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Part 3: Chapter 1
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Wolf Hall, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Power, Ambition, and Deception
Poor Leadership and Violence
Children and Human Connection
Dogmatism vs. Open-Mindedness
Myth and Storytelling
Summary
Analysis
Cromwell arrives at York Place. Some children by the river greet him by name, and “[f]or their civility, he gives them each a coin, and they stop to talk.” They ask him if he is off to meet “the evil lady” who has “bewitched the king.” Inside, he runs into Mark Smeaton and asks him if he doesn’t miss the cardinal. Mark sulkily says he doesn’t, and that he is happy here. As he walks away, Cromwell thinks that he cannot help disliking the boy for saying that he looks like a murderer. Cromwell has confessed only to Wolsey that he once killed a man while he was a soldier in France, and he is sure that no one else knows this.
Cromwell is friendly and generous to the children he encounters by the river, and he also seems interested in their opinions of Anne Boleyn—Cromwell is always interested in information, no matter how inconsequential it might seem. His opinion of Mark Smeaton is in stark contrast to his warmth with the children. Cromwell doesn’t let go of his grudges, and he hasn’t forgotten Mark’s declaration that he looks like a murderer. While Cromwell had a rough youth, he has a deep antipathy to violence as an adult and seems unhappy about the murder that he has on his conscience.
Themes
In an interior room, “where the cardinal should be,” Cromwell finds Anne Boleyn. He thinks she looks “sallow and sharp.” Her fingers are “tugging and ripping at a sprig of rosemary,” but as soon as she sees Cromwell, “her hands dip back into her trailing sleeves.” In December, the king gave a banquet to celebrate Thomas Boleyn’s elevation to Earl of Wiltshire. Katherine was not present, and Anne sat in her seat. But the king has gone back to his wife since it is the end of Lent, and Cromwell thinks that Anne is now bored enough to send for Cromwell. She has three little dogs—Cromwell thinks of them as “Bellas” in reference to his old dog—that lick his face and look at him with affection, which seems to please her. She says she could never love “those apes that Katherine keeps.”
York Place used to be the cardinal’s London residence, and Cromwell resents that it is now Anne Boleyn’s. Anne seems nervous as she tugs at the rosemary, and her action of “ripping” it also points to her inherent violence. When she realizes she is being noticed, she immediately stops and hides her hands in her long sleeves, which shows that she, like Cromwell, understands the need to conceal her insecurities and vulnerabilities. When Cromwell first met Mary Boleyn at court, he noticed that she revealed too much—she hitched up her skirts and showed him her green stockings. In contrast, Anne is closed and hidden. In the novel, power is won through deception and subterfuge, which explains Anne’s rise to power—she is even taking Queen Katherine’s place at banquets and has wrangled a title for her father—while Mary Boleyn never gets to the top.
Themes
Cromwell thinks that Anne is so small that “two Annes make one Katherine.” She is surrounded by women sitting on low stools who are pretending to sew, among whom is Mary Boleyn. There is also Mary Shelton, a Boleyn cousin who looks at Cromwell disapprovingly—he thinks she must be thinking that Mary Boleyn has low standards to set her sights on him. He also notices a quiet girl he does not know, “who has her face turned away, trying to hide.”
While most people might not pay much attention to ladies-in-waiting who are pretending to sew, Cromwell notices them all carefully. He gets much of his information from court gossip, and he knows that these women could be valuable sources of information if he can get them to trust him enough to tell him what they know.
Themes
Anne Boleyn tells Cromwell that he has suddenly become popular with the king, who “does not cease to quote” him and also says that Cromwell makes him laugh. Cromwell admits the king does laugh, but he asks Anne if she ever does, since she is in a difficult situation. She admits she seldom does. Cromwell asks if she has seen an improvement in her situation after Wolsey “was reduced,” and she says there has been no change. He tells her that Wolsey is an expert in “the workings of Christian countries” and is “intimate with kings.” He says Wolsey will be very grateful to Anne if she helps to “restor[e] him to the king’s grace.”
Anne Boleyn seems to have heard about Cromwell from the king, but she also wants to make up her own mind about him. Like Cromwell, she behaves as if she already has the power she craves—which is part of how she gets that power.
Themes
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Anne Boleyn listens carefully as Cromwell makes his case for the cardinal. Then, she says, “if the king wants it, and the cardinal wants it, […] it is all taking a marvelous long while to come to pass!” Mary Boleyn says under her breath that Anne, too, is “not getting any younger.” Anne says that they asked “one simple thing” of the cardinal, and he would not deliver. Cromwell tells her that she knows it wasn’t simple. Anne says that perhaps Cromwell thinks she is “a simple person,” to which he replies that she might be, since he doesn’t know her. His reply irritates her, and she dismisses him.
Anne Boleyn might be slowly getting more powerful in court, but she doesn’t yet have any real power since she isn’t married to the king. At this point, Cromwell is in a similar position, since he is well-liked by the king but doesn’t have an official position at court. At their first meeting, Anne and Cromwell seem to be taking stock of each other, and Cromwell’s attitude toward her lacks the deference he might give the queen.
Themes
After Cromwell leaves the room, Mary Boleyn follows him out. She tells Cromwell that she and Mary Shelton can’t wait for him to come again because they thought Anne Boleyn might “run up and slap [him].” Cromwell says that she “can stand it,” and Mary admits that Anne “likes a skirmish with someone on her own level.” She shows Cromwell Anne’s new coat of arms that she is having her ladies embroider onto all her garments since she is so pleased to have it.
Mary Boleyn explicitly points out what Mantel has been hinting at: Anne Boleyn and Thomas Cromwell are on similar trajectories to power, and they use similar strategies to get there. Anne’s wish to have all her clothing display her coat of arms is also a symbolic indication that she views herself as royalty, even though she’s technically not the queen yet.
Themes
Mary Boleyn tells Cromwell how the king quarreled with Katherine during Christmas and came to Anne Boleyn for comfort, but that Anne scolded him, saying that she’d told him not to pick an argument with Katherine since he always loses. Mary says “with relish” that if Henry wasn’t the king, “one could pity him. For the dog’s life they lead him.”
Mary Boleyn provides Cromwell with inside information about how the king struggles between his queen and his mistress, both of whom seem to always be unhappy with him. By describing Henry as a dog, Mary implies another of Mantel’s central points: in such a corrupt and scheming society, even (or perhaps especially) kings are no different from animals.
Themes
Cromwell asks Mary Boleyn if the rumors that Anne Boleyn is pregnant are true, and she says that Anne “can’t [be], because they don’t. They haven’t.” When Anne and the king, “are alone, she lets him unlace her bodice” and “kiss her breasts,” but they don’t do anything more. Cromwell comments that he’s impressed the king can even find Anne’s breasts, which Mary laughs uproariously at. Right after, Anne sends “the small hiding girl” to bring Mary back inside. As Mary heads back inside in a huff, “the small pale girl” catches Cromwell’s eye and “raises her own eyes to Heaven.”
