Henry VIII and His Rabbis How Henry VIII Relied on Jewish Law to End His First Marriage – and Why He Failed

Why did it take Henry VIII six years of conflict (1527–1533) to end his marriage to Catherine of Aragon and marry Anne Boleyn? Henry VIII and His Rabbis tells the vivid story of this tumultuous period in Tudor history, including the first full examination of the king’s bizarre reliance upon rabbinic interpretations of Jewish law for his final campaign to convince the pope to grant a Catholic annulment. With critical analysis of original documents, contemporary accounts, and historical commentaries, Jerry Rabow makes this engaging history fully accessible for modern readers. The book also furnishes updated online website resources to access copies of relevant historical books and documents. Tudor and Jewish history fans alike will delight in this fascinating intersection of Europe’s Jewish, Catholic, and Protestant worlds of five hundred years ago—a historic moment whose consequences still echo today.

Jerry Rabow, an honors graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School, is the author of 50 Jewish Messiahs and The Lost Matriarch: Finding Leah in the Bible and Midrash. He has enjoyed broad experience as a popular teacher and lecturer on Judaism, history, science, photography, and art appreciation.