Yet this glamorous exterior only partly disguised the unpredictable and savagely ruthless nature of the King, and as his reign developed, these traits were to become increasingly evidence. Henry’s desperate efforts to father a legitimate male heir for his kingdom led him to marry six times, to make himself Supreme Head of the English Church as well as absolute ruler of the State, and to cut down or cast aside all those who stood in his way, or who failed to carry out his wishes.