Mary Boleyn gives Cromwell all the details about the exact nature of the king’s sexual relationship with Anne Boleyn, and in the easy way Cromwell has, he knows what to say to make Mary laugh at the sister she dislikes. When the “small pale girl” comes to fetch Mary, she catches Cromwell’s eye and raises her own eyes as if to say that the entire Boleyn clan is beyond hope—a gesture that Cromwell finds striking and memorable, perhaps because it is unexpectedly bold in a seemingly meek young girl. This moment will become important later on, as the shy girl turns out to be Jane Seymour, Henry’s eventual third wife.
Themes
As Cromwell walks out, he thinks of Anne Boleyn’s “speed, intelligence, and rigor.” He didn’t think she would help the cardinal, but he thought there was nothing lost in asking. He thinks of Anne’s “skewering dark glance” and finds it similar to how the king looks when he is focused on something, and he almost understands their attraction for each other. Cromwell thinks that this relationship opens up many possibilities, since a “world where Anne can be queen is a world where Cromwell can be Cromwell.”
Here, Cromwell explicitly recognizes that if Anne were to become queen, it would mean that he, too, could rise in court. The Boleyns occupy a low rung in the ladder of nobility. So, if Anne can become queen, it might mean that Cromwell’s own background as a blacksmith’s son might not matter. At this moment, Cromwell seems to decide to align himself with Anne’s cause.
Themes
In the kitchen at Austin Friars, Cromwell picks up a knife and asks his cook, Thurston, if he looks like a murderer. Thurston hesitates to admit it, so Cromwell asks him to picture him carrying “a folio of papers and an inkhorn” instead. Thurston says he would then look like a lawyer, but that he always looks “like a man who knows how to cut up a carcass.”
After seeing Mark Smeaton at York Place, Cromwell is still bothered by the idea that he looks like a murderer. Despite his loathing of violence, there seems to be an air of determination and danger about Cromwell that makes most people think he does look capable of killing; he has an inherent ruthlessness that never quite goes away, even though he’s also kind and compassionate.
Themes
The women in the household have heard that Cromwell has been to see Anne Boleyn and they are very curious about her. They ask him what she looks like and how she was dressed, which Cromwell answers the best he can. When Mercy asks him if she has good teeth, Cromwell says he’ll let her know after “she sinks them into [him].”
Cromwell is acutely aware that if he doesn’t carefully handle the problem that is Anne Boleyn, it could be dangerous for him. The mention of her teeth makes her sound like an animal, which again emphasizes the brutal and uncivilized nature of the Tudor court.
Themes
Norfolk threatens that he will go to Richmond “to tear [the cardinal] with his teeth,” and when Wolsey hears this, he decides it’s time for him to leave and go north. However, he needs funds for the move, and the king’s council argue about whether they should give him the money. Cromwell hopes to meet with the king to discuss this, but instead he gets his Master Secretary, Stephen Gardiner. Gardiner has a menacing attitude as he tells Cromwell that he will “put [him] straight on a few matters.” Cromwell notices Gardiner’s “great hairy hands, and knuckles which crack when he folds his right fist into his left palm.”
Norfolk feels threatened because Wolsey is still geographically close to the king and he worries that the king and Wolsey might reconcile, especially since Cromwell is spending more time in the king’s company. Norfolk threatens to “tear [Wolsey] with his teeth” if he doesn’t move away, a phrase that makes him sound like an animal rather than a human being and again shows the violent, uncivilized nature of court politics. Similarly, when Cromwell meets Gardiner to appeal for money on the cardinal’s behalf, he notices that Gardiner’s threatening, hairy hands are reminiscent of an animal.
Themes
Cromwell “takes away the menace conveyed, and the message” as he mildly tells Gardiner that his cousin Richard Williams “sends greetings.” Gardiner’s “eyebrows bristle, like a dog’s hackles,” and he says that he doesn’t believe the “old tale” and that he “will do nothing” for this “young person.” He tells Cromwell that his family has no grasp of “propriety.” Cromwell tells him nothing is expected as the boy has already changed his name to Richard Cromwell. Cromwell smiles as he talks to Gardiner, but “[i]nside, he is beside himself with rage, […] as if his blood were thin and full of dilute venom like the uncolored blood of a snake.” When he gets home, he tells Rafe that he wants to “become perfectly calm.”
While Gardiner seems set to give Cromwell a piece of his mind and deny his claim for money, Cromwell completely baffles him by suddenly speaking about his nephew Richard, who is Gardiner’s distant relative. Gardiner is irritated by this, and he refuses to help the boy in any way—but Cromwell has successfully diverted him from what he originally intended to say. Gardiner is compared to an angry dog that is ready for a fight—his hackles are visibly raised, and his emotions are transparent. Cromwell, on the other hand, is “beside himself with rage” when Gardiner insults his family, but he smiles on the outside. Cromwell is so angry that he feels like his blood has turned to snake venom, and yet, he doesn’t show it. Cromwell’s rage is stealthier and more dangerous, but both men are essentially animals. Still, Cromwell’s ability to hide his true emotions helps him when he is a courtier, while Gardiner often ends up offending the king by expressing his anger and annoyance.
Themes
Later, Cromwell returns to Norfolk and tells him that if he wants the cardinal gone, he must go with Cromwell to the king to ask for the funds. Norfolk agrees, and as they walk in the garden, Norfolk talks of the Duke of Buckingham, who was an avid gardener. Cromwell recalls that he was executed for treason less than 10 years ago. As they head to the interview with the king, Cromwell notices that Norfolk’s hand is trembling. He understands that “it rattles the old duke to be in a room with Henry Tudor.”
Henry seems like a genial king when Cromwell is making him laugh, but he can be very dangerous when crossed. Norfolk seems to have this in mind when he thinks of the Duke of Buckingham, who was executed for treason. Cromwell realizes that despite his boastful and arrogant behavior, Norfolk is nervous around Henry and unable to hide it, as his shaking hands make clear. Cromwell, in contrast, is able to disguise his true feelings.
Themes
Henry is in a cheerful mood and “will talk about anything except the cardinal.” After Cromwell and Norfolk are dismissed, the king calls Cromwell back into the room to talk to him alone, which annoys Norfolk. Henry offers the cardinal 1,000 pounds, and Cromwell wants to say that it will be a good start to the 10,000 pounds that the king owes that cardinal. Instead, he falls to his knees in gratitude, knowing that this is what the king expects.
Cromwell is actually disappointed at the meager sum the king offers the cardinal, but he is effusive in his gratitude because he knows it is important to please Henry. Unlike the many characters who insist on voicing their true feelings, Cromwell expresses only what he thinks will help him get what he wants.
Themes
The king comments that the “Duke of Norfolk shows [Cromwell] many marks of friendship and favor.” Cromwell knows that the king is surprised that the duke had his hand on Cromwell’s shoulder, and he tells the king that “the duke is careful to preserve all distinctions of rank.” Henry seems relieved at this. Cromwell wonders to himself: if Henry were to get sick and fall, would Cromwell “be allowed to pick [him] up,” or would he have to “send for an earl to do it”?
Even though Henry likes Cromwell, he seems insistent on upholding the “distinctions of rank.” Henry was uncomfortable because Norfolk, a nobleman, was touching Cromwell, a commoner, in a friendly manner. Cromwell outwardly reassures Henry that he knows his place, but to himself, he thinks that Henry might soon find himself needing to rely on someone of a low rank.
