart from some steel gray hair). William B. Robison’s biggest complaint in his analysis of Rhys Meyers’ character is in his personality. Sexy is fine, though it downplays the king’s intellect and talent. The issue is that audiences see Henry’s cruelty not only in climactic situations (e.g. Anne Boleyn’s execution or the burning of heretics) but in the mundane court life. Rhys Meyers provides audiences with a profoundly abusive, exploitive, and misogynistic king with unmitigated narcissism.[11] Clearly, this is an exaggeration of the historic Henry.

The costumes are exaggerated as well. Maria Hayward spent time analyzing the costumes Rhys Meyers wore as Henry. The historic king, as seen in the portraits above, wore doublets, shirts, and hose, with a number of gowns and cloaks as outerwear. He was found of headwear, gloves, footwear, and jewelry.[12] Henry favored cloth-of-gold, purple and crimson, and sable in his wardrobe.[13] Pageantry and ceremony filled the Henrician court, and these too appeared in The Tudors.[14] Hayward also points out that Joan Bergin’s vision for her costumes was to be seen as an extension of the characters.[15]

[Left: Henry in the outrageous floral doublet (Showtime, 2007); Right: Henry in the equally outrageous orange doublet (Showtime, 2008)]

Hayward then pulls Henry out of her pocket as an example of the artistic liberties Bergin took in design. Rhys Meyers’ costumes were decorative and flamboyant, something not prominent in the sixteenth century. For example, Henry’s floral doublet and trousers for his visit to the More family would never have been seen on the historic Henry.[16] Another would be the orange doublet Henry wears around Jane Seymour; orange was not in fashion at this time.[17] Rhys Meyers does not sport a codpiece or the full gowns and jerkins the historic Henry sported. Few hats or bonnets adorn his head.[18] There is little red in his wardrobe. His auburn hair is dark, close-cropped or greased back depending on how Rhys Meyers was grooming his hair that year.

[Left: Henry at the Field of Cloth of Gold (Showtime, 2007); Center: Henry mourning Jane Seymour (Showtime, 2009); Right: Henry meeting Anne of Cleves (Showtime, 2009)]

There are a handful of loosely accurate pieces. Henry is recorded as having worn “cloth-of-silver, and feathers on his head, with a jeweled collar of great value round his neck in lieu of a chain, besides which he had a girdle of great price” to the Field of Cloth of Gold.[19] Bergin replicated this outfit for the historic event in the show.[20] Henry wore a gorgeous black tunic over a black doublet while mourning Jane Seymour’s death.[21] A beautiful black fur cloak completes the outfit. And audiences see a purple jerkin with a sleeveless plum and cloth-of-gold cloak for his meeting with Anne of Cleves.[22] Season Three was arguably the most vintage in the series in concerns to colors and cuts of fabric.

[Left: Henry costumed as the Whitehall mural (Showtime, 2010); Right: the historic Holbein mural]

And then there is Rhys Meyer’s final costume, a nod to Holbein’s Whitehall mural, though it is anachronistic (Holbein painted the mural in 1537; the show has him painting it a decade later). This might be the only time audiences see a reasonably-aged Henry (minus the weight) in reasonably-accurate clothing. The issue is that he looks out of place when seen next to his other outfits throughout the series. Bergin sinned by not committing to her departure from historic costume. Instead, she tried one last homage which ultimately failed. The bonnet, the puffy red gown, the cloth-of-silver doublet, prominent codpiece, and white hose look rather weak next to the actual portrait. As the ghosts of his wife flit in and out of his vision, Henry laments.[23] Title bars explain how the history of the Tudor dynasty ended and earned a place in history. And sexy Henry VIII certainly earned a place in television history.

[Top Left: promotional photo for Season Three (Showtime, 2009); Top Center: promotional photo for Season Two (Showtime, 2008); Top Right: promotional photo for Season One (Showtime, 2007); Center Left: Henry in another sleeveless doublet (Showtime, 2007); Center Right: Henry in his white wedding doublet (Showtime, 2009); Bottom: Henry in a royal blue doublet (Showtime, 2008)]

Attempts at accuracy cannot excuse the other acts of treason committed by the costume department. Bergin admitted to giving Henry a rockstar appearance, using leather and metallic elements in many of his costumes.[24] Combined with his thin facial hair, slim build, and his gravelly accent, Rhys Meyers can appear ridiculous at times. His sleeveless doublets without an undershirt commit fashion suicide which would have never stood before Henrician sumptuary law. His white doublet with cream embroidery, bronze touches (including the boots…), and gold accents turned up noses.[25] White ties together peace, prosperity, the execution of Anne Boleyn, and the promise of a son all in a pretty ceremony. But it is increasingly flamboyant and out of touch with the historic Henry. Where is the red? Where are the bonnets? Where is Henry?

