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 322 General History oj Europe II. How ENGLAND FELL AWAY FROM THE PAPACY 544. Wolsey's Idea of the Balance of Power. Henry VIII came to the English throne when he was eighteen years old. His chief adviser, Cardinal Wolsey, deserves great credit for having constantly striven to discourage his sovereign's ambition to take part in the wars on the Continent. The argument of the cardinal that Eng- land could become great by peace bet- ter than by war was a momentous dis- covery. Peace, he felt, would be best secured by main- taining the balance oj power on the jj Continent, so that no ruler should be- come dangerous by unduly extending HENRY VIII his sway. This idea of the balance of power came to be recognized later by the European countries as a very important consideration in determining their policy. But Wolsey was not long to be permitted to put his enlightened ideas into practice. 545. Henry VIIFs Divorce Case. Henry had married Cath- erine of Aragon, the aunt of Charles V. Only one of their chil- dren, Mary, survived to grow up. As time went on Henry was very anxious to have a son and heir, for he was fearful lest a woman might not be permitted to succeed to the throne. More- over, he had tired of Catherine, who was considerably older than he. His anxiety to rid himself of Catherine was greatly