Themes
The king then admits in a whisper that he misses Wolsey. He tells Cromwell to take the money and not tell anyone about it. Cromwell leaves, “face composed, fighting the impulse to smile broadly.” When Norfolk asks him what the king said, Cromwell tells him he had “some special hard words […] to convey to the cardinal.”
Cromwell is very pleased to hear that Henry misses Wolsey, which he takes as a sign that Wolsey’s troubles might soon come to an end. However, he makes sure that his face is composed as he leaves the king because he doesn’t want Norfolk or Wolsey’s other enemies to know about this.
Themes
Soon, the cardinal’s itinerary is drawn up, and his possessions are put on coastal barges, which he will take to Hull and then travel over land with his 160 servants. Cromwell tells his nephew Richard that “a thousand pounds isn’t much when you have a cardinal to move,” but he refuses to disclose how much of his own money he is putting into the enterprise—he says he owes the cardinal so much that the money he is spending on him is irrelevant.
Out of affection and loyalty to the cardinal, who has long been Cromwell’s employer and friend and gave him his start in court, Cromwell spends a large sum of his own money to move him and his attendants to York. This shows that Cromwell values his relationships more highly than his money—an attitude that will serve him well as he ascends through the court.
Themes
On the night before his departure, the cardinal gives Cromwell a small package that seems to contain a ring, and he asks him to open it after he leaves. The cardinal asks him if he will come north, and Cromwell says he will come “to fetch [him], the minute the king summons [him] back.” He kneels for a blessing and notices that the cardinal’s turquoise ring is missing from his hand. Cromwell feels it is time for him to leave since “[s]o much has been said between them that it is useless to add a marginal note.”
Cromwell promises to come to York to fetch the cardinal as soon as Henry sends for him, but both Wolsey and Cromwell seem to understand that this will never happen, and that this might be the last time they are seeing each other. The emotional weight of this scene highlights how crucial Cromwell’s kindness and interpersonal connections are to his character.
Themes
The cardinal turns his chair towards the fire and covers his face with a hand as Cromwell leaves. On his way to the courtyard, Cromwell stops and leans against the wall in a dark recess and finds himself crying. He hopes that Cavendish will not come by and see him, and then “write it down and make it into a play.” When Cromwell gets home, he dreams of Liz and wonders if she will recognize “the man he vows he soon will be: adamant, mild, keeper of the king’s peace.”
As Cromwell leaves, the cardinal turns away and covers his face with his hands to hide his tears. Cromwell, too, is overcome by grief and dreads being spotted by Cavendish. The last time Cavendish caught Cromwell crying, Cromwell was mourning his dead family but lied that he was crying about the cardinal’s troubles, and Cavendish broadcasted this news to everyone he saw. Cromwell doesn’t want to be forced to make up another story this time around, but ironically, making “a play” out of his feelings is exactly what Mantel is doing throughout the novel. This scene suggests that even knowing that the world is made of stories, as Cromwell knows here, cannot help an individual avoid being caught up in them.
Themes
When Cromwell wakes up on the morning of April 6, he wonders why he isn’t with the cardinal and worries about the travel arrangements. Rafe says he will go to ensure that everything is perfect. Richard tells Cromwell that “it is time to let the cardinal go.” During Holy Week, they get reports that a large number of people have gathered in Peterborough to “look at Wolsey” as he makes his way slowly to his first stop at Southwell, which he reaches on April 28.
At this point, Cromwell is forced to transition out of his role as Wolsey’s surrogate son and more closely embrace the young people of his household, whom he has always supported. Rafe and Richard’s support here indicates that Cromwell’s kindness to vulnerable people has had positive consequences over time.
Themes
At court, the ambassador Chapuys tells Cromwell that he hears from Cromwell’s “old master” every week, and that Wolsey has become “solicitous about [Katherine’s] health.” Wolsey asks Katherine to stay hopeful that she will soon “be restored to the king’s bosom” and “bed.” Chapuys says they know that “he turns back to the queen” since the “concubine will not help him.” The queen, however, has vowed to never forgive the cardinal. Chapuys says there will be a “tangle of wreckage” if a divorce is “somehow extorted” from the Pope—the “Emperor, in defense of his aunt, may make war on England.” Cromwell knows he is meant to convey this message to the cardinal to let him know “that he has come to the end of his credit with the Emperor.” He sends Rafe to Wolsey with messages “too secret to put into letters.”
Wolsey seems to have made enemies of both Anne Boleyn and Katherine—Katherine will not forget that Wolsey tried to get an annulment, while Anne is displeased that he failed. Complicating matters further, Katherine’s nephew and Chapuys’s boss, Emperor Charles, has promised war if his aunt is divorced, even if the Pope approves the divorce. Interestingly, Wolsey genuinely did do his best to please the king, but he failed; sincere effort was not enough to save him. From Wolsey’s downfall, Cromwell learns the lesson that deception and manipulation are better routes to power.
Themes
One evening, Henry is melancholy that he cannot be married to Anne, and he indicates to Cromwell that he would like to own the land that produces income for the cardinal’s college at Oxford and the school at Ipswich. The “wealth of twenty-nine monasteries has gone into those foundations,” and by the Pope’s orders, this money can only be used for the colleges. But Henry says he “is beginning to care very little about the Pope and his permissions.”
Henry is growing increasingly frustrated at the Catholic Church curbing his freedoms, and he seems to be in the mood to oppose it in whatever way he can. While he initially was seeking the Pope’s permission to end his marriage, his goals have grown even loftier after being thwarted. This evolution proves Cromwell’s instinct that Henry will stop at nothing to get what he wants.
Themes
Henry wants to know if Cromwell comes from some landed people and says he will send “the heralds to look into it.” Cromwell says they will not have any success, and Henry is upset that he “is failing to take advantage of what is on offer: a pedigree, however meager.” Henry says the cardinal told him that Cromwell was an orphan who was brought up in a monastery, which is why he “had a loathing of those in the religious life.” Cromwell says that this was “one of his little stories.” Henry is surprised that the cardinal told him stories, and his face is a mixture of “annoyance, amusement, [and] a wish to call back times past.”
Since social hierarchies are very important to Henry, he tries to give Cromwell a pedigree, but Cromwell refuses the offer. He is transparent about his past, but Wolsey seems to have made Cromwell’s past seem even more colorful than it is. Henry’s sincere surprise that the cardinal could have told him “stories” reveals one of his weaknesses: while Cromwell understands that everything is a story that looks different from different perspectives, Henry is used to thinking (incorrectly) that his own perspective is absolute truth.
Themes
Cromwell realizes that, with the cardinal gone, Henry has no one to really converse with—a conversation that has “nothing to do with love, or hunting, or war.” He tells the king that in his experience, monks are very corrupt and lead lives of hypocrisy and idleness. He says monasteries are not houses of learning or invention, and that monks are writing the history of their country to make it “favorable to Rome.” The king tells him that he, too, is interested in an accurate history of their country, and he asks Cromwell to consult with the “learned gentlemen” who are working on it, led by Dr. Cranmer.
In his criticism of the monks, Cromwell accuses them of manipulating the history of England in a way that suits the Catholic Church. Henry wants an “accurate history” of their country, and he has some scholars working on it—but of course, since these scholars are hired by Henry, they will rewrite the history of England in a way that the king. Again, Mantel highlights how all so-called histories are shaped by the perspectives of the people who write them.
