Wolf Hall

Twenty-seven years pass. Thomas is now “a little over forty years old,” and is a “man of strong build, not tall” (28). He has been traveling on Cardinal Thomas Wolsey’s business. The cardinal is a princely, hospitable man. His project is combining small monasteries in the north and using their revenue to fund two colleges, one in Oxford, one in Ipswich. These will be his legacy. However, he is held back by the slow legal system and wishes Thomas to bypass it, if possible. The people of the north have threatened to kill Thomas due to his efforts.

During this time, Thomas exchanges some tense words with Stephen Gardiner, secretary to the cardinal. Stephen resents Thomas’ low birth and that Thomas could best him in a fight.

The cardinal asks Thomas if he can speak Spanish; he knows a little from his military days. The cardinal wants someone to spy on Queen Katherine’s household when she finds out the “king would like to marry another lady. Any lady. Any well-connected princess whom he thinks might give him a son” (21). Wolsey and Thomas recall Queen Katherine’s sad life and of how Henry VIII began to covet her, his dead elder brother Arthur’s betrothed.

Although Wolsey begged the king not to try to get rid of Queen Katherine, he cannot be dissuaded. Terribly preoccupied with having a male heir, the king wants “an annulment. A declaration that his marriage never existed” (24). Wolsey plans to send Stephen to Rome to speak with church officials about the matter. They must balance many possible outcomes: annulment will strain relations with Spain, the Catholic Church, and the Holy Roman Empire. The balance of power in Europe will shift.

The cardinal and Thomas discuss parenthood. The cardinal has an illicit son and daughter, Thomas Winter and Dorothea; Thomas has at least one son, Gregory.

Before Thomas leaves, Wolsey tells him that the Duke of Norfolk has started the rumor that the cardinal has raised an evil spirit, and that Thomas is to deny this allegation if it ever comes up. After a long day, Thomas heads home. His servant Rafe Sadler greets him. As they walk, he formulates his denial of the spiritual allegations. 

Returning home to Austin Friars, Thomas is greeted by Liz Wykys (Lizzie), his wife. Thomas tells her about his trip to Yorkshire and his meeting with Cardinal Wolsey. He reveals that he knows more Spanish than he let on. Lizzie gives him a letter from their 13-year-old son, Gregory, who is studying at Cambridge.

Thomas and Lizzie muse on the differences between Gregory and Thomas. Young Thomas was pugnacious; when asked about his youth, “he says, oh, I used to stick knives in people. Gregory would never do that” (33). He realizes certain things about growing up, such as a young man’s need to sleep. Thomas was often sleep-deprived in Walter’s house and during his time in the army.

In bed, Liz asks about the “emerald lady” (34). Lizzie reveals that the king is in the market for a large emerald, indicative of his intent to remarry. Apparently “Rumor has advanced, in the fortnight while he has been north among the slope-heads” (35). If Henry tries to divorce Katherine, half of Europe will be against it; women everywhere will be appalled and alienated by his decision.

The Protestant Reformation gains steam, as Henry VIII “has written a book against Luther, for which the Pope has granted him the title of Defender of the Faith” (36). Thomas does not agree with Martin Luther, but he has kept up with his writings and the Protestant Reformation. Cardinal Wolsey “will burn books, but not men” and does so with an influx of Protestant literature (36).

Thomas thinks of Thomas More, a man he sees as “some sort of failed priest, a frustrated preacher,” a man who makes him question himself and his worldview (36). While Thomas’ life has slowly eroded at his faith and understanding of the world, More’s life has reinforced his own beliefs.

Thomas starts his day and thinks of old Wykys, Liz’s father. He liked the old man, a cloth merchant. He recalls taking him to Antwerp to the cloth fair. They visited the home of the three Lowlander brothers, old friends of Thomas’ who took him from Dover; they were overjoyed to see him. Back in England, Thomas helps old Wykys get his business back in shape. Afterwards, old Wykys sets Thomas and Liz up for marriage. Their betrothal is almost contractual: “Lizzie wanted children; he wanted a wife with some city contacts and some money behind her” (40). Gregory is born soon after, and Thomas vows, “I shall be tender to you as my father was not to me” (40).