Season 3 (2009)
The third season of The Tudors premiered on April 5, 2009, and attracted 726,000 viewers in the United States, which was a five percent decrease from the previous season's premiere. The premiere bested HBO's In Treatment season two premiere which drew 657,000 viewers, and marks one of the few times that a Showtime original received more viewers than an HBO original. The season finale aired on May 24, 2009, and the original broadcast attained 366,000 viewers.
| No. | # | Title | Setting | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | 1 | "Civil Unrest" | 30th May 1536 | Ciaran Donnelly | Michael Hirst | April 5, 2009 (2009-04-05) |
| The third season premier. Days after Anne Boleyn's execution, Henry VIII weds a third time, to shy, demure noblewoman Jane Seymour - a union that he and his advisers pray will result in a male heir; Henry appears to an apparently pleased court, but secretly Thomas Cromwell and Lord Rich worry for their plans for a reformation. Lady Ursula Misseldon arrives at court to wait upon the new queen, and is soon mistress to Sir Francis Bryan. Lady Mary is threatened with death unless she submits to her father's authority and, under guidance from the Spanish ambassador, reluctantly complies. A number of Catholics, once-loyal subjects, rebel in objection to Henry's crusade against Catholicism and the dissolution of the monasteries, shaking Cromwell's new-found confidence, and enraging Henry. | ||||||
| 22 | 2 | "The Northern Uprising" | Winter 1536 | Ciaran Donnelly | Michael Hirst | April 12, 2009 (2009-04-12) |
| The rebellion now known as the Pilgrimage of Grace in York begins in earnest, with Henry dispatching Brandon to deal with the uprising. Bedridden due to the painful ulcerating of his jousting injury, Henry takes a new mistress named Lady Ursula Misseldon in his frustration at the Queen's lack of pregnancy. Queen Jane unveils the king's daughter, Lady Mary, at court in a bid to see her restored to the succession. | ||||||
| 23 | 3 | "Dissension and Punishment" | 1536 – 1537 | Ciaran Donnelly | Michael Hirst | April 19, 2009 (2009-04-19) |
| Queen Jane and Lady Mary bring the toddler Lady Elizabeth to court, and Henry reconciles with her at the Christmas holiday. He also makes promises of pardons and redress of grievances to the leaders of the Pilgrimage of Grace, while making plans to bring them to heel for their insurrection, then using a further uprising as an excuse to have Charles Brandon put the leaders to death. | ||||||
| 24 | 4 | "The Death of a Queen" | July–October 1537 | Ciaran Donnelly | Michael Hirst | April 26, 2009 (2009-04-26) |
| The leaders of the Pilgrimage of Grace uprising are put to death, but Brandon is haunted by the cruelty and mercilessness of the suppression and his part in it; Henry celebrates the birth of a son but his joy is short-lived as Queen Jane dies within days. | ||||||
| 25 | 5 | "Problems in the Reformation" | 1537 – 1538 | Jeremy Podeswa | Michael Hirst | May 3, 2009 (2009-05-03) |
| Henry remains in seclusion while mourning the queen's death, an opportunity that enemies of the crown seize to murder several friends of the court; Cromwell is disturbed when Henry does not resist his new church's similarities to Catholicism. | ||||||
| 26 | 6 | "Search for a New Queen" | 1538 – 1539 | Jeremy Podeswa | Michael Hirst | May 10, 2009 (2009-05-10) |
| Matchmaking begins in earnest as Cromwell schemes to secure the Reformation by marrying Henry to a Protestant wife - but the king's marital reputation precedes him; the condition of Henry's wounded leg turns life-threatening. | ||||||
| 27 | 7 | "Protestant Anne of Cleves" | 1539 – 1540 | Jeremy Podeswa | Michael Hirst | May 17, 2009 (2009-05-17) |
| War looms with France and Spain aligning against England with backing from Rome, so Henry agrees to a politically fortuitous marriage with Anne of Cleves (Joss Stone), a plain and unsophisticated German aristocrat he has never met. | ||||||
| 28 | 8 | "The Undoing of Cromwell" | Spring – 28 July 1540 | Jeremy Podeswa | Michael Hirst | May 24, 2009 (2009-05-24) |
| Henry moves swiftly to annul his loveless marriage to Anne of Cleves, and beds a new mistress, 17-year-old Katherine Howard (Tamzin Merchant); Princess Mary falls in love with Duke Philip of Bavaria in spite of their religions, only to be heartbroken when he is sent away from court; Cromwell's fall from favour is sudden and dramatic. The season ends with Cromwell's beheading. |
Read more about this topic: List Of The Tudors Episodes, Episode List
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