Thomas Cromwell

About

English lawyer who served as chief minister to Henry VIII of England from 1534 to 1540. He helped to engineer an annulment of the king's marriage to Catherine Of Aragon so that the king could lawfully marry Anne Boleyn. He was one of the most powerful proponents of the English Reformation. He was beheaded on orders of the king, who later blamed false charges for the execution.

Before Fame

Documents in the Vatican Archives suggest that he was an agent for the Archbishop of York, Cardinal Christopher Bainbridge, and handled English ecclesiastical issues before the Roman Rota.

Trivia

In 1530, the king appointed him to the Privy Council. He held numerous offices during his career in the king's service, including Master of King's Jewel House and Great Chamberlain. He is a supporting character in William Shakespeare and John Fletcher's 1613 play Henry VIII.

Family Life

Around 1515, he married Elizabeth Wyckes. They had three children named Gregory, Anne and Grace. He also had an illegitimate daughter named Jane.

Associated With

Author Hilary Mantel wrote about his rise and fall in the Wolf Hall trilogy. He was played by Mark Rylance in the BBC's six-part series based on the novels.