Thomas Cromwell was Wolsey’s successor as Henry’s chief minister. He was part of a faction of men who supported Anne Boleyn and his chief aim was to achieve a divorce to satisfy both the king and Anne. However, as Wolsey’s successor Cromwell would have realised the massive financial gains that could be had by tapping the Church’s income and diverting even a small proportion of it to his personal coffers. Much in the same way the early dissolutions funded Wolsey’s extravagance, Cromwell stood to gain financially from the reformation, the break with Rome, and specifically the dissolution of the monasteries. In addition to financial motivations, Cromwell believed that the Church in England was not an accurate manifestation of biblical law, and so was religiously motivated It is Cromwell who was responsible for the initial suggestion of the idea to break with Rome, and was instrumental in leading Henry toward the idea of a royal supremacy, as supported by Newcombe who claims that “in 1532, Cromwell brought forward a solution to the king’s problems.” Cromwell drafted many of the acts that were used to carry out the dissolution and achieve supremacy, for example the Act in Restraint of Annates and the Act of First Fruits and Tenths, both of which were aimed at taking money away from the monasteries. He was also responsible for the Act in Restraint of Appeals, which, despite failing to secure the divorce due to a legal technicality, decreased the Pope’s power in England. At the time of the initial stages of the reformation, Cromwell was chief legal advisor to Thomas Wolsey, and from this position he was able to exert his influence on the king’s court. Many of Wolsey’s initial reforms were orchestrated by Cromwell, such as the dissolution of smaller monasteries. Rex states that “nobody disputes the importance of Cromwell in bringing (supremacy) about,” and Randell’s view is similar – “two other men... are judged to have played an important role in these events, although it has never been suggested that they should be regarded as challenging Cromwell’s claim to be the pre-eminent influence.” Both historians’ views are very similar to each other and to the earlier opinion shown by Newcombe. This shows an agreement among these historians that Cromwell was highly influential in persuading Henry to break with Rome.
Thomas Cranmer was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury in 1533 and was a strong opponent of the Pope. Cranmer’s main motive was to reform the Catholic Church in keeping with what he believed to be God’s will. Randell backs this up by saying, “(Cranmer’s) aim was to see the clock turned back to the time, when, he claimed, the situation had been as God intended.” Cranmer certainly had influence on Henry. For example it was his suggestion, during the dispute over the divorce, to canvass theologians at universities around the world to gain support for Henry’s cause. Although this had little effect on Rome’s decision it demonstrates Henry’s willingness to listen to Cranmer and his ideas. Cranmer was a long standing advocate for absolute sovereignty and for Henry to be head of the Church in England. This is evidenced by his actions before his ascent to the position of Archbishop of Canterbury – specifically his criticism of the Pope’s power in England. Despite this, he was not the main driving force behind the break with Rome, which was far more significant than Cranmer’s policy on universities. Rather, he was someone who was utilised by Henry and Cromwell to carry out policy rather than suggest it. However, by enacting such policies, Cranmer leant momentum to the king’s plans and made many of them possible. This is shown by the fact that Cranmer was the man who annulled Henry’s first marriage. It can be argued that had Henry not had Cranmer in his high position of Archbishop on his side, but rather one of Catherine of Aragon’s supporters in this position, he would not have been able to propose or enact the policies which resulted in the break with Rome. In this way, Cranmer influenced the king’s decision not with important ideas, but with his actions and loyalty to the cause of Henry and Anne.
Cromwell and Cranmer were not the only people to influence Henry in his decision to break with Rome. Notably, Thomas Wolsey’s failure to secure a divorce using his influence with the Pope was what originally caused the break with Rome to be necessary. Inadvertently, therefore, Wolsey was a massive influence on the decision. As Newcombe states, “Henry had very few options left open to him.” Anne Boleyn played a role in Henry’s decision. Her motives are clear, she wanted to marry Henry and become queen of England. Henry wanted a male heir to succeed his throne, and in 1536 Anne became pregnant with Henry’s child. Unless Henry married her before the birth of this child it would have at best a contested claim to the throne. It is debated, however, as to how important Anne’s pregnancy was – Guy suggests that Henry faced more opposition in the early stages of reform when people believed that Henry’s infatuation with Anne would be short lived, hopes that would have been dispelled by her pregnancy. On the other hand, Scarisbrick argues that the main opposition to Henry’s divorce was Catherine of Aragon, and she was not deterred by Anne’s pregnancy to a great extent. Newcombe supports Guy’s view, claiming that “(Henry’s) early moves were hesitant.”
