The BEST episodes of The Tudors

Every episode of The Tudors ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of The Tudors!

The young, vibrant King Henry VIII, is a competitive and lustful monarch who navigates the intrigues of the English court and the human heart with equal vigor and justifiable suspicion.

Last Updated: 3/1/2024Network: ShowtimeStatus: Ended
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Destiny and Fortune
star
7.98
1058 votes

#1 - Destiny and Fortune

Season 2 - Episode 10 - Aired 6/1/2008

Anne awaits execution in the Tower of London as Henry's marriage to her is annulled, baby Elizabeth is removed from the line of succession, and Henry proposes to Jane Seymour, who accepts.

Directors: Jon Amiel
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Death of a Monarchy
star
7.90
1427 votes

#2 - Death of a Monarchy

Season 4 - Episode 10 - Aired 6/20/2010

Finale - Henry’s thoughts turn to his own mortality with the news that his long-time friend and sometimes foe King Francis, and his unshakable soldier Charles Brandon, are each dying. As he faces death, Henry encounters the ghosts of his former wives who each get a chance to confront him. Hans Holbein paints a last, iconic portrait of the Tudor King.

Directors: Ciaran Donnelly
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The Death of Wolsey
star
7.84
1231 votes

#3 - The Death of Wolsey

Season 1 - Episode 10 - Aired 6/3/2007

A disgraced Cardinal Wolsey tries one last, desperate gambit to resurrect his career by allying himself with the similarly fallen Queen Katherine, but the king's new advisors learn of their plot.

Directors: Ciaran Donnelly
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The Death of a Queen
star
7.65
1194 votes

#4 - The Death of a Queen

Season 3 - Episode 4 - Aired 4/26/2009

The leaders of the Pilgrimage of Grace uprising are put to death, but Brandon is disturbed by the cruelty and mercilessness of the suppression; Henry celebrates the birth of a son but his joy is short-lived as Queen Jane dies within days.

Directors: Ciaran Donnelly
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The Undoing of Cromwell
star
7.60
1106 votes

#5 - The Undoing of Cromwell

Season 3 - Episode 8 - Aired 5/24/2009

Henry moves swiftly to annul his loveless marriage to Anne of Cleves, and beds a new mistress, 17-year-old Katherine Howard; Princess Mary falls in love with Duke Philip of Bavaria; Cromwell's fall from favor is sudden and dramatic.

Directors: Jeremy Podeswa
Watch Now:Apple TV
True Love
star
7.60
1272 votes

#6 - True Love

Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 5/6/2007

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.

Directors: Brian Kirk
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Look to God First
star
7.60
1410 votes

#7 - Look to God First

Season 1 - Episode 9 - Aired 5/27/2007

The fall from grace and power of Cardinal Wolsey is fast and merciless, with the one-time Lord Chancellor stripped of authority and influence. His replacement is an unusual choice: the morally righteous Sir Thomas More.

Directors: Ciaran Donnelly
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His Majesty's Pleasure
star
7.59
1132 votes

#8 - His Majesty's Pleasure

Season 2 - Episode 5 - Aired 4/27/2008

A miscarriage and her sister's impetuous marriage jeopardize the Boleyns' influence at court; after many failed attempts to coerce his endorsement of the king's powers, Sir Thomas More is ordered to be executed as a traitor by a reluctant Henry.

Directors: Ciaran Donnelly
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The Act of Treason
star
7.56
1142 votes

#9 - The Act of Treason

Season 2 - Episode 9 - Aired 5/25/2008

The fall from grace of Anne Boleyn is swift and complete, as the king grants greater powers to the family of his new love Jane Seymour, and accepts Thomas Cromwell's obviously trumped-up charges of adultery against the queen.

Directors: Ciaran Donnelly
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As it Should Be
star
7.54
1470 votes

#10 - As it Should Be

Season 4 - Episode 8 - Aired 6/6/2010

The war with France is nearly lost when one of Henry's officers cleverly engineers a sudden victory, but the triumphant king's health has been weakened by the costly adventure; Brandon returns from France with a mistress.

Directors: Jeremy Podeswa
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The Northern Uprising
star
7.54
1205 votes

#11 - The Northern Uprising

Season 3 - Episode 2 - Aired 4/12/2009

The rebellion now known as the "Pilgrimage of Grace" begins in earnest, with Henry dispatching Brandon to deal with the uprising; bedridden due to the recurrence of his jousting injury, Henry takes a new mistress: Lady Ursula Misseldon.

Directors: Ciaran Donnelly
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Lady in Waiting
star
7.54
1029 votes

#12 - Lady in Waiting

Season 2 - Episode 8 - Aired 5/18/2008

The brief resurgence of Anne at court is short-lived, as Jane Seymour rapidly replaces her in the king's affections, a process speeded up by Henry's near-fatal jousting accident and Anne's hysteria-induced miscarriage.

