Eustache Chapuys Character Analysis in Wolf Hall

Chapuys is Emperor Charles’s ambassador to London. Chapuys spies on the events at the English court and sends the information back to Charles. He is aligned with Queen Katherine’s cause and initially seems antagonistic to Cromwell because Chapuys knows Cromwell is loyal to Wolsey, and Chapuys dislikes Wolsey for trying to displace Katherine. However, with time, Cromwell and Chapuys come to be something like friends. Though they disagree at court, they often have dinner together and enjoy each other’s company. Chapuys is always trying to puzzle out Cromwell’s past since he cannot seem to comprehend how a person with Cromwell’s background can be so successful and capable in court. Cromwell thinks that despite most people assuming that kings and emperors rule countries, policy and politics are often determined by people like himself and Chapuys, “two men in small rooms.”

Eustache Chapuys Character Timeline in Wolf Hall

The timeline below shows where the character Eustache Chapuys appears in Wolf Hall. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Power, Ambition, and Deception Theme Icon

Just then, the Emperor’s ambassador, Eustache Chapuys, walks in, and he provides a distraction from the argument. Cromwell later asks Chapuys if... (full context)

Dogmatism vs. Open-Mindedness Theme Icon

...that Cromwell is indefensible since he is friends with “the most corrupt [priest] in Christendom.” Chapuys seems disappointed by More, as if he expected him to be more of an ally.... (full context)

Children and Human Connection Theme Icon

At court, the ambassador Chapuys tells Cromwell that he hears from Cromwell’s “old master” every week, and that Wolsey has... (full context)

...that Cromwell has been left without a master, and that he, the king, and even Chapuys admire Cromwell’s loyalty to a “disgraced and fallen” man. (full context)

In October, Chapuys comes to Austin Friars for dinner. With the household, he speaks “pleasantly of verse [and]... (full context)

Cromwell hasn’t told anyone about this incident, not wanting to “give away pieces of himself.” Chapuys has taken to coming often to dinner to find out more about Cromwell’s past in... (full context)

...in a good mood, and how to be gentle with him when he is not. Chapuys notices that the king prefers to meet with Cromwell alone, rather than in his presence... (full context)

Meanwhile, rumors float around of Anne Boleyn’s pregnancy, and Chapuys immediately lets the rest of Europe know about it. Cromwell would have preferred it “if... (full context)

Cranmer has been named archbishop, at great expense to the king. Chapuys tells Henry he does not agree with the archbishop’s claim that his marriage to Katherine... (full context)

...will take its course with [her], as if [she] were any other subject.” He says Chapuys “urges war” in every letter he sends to Emperor Charles, and Katherine says she knows... (full context)

...home to Austin Friars on the evening before the coronation and calls on his neighbor Chapuys, who has closed his shutters to the celebrations. Chapuys says that Cromwell has succeeded where... (full context)

...expression on his face is unlike him. Rafe says Cromwell saves that expression for men. Chapuys comes in to look at it and says the painter has “missed the mark” because... (full context)

...power to reform monasteries and close them down if he chooses to. While Cromwell and Chapuys are officially enemies, they in fact visit each other often for dinner and discussions. Chapuys... (full context)