Well, you can't say that Henry VIII was a saint, but he wasn't as bad as Ivan the terrible, although he might have been had he lived in country were he was allowed to be more out of control. In England, there were some safeguards to power. Ivan left a mass of destruction in the wake of his life, which Henry might have done a bit too. However, Henry's legacy was a dynamic one, that had as much good as bad, although some of the people caught up in the saga of his reign, the more negative parts would only say bad. It is true that much of what he did had negative impact. But he did leave more than just a gaudy showiness that glimmers through the centuries.So he wasn't half as bad, although he was a monster in some ways, true.
As for Katherine Parr, he married her when the heady days were over indeed, and no doubt he wanted more peace and quiet. She was a woman who was more quiet, and would not be like his other wives. She was an intelligent woman, who served her role well, whatever needed doing. I am sure actual nursing would have been more done by servants than anything else. He most likely woudn't have married her when he was younger, but after all his other wives, her safeness and quiet was appealing. She had experience of older husbands as well.
