Henry VIII and the Men Who Made Him

by Tracy Borman

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Audio available 4.3

Henry VIII is examined through the men who educated, entertained, advised and opposed him. His father Henry VII, his elder brother Arthur, childhood companions and early courtiers helped form the confident young prince, while ministers and churchmen including Thomas Wolsey, Thomas More, Thomas Cromwell and Thomas Cranmer became essential to the exercise of his power.

As Henry’s marriages and religious policies changed, favour could turn rapidly into disgrace, imprisonment or execution. Tracy Borman uses these relationships to explain the king’s dependence on male friendship and service as well as his insecurity, suspicion and appetite for control. The result is a political biography of the Tudor court seen through patronage, rivalry and the men required to translate royal will into government.