Cromwell’s Court – The Royal Shakespeare Company

Today’s post is a guest article by Danielle Alesi, who first contributed to On the Tudor Trail in November 2013. Welcome back Danielle!

Cromwell’s Court

by Danielle Alesi

On Sunday, March 23, The Royal Shakespeare Company at the Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon, presented a very special symposium:  “Cromwell’s Court,” inspired by historical fiction novelist, Hilary Mantel’s best sellers, “Wolf Hall” and “Bring Up The Bodies.” These are the first two installments in a trilogy centered on Henry VIII’s vilified advisor, Thomas Cromwell, converted to an onstage performance this year by the Royal Shakespeare Company. The day began at 11am and ended at 4pm, where a packed theater was treated to presentations by some of England’s best historians: David Loades, Nicola Shulman, Diarmaid MacCulloch, and Tracey Borman.

Mantel, the keynote speaker and organizer of the event, opened with the misconceptions about the Tudors and Cromwell that specifically plagued her as a historian and novelist. She found that Cromwell is typically left out of the romantic historical fictions of Henry’s VIII’s court unless he is featured as a villain, a creature of the court, or a corrupt advisor whispering poison in the king’s ear. Mantel sought to portray a more accurate version of Thomas Cromwell in her books, writing a timeless story about “a man that takes to road and can’t go home.” Cromwell was not a scholar, she emphasized, he was a man of business, and therein lies his success. Whatever the king desired, he had the vision, the determination, and ability to make it work.

David Loades followed, presenting a paper on the politics of Henry’s court that he dedicated to his mentor, the late Geoffrey Elton. Loades is the author of several books, including “The Boleyn’s” and “Intrigue and Treason: The Tudor Court 1547-1558.” He emphasized the importance of the separate chambers within the court in gaining access to the king. While the council was in charge of the king’s official affairs, the privy chamber was comprised of men that remained close to the king day and night, and therefore had the most access and influence over him. Cardinal Wolsey, always desperate to keep his hold on Henry’s attention and affection, met his downfall by going against the king’s favorites. Cromwell, however, used Henry’s reliance on his friends to his advantage by placing his own men in the king’s private circle, thus preserving his own interests.

Thomas Wyatt

Next spoke Nicola Shulman, a cultural historian and author of “Graven With Diamonds,” a book about Thomas Wyatt. Shulman spoke on Wyatt’s sonnets about Anne Boleyn, claiming that Anne specifically sought out Wyatt to write about her. Shulman used this theory to support her claim that poetry, particularly Wyatt’s, is crucial to understanding the complicated political culture of Henry’s court. Anne Boleyn, according to Shulman, was politically astute enough to utilize Wyatt’s talent and popularity to help build her own image on her rise to the throne.

Diarmaid MacCulloch, a Reformation historian, was arguably the best speaker of the day. He presented a paper on the religious beliefs of Henry VIII, debating that the English Reformation was just as much Henry’s responsibility as Cromwell’s. Contrary to popular belief, MacCulloch believes that Henry was probably sincerely concerned about the theological validity of his marriage to Katherine of Aragon, and not merely using it as an excuse to rid himself of an old wife. To break from the Church of Rome was almost certainly Henry’s idea, however Cromwell provided the legwork, involving parliament and creating the legal grounds for the break. MacCulloch does concede that Anne Boleyn was highly influential in orchestrating the break. According to MacCulloch, she put Cromwell and Cranmer in place as a sort of double act. Cranmer represented the piety and theology and Cromwell was in charge of the dirty work, making it all happen.

Queen Anne Boleyn

Tracey Borman spoke last, providing a preview of her biography of Thomas Cromwell due out next September. Borman was inspired to write about Cromwell after reading Mantel’s “Wolf Hall”, claiming it made her “fall in love” with him. Her presentation focused on the characteristics that made Cromwell that successful and enigmatic man he was. He was a driven man and a hard-worker, pragmatic, and loyal. The question about Cromwell’s loyalty is interesting because, though he was quick to abandon his loyalty to Anne Boleyn and her family, his former patrons, he never wavered in his loyalty to Henry. Even after Cromwell’s execution, Henry referred to Cromwell as his “most faithful servant” and regretted his death.

Hilary Mantel’s “Wolf Hall”, like Borman’s new book, was the spark that brought to life this symposium as well as a renewed popular interest into Thomas Cromwell. Mantel’s depiction of Cromwell’s life, a seamless blend of the personal and the public career, brings to life a character often either forgotten or vilified in historical fiction and makes him sympathetic and real. Avid Anne Boleyn fans may not altogether forgive Cromwell for his hand in her downfall and execution, but any history lover would enjoy the chance to understand him better. Mantel herself proclaims that she is never quite sure what to make of Cromwell, sometimes thinking he is a “psychopath” or a man merely fighting to survive the circumstances he has found himself in. However, she says, she will “always think of him as a genius.”

I highly recommend reading any of the aforementioned author’s books, especially the novels by Hilary Mantel, and to check out the Royal Shakespeare Company (www.rsc.org.uk) for upcoming events.