Themes
Henry says that he would like to save the money he sends to Rome. He says that he is not as rich as King Francois, who has more subjects and “taxes them as he pleases,” while Henry must answer to Parliament. Cromwell says that Francois “likes war too much, and trade too little,” and that there is “more tax to be raised when trade is good.” Henry agrees and asks Cromwell to sit with his lawyers and “[b]egin with the colleges.” As Henry Norris escorts Cromwell out, he warns him against being Henry’s tax collector since he had his father’s best tax men killed.
Henry Norris warns Cromwell that dealing with the kingdom’s money can be a dangerous job, once again showing that the king’s self-indulgent anger can be hazardous for those who work for him.
Themes
That summer, Cromwell’s son Gregory turns 15, and he is excellent at horse-riding and swordsmanship, though his Greek isn’t very good. He has two black greyhounds at Cambridge but wants to get rid of them because people say only criminals who hunt illegally at night have black dogs. Cromwell says he will take the dogs, and when Gregory worries that people might laugh at him, too, Johane says that no one will “dare laugh” at Cromwell.
Cromwell accepts Gregory lovingly despite his flaws, and as further proof of his kind heart, he even agrees to adopt the dogs his son wants to discard. Still, the rumor about the dogs is significant; it hints that for all Cromwell’s kindness, some part of him really is an illicit criminal.
Themes
Gregory likes reading about the lives of saints in The Golden Legend. He has the newest edition of Le Morte d’Arthur, and the family crowds around it to admire it. Gregory says that King Henry himself is descended from King Arthur, the book’s main character. He says that, “[s]ome of these things are true and some of them lies,” but “they are all good stories.”
Gregory’s pronouncement on Le Morte d’Arthur seems to be Mantel’s opinion of the historical novel she has written. While much of it might not be true, she hopes it will be a good story nonetheless. What’s more, this reference to a real work of historical fiction makes it clear that telling stories about history is always something humans have done; even in Henry VIII’s time, there were already popular works of fiction about the king’s ancestors.
Themes
The next time the king calls Cromwell to court, he wants him to ask the cardinal about a Breton merchant whose ship was seized eight years ago and who is now demanding compensation for it. The king says Wolsey handled it back then. Cromwell offers to take care of the matter, and Charles Brandon, the Duke of Suffolk, tells the king that Cromwell can surely handle it.
Cromwell was thinking about making his way into court by dealing with the king’s finances, and he is happy when an opportunity to do so presents itself. Outwardly, his actions simply seem helpful, but it’s already clear to the reader that Cromwell wants to use his relationship with the king for his own gain.
Themes
Earlier, Cromwell had been to Suffolk’s kennels to admire his hounds, and he had given him a useful tip on how to cure his favorite dog, who was going blind. Following this, Suffolk had told Cromwell that he was “a useful sort of man.” Then, he told Cromwell that he had no problem with Henry getting what he wanted, but that Suffolk’s wife was Katherine’s friend. Also, his wife couldn’t bear the idea of “Norfolk’s niece” having precedence over her, since she herself used to be Queen of France. Suffolk wondered if he should tell Henry that Thomas Wyatt would soon be back, and Cromwell advised him to “leave it alone.”
Cromwell has succeeded in winning Suffolk over, too, by giving him advice about his dogs. It’s notable that Cromwell doesn’t have to do anything extraordinary to gain the favor of an enemy; he just sees what Suffolk needs and draws on his wide range of practical skills to provide it. Again, Cromwell’s diverse experiences and unusual background prove to be assets at the court. As Suffolk speaks to him openly about the issue of Henry marrying Anne Boleyn, Cromwell discovers that there are tensions between Suffolk and Norfolk, as well, and that Suffolk would prefer it if Henry and Anne’s relationship were over.
Themes
That summer, Henry hunts often, and he is sometimes accompanied by Katherine. Anne sometimes accompanies Henry when Katherine doesn’t. Henry Norris tells Cromwell that it will soon be his turn to accompany Henry on hunts “if he continues to favor [Cromwell] as he does.” Cromwell thinks that Norris was with the cardinal at Putney “when he fell on his knees in the dirt.” He thinks that Norris is the one who must have told “the court, […] the world, [and] the students of Gray’s Inn” about this.
Cromwell has a tendency to not let old grudges slide, and he hasn’t forgotten the play by the law students at Gray’s Inn that mocked the cardinal and showed him comically falling off his horse. He deduces that Henry Norris was the only one who was there when the cardinal fell off his horse at Putney, so he must have been the one who told other people about it. This confirms his initial opinion that Norris is a “subtle crook.”
Themes
At Austin Friars, there are so many people that it is impossible to be alone. A young man named Thomas Wriothesley is the newest addition to the household. Richard and Rafe laugh at him for his complicated last name and call him “Call-Me-Risley,” because Wriothesley keeps explaining the pronunciation of his name. They also say Wriothesley is Gardiner’s spy since he works with Gardiner, too. Cromwell would like to ask these young men if they think he looks like a murderer, since he knows a boy who says he does.
Cromwell’s willingness to employ Wriothesley demonstrates his ongoing esteem for Gardiner, even though they so often butt heads. On the other hand, Cromwell is increasingly bothered by Mark Smeaton’s claim that he looks like a murderer. Since Cromwell is seeking to embark on a career as a courtier, he is aware that appearances matter a lot, and he’s concerned that something about his essential nature will show through.
Themes
That summer, there is no plague, and to celebrate this, Londoners hang garlands of white lilies outside their doors on St. John’s Eve. The flowers remind Cromwell of the quiet girl who was with Anne Boleyn. He wants to write to Gregory and say, “I have seen such a sweet girl, […] and, if I steer our family adroitly in the next few years, perhaps you can marry her.” However, he knows that she must be from some noble family while he is in a “precarious situation,” and so he’s in no position to be making promises.
The quiet girl Cromwell remembers will later turn out to be Jane Seymour, who will eventually become Henry’s third wife. Though Cromwell thinks here that there’s a wide gap between her noble background and his own family, it will actually be Cromwell who helps arrange her marriage to Henry.
Themes
Thomas More invites Cromwell to his house so they can discuss Wolsey’s colleges and so he can show Cromwell his new carpet. Cromwell finds Stephen Gardiner there when he arrives at the house in Chelsea. Gardiner is trying to bait More in an argument about his son-in-law Will Roper, who has apparently changed his religion from Lutheranism to Catholicism. The men are followed by More’s fool, Henry Pattinson, who Cromwell suspects isn’t as simple as he seems because More “enjoys embarrassing people” and uses Pattinson to do so.
Like Cromwell, Pattinson uses an outward performance to conceal his real motivations. Pattinson appears foolish while scheming to embarrass people, and Cromwell appears calm and friendly while always calculating to achieve his goals.
Themes
Cromwell inspects the new Turkish carpet that More shows them and isn’t impressed by its quality or weave. However, he tells More that it is beautiful, “not wanting to spoil his pleasure,” and he thinks that the “flaw in the weave hardly matters” since a “carpet is not an oath.” Cromwell thinks that “some people in this world […] like everything squared up” while others “will allow some drift at the margins.” Cromwell “is both these kinds of person.” He tells More to use the carpet to walk on—rather than hanging it up—and More laughs at his expensive tastes, as though “they were friends.” Later, More tells Cromwell that Gardiner has spoken on behalf of the cardinal’s colleges to the king, and that the king “may refound Cardinal College in his name,” but that there is no hope for Ipswich.
