best material on Henry VIII? I've heard Starkey Is a little

Weir focuses on social history, so there's not much of politics, and it is occasionally detrimental because politics were just as important a part of Henry's life as his queens. Your pic related book is primarily social history look at his life in relation to the people in his court, so his friends, mistresses, queens, etc. It's not bad per say but if you're looking at a more well rounded look it's not the best.

Starkey includes more politics in than Weir, but I found him a bit insufferable to read because he spends significant amounts of his books making jabs at other historians--while at the same time making classic mistakes himself, like assuming Chapuys' letters should be taken as gospel truth. He also makes jabs at female historians for focusing so much on the wives... while doing the same thing in his Henry VIII biography.

Ridley's book, by contrast, is the perfect mix. He doesn't neglect politics, but he doesn't neglect the social aspects of Henry's life either. He doesn't consider Henry's most important characteristic his wives, either. I'd consider it "the" biography to read before tackling anything else related to Henry, it provides a great base knowledge.

>>3283230
https://pastebin.com/K4MRUESx