The Tudors

King Henry VIII prepares for war with France but is dissuaded by the diplomatic manipulation of his powerful Lord Chancellor. The harmony of the King's domestic affairs is threatened when he discovers that Elizabeth Blount lady-in-waiting to his Queen, Katherine of Aragon, is pregnant with his child.

Season 1. Henry contemplates an alliance with Holy Roman Emperor Charles V of Spain despite a ceremony celebrating allegiance to France; Elizabeth gives birth to his illegitimate son.

Season 1. A visit from Charles V forces Henry to conceal his disaffection from Katherine, who is the influential Spanish monarch's aunt - even as Henry comes face-to-face with the seductive Anne Boleyn.

Season 1. Despite being named "Defender of the Faith" by the Pope, Henry schemes to replace his queen with Anne, as court intrigues involving Princess Margaret and plots against Wolsey intensify.

Season 1. Henry is stunned by a reversal in his alliance with Charles V and forced to look elsewhere for political support, while an insulted Anne refuses his offer of permanent mistress status.

Season 1. An increasingly confident Henry VIII grows dissatisfied with the Catholic Church's progress with his petition for an annulment of his marriage, making Cardinal Wolsey further vulnerable to conspirators.

Season 1. England is struck down with food shortages and an outbreak of plague, forcing the normally buoyant Henry to doubt his future and abilities.

Season 1. A special envoy from the Pope arrives to hear Henry's petition regarding the legitimacy of his marriage, with the fate of Cardinal Wolsey, Anne Boleyn, and the Roman Catholic Church hanging in the balance.

Season 1. Cardinal Wolsey's fall from grace is fast and merciless, with the one-time Lord Chancellor stripped of authority and influence, only to be replaced by the morally righteous Sir Thomas More.

Season 1 finale. A disgraced Wolsey tries one last, desperate gambit to resurrect his career by allying himself with the similarly fallen Queen Katherine.