Henry VIII was the infamous English king who abolished ties with the Catholic church and turned Britain into a protestant nation while positioning himself as the head of the new church. In 1864 Louise Muhlbach, a German historical novelist, wrote a novel about Henry and his court. "It was in the year 1543. King Henry the Eighth of England that day once more pronounced himself the happiest and most enviable man in his kingdom, for to-day he was once more a bridegroom, and Catharine Parr, the youthful widow of Baron Latimer, had the perilous happiness of being selected as the king's sixth consort."