HENRY VIII AND CROMWELL 1529-40

• What aspect of Cromwell’s childhood illustrate his humble background?

  He was the son of a troublesome Putney blacksmith
• What did a young Cromwell decide to do in 1503?

  Leave England and travel around Europe
• What did Cromwell establish when he returned to England in c. 1514?

  A thriving legal practice
• How did Cromwell begin to develop a name for himself during the 1520s?

  He worked for Wolsey
• When was Wolsey first elected as an MP (Member of Parliament)?

  1523
• What words could be used to describe Cromwell’s character?


  Intelligent, determined, self-controlled, witty, charming
• For which area was Cromwell elected MP in 1529?

  Taunton
• In what year was Cromwell appointed to the Royal Council?

  1531
• When did Cromwell start to work for Henry on the case for the annulment?

  1531
• What was Cromwell’s ground-breaking idea to secure the annulment?


  Henry should take the decision himself, not the Pope, and Parliament could grant him the laws to be able to do so
• When were Henry and Anne Boleyn secretly and illegally married by Archbishop Cranmer?

  January 1533
• When was the Act in Restraint of Appeals passed?

  March 1533
• What did this new act state?

  England was ‘an empire’ and therefore no foreign ruler had any power there
• What new title was Henry also given at this time?

  Supreme Head of the Church in England
• What new power was he given when he got this new title?

  Right to grant annulments
• Who led the divorce hearing about Henry’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon?

  Archbishop Cranmer
• When did the hearing declare the marriage invalid because they had never been legally married?

  May 1533
• Why did Henry make Anne Bolen’s coronation celebrations so extravagant?

  To show people that Anne, not Catherine, was now queen
• In what year was Cromwell made Lord Privy Seal?

  1536
• Why did Henry give Cromwell less freedom to decide on policy than he had given Wolsey?

  Henry was older and wanted to make more decisions himself, and he didn’t want to make Cromwell as powerful as Wolsey had been
• When did Henry suffer his almost fatal jousting accident?

  January 1536
• Who was Anne Boleyn’s first and only surviving child with Henry?

  Elizabeth (future Queen Elizabeth I)
• Why did Henry believe Anne wasn’t able to provide him with a son?

  God disapproved of his marriage
• How had Henry’s attitude towards Anne started to change by 1536?

  He was increasingly irritated with her
• What was the name of the 23-year old musician who confessed to having an affair with Anne?

  Mark Smeaton
• Who took a lead role in building the adultery case against Anne Boleyn?

  Thomas Cromwell
• What is meant by the term ‘Cromwell conspiracy’?

  Unproven idea that Cromwell deliberately plotted to bring down Boleyn
• On what major issue did Cromwell and Boleyn strongly agree?

  Religion (both were Protestants)
• When was the execution of Anne Boleyn?


  May 1536
• What did Boleyn declare in her execution speech?

  She still loved Henry
• When did Henry marry Jane Seymour?


  May 1536
• Why did Henry marry Seymour so quickly after Anne Boleyn’s execution?

  He urgently needed a son
• What new law did parliament pass which allowed Henry to appoint any successor at any time?

  The Succession Act
• What motto did Jane Seymour adopt?

  ‘Bound to obey and serve’
• ‘Bound to obey and serve’


  October 1537
• How soon after the birth did Jane Seymour die?

  Less than two weeks
• How much influence did Jane Seymour have over Henry’s political decisions?

  Almost none
• What impact did Jane’s marriage to Henry have on her family?

  Their status and influence increased
• What was the name of Jane’s eldest brother, who became one of Henry’s leading advisers?

  Edward Seymour
• What was the name of Henry’s illegitimate son?

  Henry Fitzroy