Cromwell is kind when he praises More’s carpet, since he knows that More values his opinion because of Cromwell’s background as a cloth trader in Antwerp. Even though Cromwell dislikes More, he still makes himself behave in a way that will please More, since he knows that doing so will make More more likely to be his ally. Cromwell also recognizes here that he isn’t a rigid person, and that he doesn’t mind letting some imperfections slide, depending on the context. Again, this contrasts him with people—like More, for one—who stick to their principles at all costs.
Themes
When they go in for supper, they speak in Latin even though More’s wife, Alice, does not understand it. More has his favorite daughter, Meg, read the scripture in Greek. When the food is brought in, More speaks in Latin, telling everyone to eat, “except Alice, who will burst out of her corset.” He explains to his guests that her “expression of painful surprise” is caused by “scraping back her hair and driving in great ivory pins, to the peril of her skull.” Cromwell feels awkward at his uncivility, and he thinks that he prefers the Thomas More in the family portrait that hangs on the wall because “you can see that he’s thinking, but not what he’s thinking, and that’s the way it should be.”
More’s harsh treatment of his wife is in stark contrast to Cromwell’s warm, respectful relationship with Liz, and it shows More’s lack of kindness and character. Cromwell is uncomfortable at his coarse rudeness and thinks that he prefers not to know Thomas More’s thoughts since they are so mean-spirited. His comment is also a more general statement about the desirability of keeping one’s thoughts hidden, the way Cromwell so often does.
Themes
Then, Thomas More and his elderly father John More tell stories of “foolish women,” while Alice scowls and Gardiner, “who has heard all these stories before, is grinding his teeth.” More points to his daughter-in-law, Anne Cresacre, and says the girl wanted a pearl necklace, so he’d tricked her by giving her “a box that rattled,” which he’d filled with dried peas.
The entire dinner is a horribly uncomfortable affair, with Thomas More and his father mocking women in general and especially the women in their household. Again, More’s cruelty contrasts with Cromwell’s own kindness to the women in his household.
Themes
After dinner, Thomas More talks about wicked King Richard III, about whom he has started writing books in both Latin and English. While some say that Norfolk’s grandfather was involved in the deaths of two royal children in the Tower, More thinks Constable Brakenbury had given the keys to the killers. Cromwell realizes that he is trying to defend Norfolk’s ancestor with this version of the story because Norfolk is his ally.
Mantel once again points out that histories and stories are always told with agendas. Thomas More, who is considered to be a learned scholar, is nonetheless rewriting an event in England’s past in order to defend his friend, Norfolk.
Themes
When Gardiner gets a chance to talk to Cromwell alone, he asks him if he knows which one of them Wriothesley is working for. Cromwell says he thought he was working for Gardiner since he is Clerk of the Signet and is supposed to assist the Master Secretary. Gardiner wants to know why Wriothesley is always at Cromwell’s house, and Cromwell says he’s “not a bound apprentice,” and he is free to come and go. Gardiner says the boy “has his eye on advantage,” to which Cromwell answers that he hopes everyone has that.
Like Rafe and Richard, Gardiner, too, seems wary of Wriothesley since he is working for both Cromwell and Gardiner. He warns Cromwell that Wriothesley wants to take advantage of them to further his own career. Gardiner suggests that this a bad thing, but Cromwell practically says that this is what everyone wants—or what they should want, anyway. While most people are wary of Wriothesley’s bare ambition, Cromwell accepts it as a practical position much like his own.
Themes
When Cromwell takes his leave of Alice More, she asks him why he isn’t marrying again, since he is rich and she hears that he has “got everything in good working order,” which makes Gardiner laugh. Cromwell and Gardiner then head to Gardiner’s barge, and Cromwell says that More “daren’t make himself plain.” Gardiner replies that though he doesn’t, everyone knows his opinions, “which are fixed and impervious to argument.” He says More promised not to meddle with the divorce when he took office, but Gardiner wonders how long the king will accept that. Cromwell clarifies that he wasn’t talking about More being honest with the king, but rather with Alice. Gardiner laughs and agrees, saying that she would “have him plucked and roasted” if she understood what he said.
Gardiner agrees with Cromwell that More is a man of fixed opinions who won’t change his mind. Even though he is Henry’s Lord Chancellor, More clearly disapproves of the divorce since it is against the Church. Though More presents his single-mindedness as a virtue, his inability to change or even hide his opinions will get him in trouble with Henry later on.
Themes
Cromwell then talks about Anne Cresacre, who was an orphan heiress whose neighbors had kidnapped and raped her in Yorkshire. The cardinal was furious when he’d heard of this, and he had her placed under More’s care where he thought she’d be safe. Gardiner says she is safe, but Cromwell thinks she isn’t safe “from humiliation.” He tells Gardiner that after More’s son married her, he lives off her money, and that it seems reasonable for her to have a string of pearls if she would like to. Gardiner says that More’s son “shows no talent for affairs,” and that he hears that Cromwell, too, has a son like that. Cromwell thinks that this is true, but that he and More can’t be blamed for turning their sons into “idle young gentlemen” and for “wanting for them the ease [they] didn’t have.”
Cromwell pities Anne Cresacre, More’s daughter-in-law, whose money More’s son lives off of. Cromwell makes it clear that he thinks that emotional abuse is a type of danger, too, which shows that he is generally more compassionate than his peers.
Themes
Gardiner tells Cromwell he may still have other sons, since Alice is determined to find him a wife. Cromwell feels afraid, thinking that it is “like Mark, the lute player: people imagining what they cannot know,” since he is sure that he and Johane have been very secretive. He asks Gardiner if he thinks of marrying, to which Gardiner coldly responds that he is “in holy orders.” Cromwell presses him, insisting that he must have women, but Gardiner calls this a “Putney inquiry” and stops talking to him.
Gardiner is amused that Alice seemed determined that Cromwell should marry and had even mentioned that she’d heard that Cromwell had everything “in good working order.” Cromwell, however, is afraid that she might have somehow heard about the affair that he and Johane are apparently having. If people find out about this, it would ruin his happy household and possibly his career, because it would be considered incest. In order to divert Gardiner’s attention from this subject, Cromwell irritates Gardiner by asking about the women in his life, though Gardiner is a priest sworn to celibacy. Gardiner finds this line of questioning undignified and calls it a “Putney inquiry,” implying that Cromwell’s low origins are the reason he speaks so coarsely.
Themes
When Cromwell disembarks in Westminster, he tells Gardiner that the trip wasn’t too bad since “neither of them has thrown the other in the river.” Gardiner says he was only waiting for the water to be colder and to tie weights to Cromwell. He asks Cromwell what he is going to do in Westminster, and he is surprised when Cromwell says he has an appointment with Anne Boleyn.
Cromwell now seems to be on familiar terms with Anne Boleyn, despite the fact that their first meeting didn’t go too well. Even the reader doesn’t see exactly how Cromwell achieved this, which subtly emphasizes how subtle and nuanced his rise in power is.