Directors: Dearbhla Walsh
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His Majesty, The King
star
7.54
1427 votes

#13 - His Majesty, The King

Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 4/22/2007

Despite being named "Defender of the Faith" by the Pope, Henry begins to scheme to replace his queen with the more desirable Anne Boleyn, as court intrigues involving Princess Margaret and plots against Cardinal Wolsey intensify.

Directors: Steve Shill
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Secrets of the Heart
star
7.53
1509 votes

#14 - Secrets of the Heart

Season 4 - Episode 9 - Aired 6/13/2010

In the Series Finale, Henry defeats one final political foe but faces his mortality after the deaths of both his best friend Charles Brandon and King Francis of France, and the ghosts of his former queens appear for a final confrontation.

Directors: Ciaran Donnelly
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Natural Ally
star
7.52
1531 votes

#15 - Natural Ally

Season 4 - Episode 4 - Aired 5/2/2010

The king's warm welcome in the North reinvigorates him but his queen's past catches up to her when a former lover appears with threats of blackmail, and an anonymous letter exposes her infidelities to Henry.

Directors: Ciaran Donnelly
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Message to the Emperor
star
7.52
1310 votes

#16 - Message to the Emperor

Season 1 - Episode 7 - Aired 5/13/2007

The country is struck down with food shortages and an outbreak of plague, forcing the normally buoyant Henry to doubt his future and abilities - but a sudden change in fortunes is on the horizon.

Directors: Alison Maclean
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Sixth and the Final Wife
star
7.52
1418 votes

#17 - Sixth and the Final Wife

Season 4 - Episode 7 - Aired 5/23/2010

War looms with France as Henry marries Catherine Parr, who proves to be an able and respected queen and stepmother, finally giving England's king the stable, happy household he has long desired.

Directors: Jeremy Podeswa
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Something for You
star
7.52
1459 votes

#18 - Something for You

Season 4 - Episode 3 - Aired 4/25/2010

A noticeably more benevolent and tolerant Henry VIII forgives the citizens of the North for their rebellion against him, but the youthful wife he dotes upon launches a passionate affair with Culpepper.

Directors: Dearbhla Walsh
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Sister
star
7.50
1569 votes

#19 - Sister

Season 4 - Episode 2 - Aired 4/18/2010

Henry's age catches up to him during Christmas celebrations, but his youthful and randy court continues the party without him; the arrogant Lord Surrey takes aim at the powerful Seymour clan.

Directors: Dearbhla Walsh
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Dissention and Punishment
star
7.50
1159 votes

#20 - Dissention and Punishment

Season 3 - Episode 3 - Aired 4/19/2009

Henry reconciles with his estranged daughters Mary and Elizabeth in time for the Christmas holidays, but betrays and brutally suppresses the rebellion against him after making conciliatory promises to the uprising's leaders.

Directors: Ciaran Donnelly
Watch Now:Apple TV
Moment of Nostalgia
star
7.49
1709 votes

#21 - Moment of Nostalgia

Season 4 - Episode 1 - Aired 4/11/2010

King Henry VIII marries his fifth queen, a lusty teenager whose beauty and checkered past inflame the passions of a trusted courtier, Thomas Culpepper.

Directors: Dearbhla Walsh
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Truth and Justice
star
7.49
1216 votes

#22 - Truth and Justice

Season 1 - Episode 8 - Aired 5/20/2007

A special envoy from the Pope arrives to hear Henry's petition regarding the legitimacy of his marriage, with the fate of Cardinal Wolsey's career, the king's romance with Anne Boleyn, and the nation's relationship with Rome in the balance.

Directors: Alison Maclean
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Bottom of the Pot
star
7.48
1642 votes

#23 - Bottom of the Pot

Season 4 - Episode 5 - Aired 5/9/2010

The king is devastated to learn of his beloved queen's ribald past and present affairs, and banishes her from court, even as the investigation rounds up and tortures suspects.

Directors: Ciaran Donnelly
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Arise, My Lord
star
7.46
1393 votes

#24 - Arise, My Lord

Season 1 - Episode 5 - Aired 4/29/2007

Henry is stunned by a reversal in his alliance with Charles V and forced to look elsewhere for European support, while an insulted Anne Boleyn refuses his offer of permanent mistress status, inflaming his desire to marry her.

Directors: Brian Kirk
Watch Now:Apple TV
Matters of State
star
7.43
1170 votes

#25 - Matters of State

Season 2 - Episode 7 - Aired 5/11/2008

The persecution of the Catholic Church reaches its pinnacle as Thomas Cromwell confiscates its wealth for the crown, making Henry the richest English king in history, while Katherine dies in pious poverty.

Directors: Dearbhla Walsh
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV