HENRY VIII, King of England. Regis Angliae Henrici Huius Nominis Octaui Assertio Septem Sacramentorum aduersus Martin Lutherum.

HENRY VIII, King of England. Regis Angliae Henrici Huius Nominis Octaui Assertio Septem Sacramentorum aduersus Martin Lutherum. Lugduni [Lyon]: Guliel. Rouillium, 1561. Small quarto. pp. lxxxxvi, 195, [1], bb-nn4, a-z4, A4, B2 (collates in accordance with Morgan copy). Title within architectural border. “Pio lectori” verso of final leaf. Head-pieces; initials. Bound in contemporary limp Spanish vellum with later printer’s waste flyleaves and pastedowns in Spanish, title in ink along spine. Old signatures to titlepage, crossed out, blank margin at the foot of the title trimmed away, and an unfortunate trimming of the fore-edges of the first twenty- five or so leaves; old water stain to top half of text that intensifies as it reaches the end. A good copy of an extremely rare book.

COPAC locates 5 copies only. Graesse, III, p. 242; Morgan 175386.
Henry VIII’s Defence of the Seven Sacraments is a theological treatise first published in 1521, written by King Henry VIII of England, allegedly with the assistance of Thomas More. The extent of More’s involvement with this project has been a point of contention since its publication. Henry’ s book, written in Latin, offers an argument strongly in favour of traditional medieval doctrine, and excoriates Luther for his ‘impertinent calumnies’. Given Henry’s later career, the book is also notable for its defence of papal authority and the indissolubility of marriage.

Henry started to write it in 1519 while he was reading Martin Luther’s attack on indulgences. By June of that year, he had shown it to Thomas Wolsey, but it remained private until three years later, when the earlier manuscript became the first two chapters of the Assertio, the rest consisting of new material relating to Luther’s De Captivitate Babylonica.

J. J. Scarisbrick describes the work as “one of the most successful pieces of Catholic polemics produced by the first generation of anti- Protestant writers.” It went through some twenty editions in the sixteenth century and, as early as 1522, had appeared in two different German translations.The fervour with which this reply was written can be seen in the strong language used. The book finishes with exhorting readers not to be influenced by heretics like Luther.

“Do not listen to the Insults and Detractions against the Vicar of Christ which the Fury of the little Monk spews up against the Pope; nor contaminate Breasts sacred to Christ with impious Heresies, for if one sews these he has no Charity, swells with vain Glory, loses his Reason, and burns with Envy. Finally with what Feelings they would stand together against the Turks, against the Saracens, against anything Infidel anywhere, with the same Feelings they should stand together against this one little Monk weak in Strength, but in Temper more harmful than all Turks, all Saracens, all Infidels anywhere.”

The Church was grateful for the English support and on 11th October 1521, Henry VIII received and accepted the title of Fidei Defensor, or Defender of the Faith (the Faith being Catholicism), the bull signed by Pope Leo X and his Cardinals.
Luther’s reply to the Assertio (Against Henry, King of the English) was, in turn, replied to by Thomas More, who was one of the leaders of the Catholic humanist party in England (Responsio ad Lutherum).

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