THE EXECUTION OF THOMAS CROMWELL | The death of Thomas Cromwell | Tudor history documentary

Was the execution of THOMAS CROMWELL botched? In this Tudor history documentary from History Calling I’m going to tell you why. Why was Thomas Cromwell executed why some think he met a grisly end, even by Tudor standards and why this story may or may not be true.

We’ll start with the question who was Thomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex, then move on to why Thomas Cromwell fell from favour. In particular we’ll look at why this son of a blacksmith and self-made man, who had climbed to the top of the Tudor political hierarchy, was unpopular with many of the nobles at Henry’s court and blamed for the King’s unpopular policies. We’ll also look at the real nail in his coffin, which his support of the marriage of Henry VIII to Anne of Cleves, which turned out to be a disaster. I’ll tell you about the arrest of Thomas Cromwell, the imprisonment of Thomas Cromwell in the Tower of London and read you part of the final letter he wrote to Henry VIII in which he famously begged for ‘mercy, mercy, mercy’, only to receive none. I’ll then describe the finals hours, last words and the death of Thomas Cromwell on 28 July 1540 on Tower Hill and finish by telling you what the sources say about the manner of his death and what was done with the remains of his head and the rest of his body.

This is the story of the gruesome end of one of Henry VIII’s most cunning servants who is often credited as the man who took down Anne Boleyn and who has been made even more well known by his portrayal in Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall book series and the subsequent TV adaptations (most recently The Mirror and the Light) where he is played by Mark Rylance.

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:

WERE THOMAS CROMWELL & OLIVER CROMWELL RELATED?
DEATH, MURDER AND CORPSES PLAYLIST
THE GIRL WHO ESCAPRED HENRY VIII: CHRISTINA OF DENMARK
PORTRAIT OF ANNE OF CLEVES
EXECUTION OF MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS
DEATH OF ANNE BOLEYN: HOLLYWOOD VS HISTORY
IS KATHERINE HOWARD HAUNTING HAMPTON COURT PALACE?
DEATH OF KATHERINE HOWARD AND JANE BOLEYN

LEARN MORE:

[BOOK] Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall
[BOOK] Hilary Mantel, Bring up the bodies
[BOOK] Hilary Mantel, The Mirror and The Light
[FREE BLOG POST] ‘Thomas Cromwell and the ‘ungoodly’ executioner’

BUY OR RENT:

[TV SHOW] Wolf Hall (season 1, 2015)
The Tudors, season 1
The Tudors, season 2
The Tudors, season 3
The Tudors, season 4

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#ThomasCromwell #WolfHall #TheMirrorAndTheLight

[HistoryCalling]

Do you think Cromwell’s execution was botched and why? Let me know below and remember you can also find me at:

[redemptivepete]

Henry's expression of regret about the execution of Cromwell was about his (Henry's) loss of a good adviser and based, as ever, on self pity!
What a guy!

[ravenhill_of_yore_]

No one was safe from execution in Henry's realm. In fact being his friend was probably the most dangerous position in his court. He was in the habit of extinguishing his best and brightest (Moore, Wolsey, Cromwell) in the Kingdom.

[christybradford]

I found your channel 2 days ago I completely blame you for having me on my phone too much rather than doing everything else I need to do for Christmas. 🤣. Your research is impeccable, your delivery expert, and your wit wicked. 💯

[tae_locdin]

I always found it interesting that Cromwell was executed only 4 years later than Anne.

[mart]

HC, you are the undisputed GOAT of Tudor youtube docs, probably just YT historians as a whole!! Always a treat when you spotlight the generally lesser known figures of this time— have you ever considered making a vid on William and Robert Cecil and their influential role in Elizabeth I's reign? I love a PBS doc series from 2017 called Queen Elizabeth's Secret Agents that introduced me to the Cecil's history and am so curious how much of it is sensationalized (the recreations and storytelling are fantastic nonetheless). Anyway, whatever topic you're focusing on, I just eat it up haha!

[jenniferkelly]

Cromwell was a self made man. A blacksmiths son rising to the heights of Henry's court. He was despised by the (lords) who were jealous of his success and worked for his downfall. He had to be ruthless carrying out Henry's orders (or else) in order to stay alive himself and protect his family from Henry's malice. His thanks was the axe, and even then Henry regretted it and blamed everyone else.