Themes
Cromwell finds Anne Boleyn in a silk nightgown and slippers, and he thinks that “Anne lets him treat her fairly normally, except when she has a sudden, savage seizure of I-who-will-be-Queen, and slaps him down.” She asks him if they spoke of her at dinner, and he tells her they do not mention her in More’s house. Cromwell says he knows that Norfolk and her father are busy meeting ambassadors from France, Venice, and the Emperor—he suspects that they are plotting against the cardinal. Anne says she didn’t think he could afford such information, and Cromwell says that “[s]ometimes people just tell [him] things.” Anne says her father told her not to trust Cromwell because “one can never tell who he’s working for,” but to her “it is perfectly obvious” that he is working for himself. Cromwell thinks they are alike in this way.
Anne Boleyn and Cromwell have settled into a relationship in which they each recognize and respect the other’s ambition. Cromwell believes that if Anne Boleyn is crowned queen, it will disrupt the rigid hierarchy at court, which would mean that he, too, could land a position of power. He also recognizes that he and Anne are similar in the sense that they put their self-interest first. However, Cromwell has an advantage over her because he is likeable—as a result, he has a network of people, like Mary Boleyn, who “just tell him things.”
Themes
In August, the cardinal sends the king a letter in which he complains about his debts and his creditors hounding him, but rumors reach the court that he is leading a lavish, extravagant life. Wriothesley goes up to Southwell to get a petition signed by the cardinal, and he reports that the cardinal looks well and is popular with the people. The petition, one of Norfolk’s ideas, has the bishops and peers put their signatures on a letter asking the Pope to “let the king have his freedom,” and it “contains certain murky, unspecified threats.”
The cardinal seems to be behaving in an irrationally gaudy manner, which is the opposite of Cromwell’s disciplined, discreet course of action. Meanwhile, Norfolk has taken to threatening the Pope after diplomatic channels have failed, which emphasizes just how chaotic and haphazard even high-stakes international affairs are.
Themes
Cromwell is worried by the news of the cardinal’s popularity, thinking that the king can “be offended again” and bring back the charges against him. He notices Norfolk and Gardiner whispering together. Wriothesley diligently helps Cromwell and is a better assistant than even Rafe. Johane’s daughter sews an “awkward backstitch” that would be hard to imitate, and Cromwell has her sew up his letters to the north so no one would be able to read them and sew them back up in the same way.
Cromwell immediately realizes that Wolsey is putting himself in danger once again by parading his popularity, and he sends him letters to warn against this. Wolsey seems to be at a bit of a loss without Cromwell, his “man of business,” at his side to advise him. Cromwell, on the other hand, seems more than capable of managing his career without Wolsey, highlighting how successful he’s been in rising above his past stations.
Themes
In September 1530, the cardinal leaves Southwell and heads to York. People in the countryside flock to him, begging him to lay his “magical hands” on their children, and “he prays for them all.” Gardiner tells Cromwell that the “council has the cardinal under observation,” while Norfolk says he will “chew him up, bones, flesh, and gristle.” On October 2, the cardinal reaches his palace at Cawood, and his enthronement at York is planned for November 7. The court hears that the cardinal has planned a “convocation of the northern church” on the day after his enthronement. He hasn’t informed the king or Warham, the Archbishop of Canterbury, so it is viewed as a sign of revolt.
Wolsey is using his popularity with the people in order to assert his power—he seems to have disregarded Cromwell’s letters warning him that the courtiers are viewing his actions with displeasure. Wolsey seems to be challenging the king, in a way, since he must know that Henry will not take kindly to Wolsey throwing his weight around. Norfolk, who is prone to fits of anger, threatens to “chew him up,” like an animal might do, which demonstrates that hardly anyone in this situation is behaving in a mature, humane way.
Themes
Norfolk is furious when he meets Cromwell. He says that a “[c]ardinal’s hat [is] not enough for [Wolsey], [and that] only a crown will do” for him. Cromwell thinks that Wolsey “would have made such an excellent king; so benign, so sure and suave in his dealings, so equitable, so swift and discerning.” To his surprise, the duke says he understands 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.
Norfolk is disgusted by Wolsey’s ambition, but Cromwell cannot help thinking that Wolsey might have made a perfect king. Unlike Henry, who is moody, willful, and self-indulgent, Wolsey is fair-minded and “benign.” While Cromwell worked for Wolsey, he was never afraid for his safety, even when he disagreed with the cardinal. In contrast, after spending time with Henry, Cromwell knows that having the wrong opinions or attitude can be dangerous for people in court.
Themes
Norfolk says it’s a pity that Cromwell works for Wolsey and not for Norfolk. Cromwell says that they do both want the same thing—for Anne Boleyn to be queen—and that they should work together. Norfolk doesn’t like his usage of the word “together,” and he asks him not to forget his place, which Cromwell says he is always mindful of. Norfolk says that Anne is “out for bloody murder” and “wants the cardinal’s guts in a dish to feed her spaniels, and his limbs nailed over the city gates of York.”
Norfolk reminds Cromwell that they are not on the same social level—while Cromwell can work for Norfolk, they could not work “together” since that would imply that they are equals. Since Anne Boleyn seems to want Wolsey out of the way, the danger he is in seems to be even greater since Anne has the ear of the king, and the mention of her dogs reinforces the idea that she’s behaving as much like an animal as anyone else.
Themes
Cromwell goes to meet Anne Boleyn early one morning and finds that Cranmer is with her, just returned from Rome “with no good news.” Cromwell knows Cranmer from when he used to work for the cardinal, and they “embrace cautiously” since Cranmer is a Cambridge scholar while Cromwell is a “person from Putney.” Cromwell asks him why he didn’t come to Cardinal College when he was invited, and Anne sneeringly says it was probably because he was seeking something more permanent. Cromwell tells her the king might soon take over the college at Oxford, and that it could perhaps be named after her. Anne has a habit of “tuck[ing] her hands back in her sleeves,” so some people say “she has something to hide, a deformity; but [Cromwell] thinks she is a woman who doesn’t like to show her hand.”
Cromwell is constantly reminded that he is a nobody from Putney, but he seems to rebel against this idea when he is in the company of uncouth courtiers like Norfolk, who probably seem no better to Cromwell than the pugnacious crowd he used to hang out with in Putney. However, in the presence of a learned scholar like Cranmer, Cromwell is very aware of the gulf between them. Cromwell once again notices Anne’s habit of hiding her hands in her sleeves, which is a symbol of the way in which she hides her schemes from the world—just like Cromwell does.
Themes
Anne Boleyn tells them that she hears that “Rome will issue a decree telling the king to separate” from her, and Cranmer says that doing so “would be a clear mistake on Rome’s part.” Anne agrees. She says she is reading Tyndale’s The Obedience of a Christian Man, in which he argues that a “subject must obey his king as he would his God.” She says she has shared passages from the book with the king. Cranmer looks at her as if she were a child “who dazzles [him] by sudden aptitude.”
Unlike More, Cranmer is a scholar who doesn’t defer blindly to the teachings of the Catholic Church. In fact, he seems to lean the opposite way, which is why Anne Boleyn finds him useful in her struggle with the Church, which refuses to grant Henry the annulment he seeks. Cromwell was always interested in Tyndale’s work, despite his books being banned as heresy, but it seems like they are slowly getting more popular, with even Anne Boleyn and the king reading them. This scene foreshadows the way that More’s perspective will soon fall out of favor, as Henry gains the power over the church that he desires.