Hayward remarks that while the costumes of supporting characters are largely accurate (e.g. Cromwell), Rhys Meyer’s costumes are less convincing.[26] Flashy modern colors would never have graced the Henrician court. Sumptuary laws would have locked Rhys Meyers in fashion jail. So why the lack of accurate pieces? Perhaps because audiences might find them laughable, even though an argument can be made for Henry's costumes already being comical. Certainly the puffy sleeves are odd to a modern audience. Codpieces seem rather suggestive given the sexual nature of the show ("Is that a codpiece, or are you just happy to see me?"). But long tunics, cloaks, and flowing gowns are certainly fashionable and important in contextualizing the period. Instead, Bergin opted for leather and lace. The dark clothing, greasy hair, and swagger made the king into a cocked-up prick instead of the regal, auspicious monarch. He can be thrown into fashion jail with Cavill's duke of Suffolk and half of the ladies at court as discussed in the last blog post. Sleeveless doublets, billowy shirts, and various hairstyles play into this misrepresentation of the king. Overall, Jonathan Rhys Meyers and his costumes are vogue and nothing more.

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Notes:

[1] Geoffrey R. Elton & John S. Morrill. “Henry VIII.” Britannica, last modified January 24, 2020. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Henry-VIII-king-of-England

[2] Ibid.

[3] Of the six children Catherine bore him, only Mary would survive to adulthood. History.com Editors. “Henry VIII.” History, last modified January 28, 2020. https://www.history.com/topics/british-history/henry-viii

[4] The Book of Leviticus in the Christian Bible cursed any man who took his brother’s wife. Since Catherine had borne no sons, and he desired Anne Boleyn, he thought he could kill two birds with one stone. Ibid.

[5] Wolsey would fail in this regard. Henry would accuse him of treason and put him on trial to be executed, but Wolsey would die in the Tower of London in 1530. Ibid.

[6] She was charged with incest and treason. Ibid.

[7] The king would claim the two had never consummated their marriage, and Anne was made his unofficial sister, enjoying the pleasures of Henry’s court. Ibid.

[8] While Anne Boleyn was accused of incest, Catherine Howard was accused of sleeping with other men at court, famously Thomas Culpepper. Ibid.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Ibid.

[11] Ibid., 50

[12] Maria Hayward, “Fashionable Fiction,” in History, Fiction, and The Tudors ed. William B. Robison (New York: Palgrave Macmillian, 2016), p. 295.

[13] Ibid., 296

[14] Ibid., p. 298

[15] Ibid., p. 299

[16]The Tudors. “Simply Henry.” Directed by Charles McDougall. Written by Michael Hirst. Showtime, April 8, 2007.

[17]The Tudors. “Lady in Waiting.” Directed by Dearbhla Walsh. Written by Michael Hirst. Showtime, May 18, 2008.

[18] Hayward, “Fashionable Fiction,” p. 300.

[19] Taken from the Sanuto Diaries, quoted in Eleri Lynn, Tudor Fashion (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2017.), p. 72.

[20]The Tudors. “Simply Henry.” Directed by Charles McDougall. Written by Michael Hirst. Showtime, April 8, 2007.

[21]The Tudors. “Problems in the Reformation.” Directed by Jeremy Podeswa. Written by Michael Hirst. Showtime, May 3, 2009.

[22]The Tudors. “Protestant Anne of Cleves.” Directed by Jeremy Podeswa. Written by Michael Hirst. Showtime. May 17, 2009.

[23]The Tudors. “Death of a Monarchy.” Directed by Ciaran Donnelly. Written by Michael Hirst. Showtime, June 20, 2010.

[24] Mariana Fernandes, “The Tudors: 10 Hidden Details About the Costumes You Didn’t Notice,” last modified August 29, 2019. https://screenrant.com/tudors-costumes-details-hidden/

[25] Henry wore this to his marriage to Jane Seymour. The Tudors. “Civil Unrest.” Directed by Ciaran Donnelly. Written by Michael Hirst. Showtime, April 5, 2009.

[26] Hayward, “Fashionable Fiction,” 303.