[Shane-Flanagan]

I was always dead set against Cromwell and fully blamed him for Anne Boleyns unjust downfall. I always saw Cromwell as the bad guy with little to no redeeming qualities.
My opinion hasn't changed too much but I do have a bit more appreciation and interest in him.
An intelligent, ambitious, cunning and efficiency man. You have to admire how self made he was, a blacksmiths son who came from nothing, he worked hard to find his way to the very heart of Henry's Court. Cromwell had great success even if it didn't last and left his mark.

[ianross]

This is the best historical video on Thomas Cromwell ive ever seen. Thank you very much HC

[garycurry]

Another excellent scholarly examination. It makes me wonder how, in 300-500 years time, how historians and scholars will look back at our current times, and wonder if we ever really learned anything 🤔 from history

[steviestarfire]

I love it when your upload coincides with the end of my workday, such a treat. Merry Christmas, HC! 🎄❤️

[Anita-rqev]

Thank you HC. I love the Tudor time, so I'm glad you cover this story. I'm divided on my opinion on Thomas Cromwell. He was ruthless, but very smart. He achieved a lot for Henry and for himself and made a lot of enemies. On the other hand he was loyal to Henry and I'm sure he was always under pressure to deliver. Henry was fickle and dangerous and Cromwell knew it. Cromwell's death was quite tragic, no matter if he deserved it or not (especially after being arrested he still worked to get Henry out of the marriage to Anne of Cleves and begging for mercy). I read that Henry regretted his death later by blaming others (what else 🙄). It's not always easy to judge personalities by todays standards I assume. Your presentation was as always top notch 👍

[Out_on_a_Limb_Life]

I very much enjoyed and chuckled at your calling Henry out at the end of the video. I do believe that he suffered a head injury, after his catastrophic fall at the lists earlier in his life, which altered his personality for the worse but we'll never know. He executed - or unforgiveably let down or abandoned - some of the people who he'd loved and/or relied on the most, and I can only hope that at some point before his death he saw himself as the loathesome monster he'd become.

[gabrielleschiavo]

It really amazes me how much the Victorians played with facts and willy-nilly changed historical records.

[Subsidiarity]

It was amazing for me to hear his final speech. I have never heard about it and I am from English Catholic background. "Deathbed" conversions are considered important and significant. Especially since he was so instrumental in the destruction of the monasteries.

[terryroots]

I liked your calling out of Henry in the last section 😂. Like all tyrants, Henry could not admit to mistakes, but will blame and demean others. Plus ça change...

[marvwatkins]

This women has one of the most remarkably amazing deliveries I have ever heard. And she is thurough in her scholarly research!

[maryloumawson]

I have always wondered what the exact circumstances were regarding Cromwell's fall from grace. So I was excited to see the subject of this video. Thank you! Documentaries and dramatizations always seem to gloss over this detail, saying only that Henry was displeased with Anne of Cleves and blamed Cromwell for the debacle of his 4th marriage. But I knew there must have been more to the story. It seems equally unclear how Henry was navigating the presence of Lutheranism within his kingdom. Catherine Howard doesn't appear to have any strong beliefs either way, but Catherine Parr is understood to have been a proponent of the "new faith" and I believe was very nearly arrested on this point. So, to me it was an AHA! moment when you identified the real reason Cromwell was implicated. That his enemies at court, no doubt those that most closely aligned with the Catholic church, managed to link him to Protestantism, and how using the excuse of religion, he could control the king! Treason! This makes sense to me, and I'm grateful for the clarification you provide so eloquently. And I'm glad that Cromwell's portrayal in 'Wolf Hall' provided the pretext that made this video a timely topic for you to tackle. I confess, I disliked 'Wolf Hall' because it seems overly sympathetic to Cromwell at the expense of other characters in the story, and it just seems a dishonest view IMHO. Question: Who took over the duties of Cromwell, once he was deposed and executed? From what I know, Henry himself took over the management, which is why he bitterly regretted losing Cromwell such a short time later. But I may be wrong. It is often said that Henry became a tyrant in his later reign, and that it was due to his being in pain, and moreover, unable to enjoy the pursuits of his youth. However, I wonder if it might not be due to his having to concern himself, for the first time in his life, with the daily running of the country after the deaths of Wolsey and Cromwell? Thoughts?

[kitharrison]

Great video. No nonsense, pure information delivered direct from clearly excellent research. I came here from Mark Rylance's captivating performance as Cromwell, but I'll most certainly be back. Many thanks x

[chrisbanks]

Oh - thanks HC. As always. Maybe somewhere down the line, a presentation on the good that Cromwell did? There's a good 20 - 30 minute presentation right there. ☺