Themes
Anne Boleyn shows them a drawing which was found in her bed by the “sickly milk-faced creeper” who “cries if you look at her sideways.” The drawing shows three figures—the king with a crown on his head, Katherine on one side, and a headless Anne on the other. Cranmer offers to destroy it, but Anne says she can destroy it herself. She says that there “is a prophecy that a queen of England will be burned,” and even if it is true, she “mean[s] to have him.”
The drawing that Jane Seymour finds in Anne Boleyn’s bed seems to be a sign of things to come, since Henry will eventually have her beheaded for adultery after they are married. However, Anne is so ambitious and desperate to be the queen that she is willing to pay for it with her life. She knows she is unpopular and that some people wish to hurt her, but she is nonetheless fixated on her goals.
Themes
As Cromwell and Cranmer are leaving, they see the pale girl heading toward them, and Cromwell asks her if she has been spying. She nods and says she is spying for her brothers, but that she isn’t very good at it. Since she doesn’t know French, she asks Cromwell not to speak in French at his next meeting with Anne Boleyn, and she introduces herself as John Seymour’s daughter from Wolf Hall. Cromwell is surprised because he thought the Seymour girls were with Katherine. The girl says she goes where she’s sent, but Cromwell says she is “not where [she is] appreciated.” She says she is appreciated, in a way, since Anne would never refuse any of Katherine’s ladies. As she leaves them, a “small suspicion enters [Cromwell’s] mind, about the paper in the bed,” but he ends up thinking it is impossible.
Cromwell meets the pale girl he is so fond of, and he finally finds out who she is. This is the first time in the novel that Wolf Hall itself is mentioned, so readers can understand that Jane Seymour will be a main player at the Tudor court, even though she doesn’t seem to be important yet. Years later, after Anne Boleyn is executed for treason, Jane Seymour will replace her as Henry’s queen. When Cromwell asks her if she is spying, she freely admits that she has been spying for her brothers, which shows her naiveté. She used to be with Katherine’s court, and she has now been sent to keep Anne company. As Cromwell is leaving, he suspects that this girl might have been the one who put the drawing in Anne’s bed since she was the one who found it. He is also likely wondering whether she is a spy for Katherine. However, the girl seems so innocent and incapable of violent threats that he thinks he must be mistaken.
Themes
Cromwell asks Cranmer if he is heading back to Cambridge, but Cranmer says that the Boleyns want him at hand. He tells Cromwell that Anne Boleyn “has formed a good opinion” of Cromwell, and that he owes more to her than he realizes, even though she has no interest in being his sister-in-law. He also tells Cromwell that the reason he didn’t come to the cardinal’s college years ago was because of the students who had died in the fish cellar. Cromwell says that the cardinal “was never a man to ride down another for his opinions,” and that Cranmer would have been safe there. Cranmer says that the cardinal “would have found no heresy” in him.
Since Cranmer is a scholar who seems ready to oppose the Pope, the Boleyns find it useful to have him around so they can consult with him. Cranmer insinuates that Anne Boleyn knows that her sister Mary Boleyn proposed marriage to Cromwell, and that while she isn’t in favor of the match, Anne does like Cromwell and has done favors for him—though Cranmer doesn’t mention what these might be. Cranmer also explains that the reason he stayed away from the cardinal’s college was because of the deaths of the cardinal’s two students who were caught reading Luther. Since Cranmer, too, reads books by Tyndale and Luther that are banned by Thomas More, he feared that he might not be safe to do this in the cardinal’s college since Wolsey couldn’t protect those two students from being severely punished.
Themes
Later, Cromwell asks Wriothesley if Cranmer is as orthodox as he claims to be. Wriothesley says that Cranmer doesn’t like monks, so he should get along with Cromwell. Cromwell says he seems like a solitary kind of person, and Wriothesley is surprised that Cromwell doesn’t know about Cranmer and the barmaid.
Cromwell finds Cranmer puzzling because he reads books banned by Thomas More while also claiming that there is “no heresy” in him. While Cranmer seems very sedate and serious, Wriothesley claims that Cranmer has some history with a barmaid, which puzzles Cromwell even further since Cranmer might be very unlike what he seems.
Themes
Cromwell invites Cranmer to supper at his house. He discovers that he is the son of a gentleman who came from a tiny village called Aslockton. He suffered at school with a harsh schoolmaster and was glad to leave and go to Cambridge when he was 14. Cranmer says the cardinal told one of his acquaintances that Cromwell was “stolen by pirates.” Cromwell “smiles in slow delight” and says he misses Wolsey because now “there is no one to invent [Cromwell].” Cranmer seems concerned that if this story were true, it would mean that Cromwell has not been baptized. Cromwell thinks that Cranmer will always believe that Cromwell is a bit of a heathen.
Wolsey seems to have taken great delight in fabricating interesting stories about Cromwell’s past. He once told Henry that Cromwell was an orphan who lived with monks, and now he’s told Cranmer that Cromwell was kidnapped by pirates. Wolsey’s stories are untrue in a literal sense, but they nonetheless express something of the essence of Cromwell’s nature, which demonstrates how fiction can reveal underlying truth.
Themes
Cranmer says that he, too, is a widower just like Cromwell. He married an orphan called Joan, and as a result, he lost his fellowship at Cambridge. He kept Joan, who was pregnant, at the Dolphin, an inn that some relatives ran. He says she was never a barmaid, as people like to say. Joan died in labor, along with the child, and Jesus College took Cranmer back. He took holy orders, but he thinks of Joan every day. Cromwell thinks that he has his whole family, and the cardinal, “if the cardinal still thinks well of him,” but that Cranmer has nothing. Cromwell says he hopes he can bring the cardinal back, but Cranmer says that won’t be possible. He suggests that Cromwell go visit him and explain the situation, but Cromwell says that the “snare has been set” for Wolsey, so Cromwell doesn’t dare to move.
Since Cranmer was studying theology at Cambridge College, he wasn’t supposed to marry, which was why he lost his fellowship after his marriage. Despite the deaths in his own life, Cromwell thinks that he has so much, while Cranmer, in comparison, is all alone. Cromwell’s ability to empathize with others’ grief makes him come across as a kind and likeable person.
Themes
Cromwell begins to go hunting with the king in autumn, and the king likes to talk to him as he takes aim with his arrows, saying that they can be alone here. Cromwell thinks that “the population of a small village […] is circulating around them,” and he wonders if the king even knows what “alone” means. The king says that many tell him that he can “consider [his] marriage dissolved in the eyes of Christian Europe,” but Cromwell disagrees. He hesitates to tell Henry that he and Katherine still share a roof and a court. Cromwell also thinks that Henry can admit any “weakness or failure” to Katherine, but he can’t do the same to Anne Boleyn. The king tells him that Anne has threatened to leave him, saying “that there are other men and she is wasting her youth.”
Cromwell seems to be rising even higher in the king’s favor since he is being invited along on hunts. But at this point, Cromwell is afraid to voice his opinions and incur the king’s wrath; he does what he often wishes others would do and simply keeps his thoughts to himself. In the meanwhile, Anne Boleyn seems so confident in her power over Henry that she has resorted to threatening to leave him if he doesn’t marry her soon.