Henry’s own role and motivation cannot be ignored when looking at the decision to break with Rome. Henry was a devout Catholic and as such was sincerely upset by what he saw as corruption and betrayal of monastic vows. He was also worried about eternal damnation, given his interpretation of the Bible which suggested that his marriage to Catherine was immoral, and, possibly more importantly, the reason for his and Catherine’s failure to produce a male heir. Regardless of his motives, Henry’s role was vital – every idea conceived by his advisors had to be approved by the king if it were to have any hope of manifesting itself in policy, as Guy points out – “(Henry) always retained the right to have the last word; therefore he was the ultimate arbiter of policy.” Although it had been claimed that Henry was easily distracted from his policies, Randell points out that “changes of direction caused by Henry’s indecision are thought to be of less significance than they once were.”
After studying the roles and actions of each protagonist in the break with Rome, it is possible to put them into order of how influential they were. Henry VIII was clearly the most important individual as he was in the highest position of power, not only out of the proponents of the break with Rome, but in the entire country. Thomas Cromwell was more important than the other advisors and influences, only slightly more so than Cranmer, who played a similar role to Cromwell but was directly responsible for less legislation. Thomas Wolsey’s importance is more difficult to quantify, as his role was completely different from the roles of any other individual in that it was inadvertent, and what he did he did earlier than the others. Had Wolsey’s efforts been successful, the break with Rome would probably not have been prevented, and possibly not even delayed so in that respect he is not particularly important. Wolsey only played a role in one aspect of Henry’s motivation to break with Rome – the divorce case, and so is less important than those who were involved in the entire process of deciding whether to break with Rome, namely Cromwell and Cranmer. Anne Boleyn was the final influence on Henry’s decision. Like Wolsey, she was not involved in Henry’s desire to be master in his own kingdom, but was involved in the divorce case. In this way she was less important than Cranmer and Cromwell. Despite only being involved in one aspect of the decision, Anne was clearly the most important factor of that part of the process. Anne was the woman who caused Henry to apply for a divorce, as he wanted to marry her, and, in 1536, well after Wolsey was no longer an influence, she fell pregnant, increasing the urgency of the divorce and marriage. This shows that Anne was a more important influence than Wolsey.
After analysis of the people and events influencing Henry’s decision, it becomes clear that Cranmer and Cromwell were massively influential, Cromwell more so than Cranmer. This is because Cromwell was involved from an earlier time and generally was more able to take the role of “prime mover.” This should not be taken to mean that it was Cromwell’s sole decision to break with Rome. In fact, it was clearly Henry’s decision and he was the single most important individual involved, given his role as a monarch with absolute power. Rather, it shows that Cromwell and Cranmer had more influence than other individuals who tried to influence the course of policy.
2,184 words.
Henry VIII and the English Reformation (1993) – Richard Rex, page 8
Henry VIII and the English Reformation (1993) – Richard Rex, page 24
Henry VIII and the English Reformation (1995) – D.G. Newcombe, page 46
Henry VIII and the English Reformation (1993) – Richard Rex, page 16
Henry VIII and the Reformation in England (1993) – Keith Randell, page 42
Henry VIII and the Reformation in England (1993) – Keith Randell, page 42
Henry VIII and the English Reformation (1993) – Richard Rex, page 12
Henry VIII and the English Reformation (1995) – D.G. Newcombe, page 39
Tudor England (1988) – John Guy, pages 130-132
Henry VIII (1968) – J.J. Scarisbrick, pages 287-295
Henry VIII and the English Reformation (1995) – D.G. Newcombe, page 43
Henry VIII and his Ministers (1995) – John Guy, page 35.
Henry VIII and the Reformation in England (1993) – Keith Randell, page 42
Henry VIII and the Reformation in England (1993) – Keith Randell, pages 41-42