If there’s one person in history who divides opinion like no-one else, it’s this man – Thomas Cromwell. As King Henry VIII’s right-hand man he changed Britain for ever, severing contact with the Pope to make the King head of the church, plundering monasteries and even conspiring to execute Anne Boleyn. Tracy Borman, Thomas Cromwell: A Very Modern Tudor I, Channel 5 2023
Thomas Cromwell was born around 1485 here in Putney on the banks of the River Thames. ibid.
Back in England, his CV bolstered, Cromwell was now on the lookout for a top job. He didn’t have to wait long. He was headhunted by none other than King Henry VIII’s special advisor, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey. ibid.
A man capable of great kindness to his friends but terrible cruelty to his enemies. Tracy Borman, Thomas Cromwell: A Very Modern Tudor II
He masterminded England’s break from the Vatican and the Roman Catholic Church, all that the King could marry Anne Boleyn. ibid.
The Tudor court was a dangerous place, and Cromwell was always looking over his shoulder. ibid.
Henry VIII was also something of a sex machine. Sex: A Bonkers History II: The Tudors, History 2023
It’s 1529. Henry VIII is on the throne – married to Katherine of Aragon for 20 years without producing a male heir. He has been petitioning the Pope for an annulment for two years without success. Cardinal Wolsey – Lord Chancellor and Henry’s advocate in the petition to Rome – has failed his Sovereign in only this one matter. And Henry is not a forgiving man. Wolf Hall I ***** caption, BBC 2015
You’re dismissed as Lord Chancellor. By the King’s order. And you’re to return to us the Great Seal. ibid. aide
The gentlest, wisest prince in Christendom. I’ll not hear a word against Henry from any man. ibid.
Bloke in black: Wolsey burns Bibles.
Cromwell: More will burn men. ibid.
Wars are not affordable things. ibid. Cromwell to Henry
It’s December 1520: Cardinal Wolsey has taken refuge at Esher. Anne Boleyn and her uncle, the Duke of Norfolk, want him gone – on the road north, away from the King. Thomas Cromwell, Wolsey’s staunch defender, remains in London, seeking the reinstatement of his master. Wolf Hall II caption
Don’t you understand? I can’t talk about him. ibid. Henry VIII
The King wants me gone. He wants to humiliate me. ibid. Wolsey
It’s 1531. Having failed with the Pope, Henry seeks the power to annul his own marriage to Katherine by asking Parliament to declare him Supreme Head of the Church of England. Those loyal to Rome battle against the advancing tide of heresy. Chief amongst them the Lord Chancellor, Sir Thomas More. Wolf Hall III: Anna Regina, caption
The Pope is the head of the church everywhere. ibid. Princess Mary
This prophetess you harbour in your diocese .. ibid. Cromwell
Tindale still refuses to support the King’s divorce. ibid.
I want a job. An official post. The jewel house perhaps. ibid.
I think your faith is for purchase. ibid. More to Cromwell
Are you threatening me? ibid. Cromwell to More
One word from me and all your debts will be called in. ibid. Cromwell
So that’s it? More is out? Shall we go down? ibid. Anne to Cromwell
Everything that you have will come from me. ibid. Henry to Cromwell
Your majesty. The heretics you have around you must be put into a great fire. If you don’t do it, you’ll burn yourself. Here’s one – if you marry this one you’ll reign seven months. ibid. prophetess
You made a mistake threatening me, sir. ibid. Cromwell
Anne Boleyn has promised Henry VIII a son. In return the King has cast off his first wife and, over the objections of the Pope and the rest of Christendom, crowned Anne Queen. September 1533, Anne returns to Whitehall with her newborn child. Wolf Hall IV: The Devil’s Spit, caption
Healthy? Call her Elizabeth. Cancel the jousts. ibid. Henry
Mary is a bastard ... Meanwhile I want you to go to France. ibid. Anne to Cromwell
I keep you because you are a serpent. ibid. King to Thomas
It’s 1535. The Act of Supremacy has declared Henry Supreme Head of the Church in England. But the Holy Roman Emperor, and his ambassador Eustache Chapuys, have refused to recognise either his new title or his marriage to Anne Boleyn. Recovering from illness, Cromwell plans the King’s Royal Progress to include a visit to Jane Seymour’s family home. Wolf Hall V: Crows, caption
It’s as if my daughter had never been born. As if Katherine was still Queen. As if I didn’t exist. ibid. Anne
Jane – she’s a distraction that's all. ibid. Thomas
We can’t help what we do really. ibid. Henry
The Vatican has given Henry three months to return to obedience. ibid. Thomas
It’s the King Henry – he’s dead. ibid. message
What not geld me why you’re at it? That would suit you, madam. ibid. Henry to Anne
I see that God will not give me male children. ibid.
It’s 1536. Henry’s love for Anne Boleyn has given way to anger and distrust. His attention now fixed on Jane Seymour, Henry instructs Cromwell to rid him of his second Queen. Sensing her loss of favour, the Queen’s enemies are gathering. Wolf Hall VI: Masters of Phantoms, caption
But you will impart, Mark. You’ll do it freely or you’ll do it enforced. ibid. Cromwell
I only have a little neck. So it will be the work of a moment. ibid. Anne
It’s 1536. England is in uproar. Henry VII has broken with the Pope in Rome and overturned a thousand years of religion in his small kingdom, all so he can be parted from his first wife Katherine and marry Anne Boleyn. But Anne has failed to provide England with a male heir. So, Henry instructs Thomas Cromwell, son of a blacksmith and now his principle adviser, to concoct treason charges against her. Anne is taken to the Tower of London to await execution, while Henry prepares to marry his third wife, Jane Seymour. Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light I: Wreckage ***** BBC 2024
When negotiation and compromise fail, the your only course is to destroy your enemy before they wake in the morning, Rafe. Have the axe in your hand. ibid. Cromwell
Such freshness. Such delicacy. Such maidenly pudeur. I have come out of Hell into Heaven, and all in one night. ibid. Henry
My daughter Mary refuses to take the oath and acknowledge me as head of the church. ibid.
There’s a papal bull of excommunication hanging over my master. ibid. Cromwell to Chapuys
Never enter a contest of wills with the king. ibid. Cardinal Wolsey
A dog, madam. And on your scent. ibid. Cromwell
I mean to reward him [Cromwell] and his whole house. ibid. Henry
[Wolsey]: I feel like Catherine. Cast off. But still I love him. Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light II, BBC 2024
Henry will take the credit for all your good ideas. ibid. Wolsey to Cromwell
We’ve entered an age of coercion. ibid.