King Henry VIII married the first of his six wives, Catherine of Aragon

On 11 June 1509, days short of his 18th birthday, King Henry VIII married the first of his six wives, Catherine of Aragon, who was 23 and the widow of his elder brother Arthur. Catherine was popular among the English people and the annulment of their marriage by Henry in 1533, so he could marry Anne Boleyn, set in motion a chain of events that would eventually lead to the country’s break with Rome and establishment of the Church of England. Catherine died in 1536 and her tomb is in Peterborough Cathedral.