History might remember King Henry VIII as a fat tyrant, but Showtime's series The Tudors depicts him as a virile and magnetic monarch in his prime. Jonathan Rhys Meyers portrays Henry VIII as more tantalizing than tyrannical, and the show's focus on the king's insatiable sexual appetite makes the audience more interested in his coital conquests than his historical significance.

The Tudors chronicles the juiciest incidents of Henry VIII's court. While the show accurately and sometimes too thoroughly details the political events of Henry's time, it makes up for the tiresome facts with lots of graphic sex scenes. Corsets, kirtles, brooches and stockings rarely deter Henry VIII and his court from fornicating frequently and enthusiastically.

Well-bred women of the sixteenth century were expected to wait until marriage to give up their "maidenhood," but according to the women of The Tudors, virginity is inconsequential when faced with the honor of being plucked by the king. While Henry beds a multitude of Queen Catharine's ladies throughout the first six episodes, he isn't the show's only lust-crazed character to indulge in promiscuity. What follows is a brief overview of the more lecherous members of Henry VIII's company.

Anne Boleyn (Natalie Dormer)

Anne and the king show remarkable restraint by abstaining from boinking each other in the first six episodes, but only because they get their fill elsewhere. Anne is still hot for her lover - poet Thomas Wyatt - when she begins vying for Henry's affections. She uses Wyatt's marriage as an excuse to break with him. "Who isn't married?" is his astute response. Anne quickly forgets her sonnet-espousing lover upon receiving tokens (read: massive jewels) from Henry and relies on anticipatory flirtation over actual intercourse to keep the king intrigued. This means many wet dreams for Henry: He sees her naked body sprawled before his throne and hears her purr, "Seduce me," before waking in cold sweat and damp undergarments. When Henry desperately offers to make Anne his sole mistress, she feigns offense and insists that her maidenhood is only for her husband...oh, and that other guy Thomas Wyatt. Henry promises her an engagement, the two suck face and dry hump on Anne's bed and - just as Anne begins to lift her petticoat - Henry virtuously declares they must wait until they are married to consummate their love.

Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk (Henry Cavill)

Brandon has the simultaneous blessing and misfortune of being as attractive as Henry. His frivolous, laidback nature initially places him in the king's favor and their lively friendship inspires Henry to bestow a title on him. During a doubles tennis match, the king dares him to screw the Duke of Buckingham's daughter and Brandon quite literally rises to the occasion. When Buckingham catches him doing his little girl doggy style and self-righteously screams, "You violated my daughter!" Brandon cheekily replies, "I swear, Your Grace, someone else was there before me." Unfortunately, Brandon's tendency to think with his dick leads to a tryst with the king's sister and results in his temporary banishment from court.

Princess Margaret Tudor (Gabrielle Anwar)

Henry's sister is rightfully peeved when he marries her off to the grandfatherly king of Portugal. She demands to marry someone of her choosing when her ancient husband dies. Brandon escorts Margaret to Portugal and sparks fly during the long sea journey. Margaret watches Brandon undress through a hole in the wall between their rooms and invites him to play cards with her the following evening. He taunts her for marrying an aging king; she responds, "Don't tease me. I don't like it." Brandon's question, "Will you like it when an old man tries to make love to you?" prompts the princess to send her ladies away in order to privately reprimand him. The tension along with their palpable chemistry sets off one of the show's more impressive sex scenes: Brandon pins Margaret to the wall of cabin, lifts her skirts and her legs around his torso and thrusts into her as the ship's creaking and the ocean waves silence their moans. They marry in secret after the Portuguese king dies. Even Henry's fury at their failure to get his permission doesn't stop them from having rough, slap-happy sex on a palace dining table before being banished to the country.

Lady Elizabeth Blount (Ruta Gedmintas)

Lady Blount is the first of many naked women sprawled across Henry's bed. In Episode 1, he bangs her with rhythmic thrusts in the missionary position and both moan orgasmically as he comes inside her. As Henry massages her breasts and sucks on her inner-thigh in post-coital bliss, he asks, "How is your husband?" Lady Blount replies, "Extremely jealous...threatening to put me in a nunnery."

"That would be a waste," murmurs the king before they go at it again. As condoms aren't yet in vogue (though Henry would be the first to say, "It feels better without one.") Lady Blount gets pregnant. Cardinal Wolsey compassionately arranges for her to leave the court before she starts to show, saying, "You will be removed to a private place for your lying in, and there you will give birth to your bastard." Ouch.

Mary Boleyn (Perdita Weeks)

The tramp of the Boleyn family, Mary first catches the king's eye during a peaceful summit between England and France in Episode 2. King Francois points her out to Henry by saying "I call Mary my English mare, because I ride her so often."

Henry likes a sure thing as much as the next mere mortal, so Brandon delivers Mary to his chambers. Upon entering, Mary drops to her knees and not in a curtsy: She's perfected the European act of fellatio during her time at France's royal court, and shocks and delights the king with her slurping skills. English women once deemed oral sex a dirty trick because blowjobs weren't necessary for procreation - in their minds it was better to bear bastard children than to give pleasure that wouldn't result in pregnancy. Fortunately for Henry, Mary ignores her country's conventions to better service his majesty.

Sir Thomas More (Jeremy Northam)

While Northam's Thomas More isn't quite as endearing as Emma's Mr. Nightly, his struggle to be virtuous in the face of sinful temptations makes him appealing. More refuses to live at court and instead resides in the countryside with his wife and many legitimate children. His sexual reservations last until the end of the first episode, at which point he removes his tunic to reveal a hair shirt and fully engages in the mortification of the flesh by whipping himself. Talk about pent-up lust!

The Tudors on Showtime Sundays, 10 pm ET/PT