![]() From 1525, Cromwell was in charge of dissolving these small, and either corrupted or collapsing, religious houses. The colleges were huge undertakings for Cromwell, because, in order to pay for these projects, monasteries needed to be dissolved to pay for the works, and building materials gathered from the bones of these houses. Enter Thomas Cromwell.Ĭromwell had little to nothing to do with Wolsey’s work for the king or government. Italians were the master artists of the period, and Wolsey needed someone who could work on his tomb and colleges and speak fluent Italian. Wolsey continued his vanity projects, his colleges at Ipswich and Oxford, and the building of his magnificent tomb at his new palace, Hampton Court. Henry continued to favour Wolsey, meaning these enemies could do little. But Wolsey’s grip on power, as a lowborn man, meant he had a good collection of noble enemies. He had overseen much of England’s workings throughout Henry’s reign, and by the mid-20s, had total control, hence the restricted parliament sittings (no one can argue if no one can speak). Wolsey was a man burdened by the role as cardinal as well as Lord Chancellor to King Henry. Only after this, through a mixture of mutual friends and allies, did Wolsey learn of the ‘finest Italian in England’, Thomas Cromwell, and how his skills could be valuable. The early 1520s saw him going into service for Thomas Grey, 2 nd Marquess of Dorset, and within a year, was so beloved by the family that some referred to him in letters as a ‘dear brother.’ When Cromwell entered parliament for its sole sitting in almost a decade, it is likely that Thomas Grey got Cromwell elected, as Cromwell still did not work for Cardinal Wolsey. By 1520, Cromwell had become fluent in Italian, French, Latin, and even a smattering of Flemish, Spanish, Greek and German. From fighting in the French army, a decade living in Florence as a merchant and lawyer, a short stint working in Antwerp, followed by another decade of legal work split between London and Rome, Cromwell was well-known, well-liked and respected, and as a consequence of his travels and language skills, well-connected. Thanks to the work of Diarmaid MacCulloch, the details of Cromwell’s life prior to his time with Wolsey is no longer a mystery. But did Cromwell even want to work for the king? The Tudors showed a more ruthless Cromwell a man who ignored his master in favour of the glitter of the royal court. Hilary Mantel’s version shows Cromwell saddened by his master’s fall, and then promoting himself at court. On the face of it, that is the story, but when you break it down, there are far more factors at play. Soon, Wolsey was dead at Leicester Abbey, dying onroute to his own execution. As Wolsey fell from grace, his lawyer Thomas Cromwell swiftly moved in and took his master’s place at the King’s side. The common belief prevails that Cardinal Wolsey fell out of favour hard and fast with King Henry over the legatine court debacle of May-July 1529. I considered writing an article on the fate of Wolsey, but there are already wonderful pieces on Wolsey’s demise (such as this by The Tudor Travel Guide), so I decided to go in a different direction. November 30 marked the 489th anniversary of Cardinal Thomas Wolsey’s death. ![]() Ben Miles as Thomas Cromwell, and Paul Jesson as Wolsey, in RSC’s Wolf Hall.
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