Themes
It is November again—a year since the cardinal was ousted—and Norfolk tells an audience of gentlemen that they will be in a difficult situation if Henry dies, since he doesn’t have an heir. His bastard, Henry Fitzroy, seems like “a fine boy,” and Anne Boleyn thinks Norfolk should get him married to Norfolk’s daughter Mary Howard, so the king will be surrounded by Howards, but Norfolk doesn’t think a bastard can reign.
Anne Boleyn seems to think it important for Henry to always be surrounded by her family—in a sense, she is deviously trapping him so he cannot get away from her. Her planning is impressive and even extends to Henry’s illegitimate son who has no right to the throne. Just in case the boy should ever reign, Anne wants him married to a member of her family so she can retain her power and wealth.
Themes
Cromwell, “who is increasingly where he shouldn’t be,” says that Henry does have a child born in wedlock who can reign. Norfolk is incredulous that “[t]hat talking shrimp” Mary Tudor might ever rule, but Gardiner seems interested in the idea. Cromwell says it would “depend [on] who advises her,” and “who she marries.” Norfolk says they have to act soon to get the divorce since “Katherine has half the lawyers of Europe pushing paper for her.”
Norfolk is having this conversation with the gentleman at court, but Cromwell—who is neither a gentleman nor a courtier—has somehow made his way into the conversation, showing that he has become something of a fixture at court despite having no official position.
Themes
On November 1, 1530, “a commission for the cardinal’s arrest is given to Harry Percy, the young Earl of Northumberland.” The earl arrests Wolsey at Cawood, two days before his planned investiture. As Wolsey is being transported south, he falls sick and dies. Cromwell thinks that before Wolsey, England was a “little offshore island, poor and cold.” Cavendish brings news of how Harry Percy arrived to arrest the cardinal for high treason as he was eating his dinner. Cromwell suspects that Anne Boleyn orchestrated the whole thing—that it was “vengeance deferred” since “her old lover, once berated by the cardinal and sent packing from the court,” was the one to arrest him. Cavendish says the cardinal spent some time alone in his room, and when he came out, he said, “I am not afraid of any man alive.”
Despite Cromwell being friendly with Henry, Anne Boleyn, and Norfolk, he had no knowledge of Wolsey’s arrest until after it happened. Even though these people say they like him, they also know that he is still loyal to Wolsey and might warn him of what is to come, so they are careful to keep him in the dark. This incident goes to show that relationships at court are often superficial, and that most people are unwavering in their quests for more power.
Themes
Cavendish describes how the townspeople “knelt in the road and wept” as the cardinal was taken away, and that they “asked God to send vengeance on Harry Percy.” Cromwell thinks that God need not bother, as he himself will handle it. Cavendish says that the cardinal did not eat for a week as they traveled south, and that “[s]ome say he meant to destroy himself.” Cavendish insisted he eat some pears, after which the cardinal put his hand to his chest, saying there was “something cold inside [him], like a whetstone.” When Kingston, the Constable of the Tower, arrived, the cardinal was convinced he was being sent to his death. He became very ill, and Cromwell suspects that he might have poisoned himself since Wolsey was always good at finding his way out of difficulties.
After spending 20 years as a powerful man who advised the king on his most important decisions, Wolsey’s death—which Cromwell suspects is by suicide—seems like a tragic and inconsequential end. At the same time, Cromwell’s suspicion suggests that in a way, the cardinal did retain power at the end of his life; he chose when to die rather than letting himself be tried and executed.
Themes
Later, some courtiers perform an interlude named “The Cardinal’s Descent into Hell,” in which “a vast scarlet figure, supine, is dragged across the floor, howling, by actors dressed as devils.” Anne Boleyn laughs uproariously at the performance, while Henry “sits frozen by her side.” It reminds Cromwell of the performance last year at Gray’s Inn. The devils tell the figure in red that Beelzebub is expecting him for supper, and when he asks, “What wines does he serve?” Cromwell “almost forgets himself and laughs.” After the play, he goes behind the screens where he sees that the actors who played the devils include George Boleyn and Henry Norris. They are so preoccupied with themselves that they do not notice when a page who is trying to help them clean up “gets an elbow in the eye” and drops his bowl of water.
The cardinal was unpopular in court when he was alive, and after his death, he has become a joke. Mantel is interested in exploring the different ways in which a person is perceived and how this affects the stories that are told about them. These stories, in turn, seem to affect how they are remembered. While Cromwell thinks of Wolsey with reverence and affection, most people regard him as a corrupt and greedy man, which is how he is portrayed in the play. Despite Cromwell’s sadness at this portrayal of Wolsey, he isn’t immune to the humor of the play and almost ends laughing at it, which shows his open-mindedness to all perspectives, as well as the power of storytelling to change one’s perspective. After the play, Cromwell goes backstage and, despite being preoccupied with his thoughts about the play, he notices and sympathizes with a young page who gets elbowed in the eye. While George Boleyn and Henry Norris are the ones who hurt the page, they are too self-involved to notice what they did—but Cromwell does, which shows how his kindness sets him apart from these men.
Themes
Cromwell wants to know who played the part of the cardinal, and he sees that it is Patch, the cardinal’s old fool who had protested so violently when the cardinal sent him to the king as a present. Cromwell asks him how he could have agreed to play this part, and Patch answers that he “act[s] what part [he’s] paid to act.” Laughing, he says that Cromwell, “the retired mercenary,” is in a bad temper because no one is paying him.
Cromwell is shocked that Patch would play this role that humiliates his former master, but Patch very practically states that he does whatever he needs to in order to make money and survive. Patch’s response shows that the need to behave ruthlessly in exchange for money, power, and security extends through all levels of the court.
Themes
Cromwell hears a child crying nearby and wonders if it is the page who got elbowed; he thinks he was probably slapped for dropping the bowl, or for “just crying.” He thinks that “[c]hildhood was like that; you are punished, then punished again for protesting. So, one learns not to complain; it is a hard lesson, but one never lost.”
Cromwell is always sympathetic to children, and these thoughts about the powerlessness and hardships of children are proof of this. However, they also seem to be a comment on others without power—like Patch, and even Cromwell, to an extent—who must make the best of the situations that come their way without complaint. Patch does not complain that he now belongs to Henry, and Cromwell does not complain about the mockery of Wolsey that he just witnessed.
Themes
Patch is sticking out his tongue from behind the screen in the direction of the king sitting on the other side of it. He says, “The fool has said in his heart, there is no Pope,” and he tells Cromwell that fools can say anything. Cromwell replies they cannot, “where [his] writ runs,” and Patch says his power doesn’t even extend to “the backyard where he was christened in a puddle.” Cromwell says he could crack Patch’s skull right then and that no one would miss him. Patch agrees, saying, they “would roll [him] out in the morning and lay [him] on a dunghill.” He says that no one would miss one fool, because “England is full of them.”
In court tradition, fools were permitted to speak their mind without punishment, and Patch uses this freedom to comment on Henry’s actions. He insinuates that Henry is a fool who refuses to acknowledge the Pope, but cleverly says it in a way that might mean he is talking about himself instead.
Themes
