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Thomas Cromwell
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[I]n recent years, largely as a result of extensive research done by Sir Geoffrey Elton, a new view has emerged – that Thomas Cromwell was a very capable politician who brought in what was termed a ‘revolution’ in government. Elton contended that Cromwell brought in a series of reforms at government level that moved Tudor government from being steeped in medieval practice, which a man like Cardinal Wolsey could exploit, to a modern form of government. Elton believed that the work of Thomas Cromwell with regards to government reform was in the first three major turning points in English politics. Elton was very clear about the specifics of medieval government – a financial administration that was based on the king’s chamber; the extended use of the king’s seal; the use of individual advisors as opposed to a council. A modern form of government was based on a bureaucracy staffed by capable people who worked to a series of rules and procedures. Departments were created that dealt with the specifics associated with that department and only those specifics.
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Thomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex, born probably not later than 1485 and possibly a year or two earlier, was the only son of Walter Cromwell, alias Smyth, a brewer, smith and fuller of Putney. His grandfather, John Cromwell, seems to have belonged to the Nottinghamshire family, of whom the most distinguished member was Ralph, Lord Cromwell (c. 1394-1456), lord treasurer; and he migrated from Norwell, Co. Notts, to Wimbledon some time before 1461. John's son, Walter, seems to have acquired the alias Smyth from being apprenticed to his uncle, William Smyth, armorer, of Wimbledon. He was of a turbulent, vicious disposition, perpetually being fined in the manor-court for drunkenness, for evading the assize of beer, and for turning more than his proper number of beasts on to Putney Common. Once he was punished for a sanguinary assault, and his connection with Wimbledon ceased in 1514 when he "falsely and fraudulently erased the evidences and terrures of the lord."
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After an apparently unruly adolescence, the young Thomas Cromwell spent several years traveling on the Continent before establishing himself in London as a successful merchant and business agent, which included some legal work. By the early 1520s, he had begun to act for clients in a number of important suits, several of which brought him to the attention of Cardinal Thomas Wolsey (c. 1475รข€“1530). In 1523, he was elected to the House of Commons and the following year was appointed to Wolsey's staff. Here he managed the dissolution of nearly thirty monasteries to fund the cardinal's building projects in Oxford and Ipswich and came to supervise much of his legal work. When Wolsey fell from power in October 1529, Cromwell obtained a seat in the new Parliament and traveled to court on several occasions to represent the interests of the disgraced cardinal.
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The Duke of Norfolk and Thomas Cromwell are discussing Sir Thomas More. Norfolk suggests that since he is not speaking out, Sir Thomas could just be left alone. Cromwell comments that his silence is very loud. He thinks that More needs to speak out. He brings up Sir Thomas telling about the problems in the North Country. So, he appears to be against Spain and with England.
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Thomas Cromwell was born around 1485. He was the son of a brewer and blacksmith. He spent much of his early adult life abroad, be it as a soldier in Italy or a merchant in Antwerp. Cromwell trained as a lawyer and by the 1520’s he was working for Cardinal Wolsey as a general manager. When Wolsey fell from royal favour in 1529, Cromwell managed to stay faithful to his old employer but ... to remain in favour with Henry VIII. There is little doubt that Cromwell learned a lot from Wolsey and the way he conducted business.
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Thomas Cromwell was born in Putney, near London. His father, Walter Cromwell, was a fuller and shearer of cloth who ... worked as a blacksmith, innkeeper, and brewer. Perhaps an unruly youth, Thomas received little formal education. About 1504 he traveled to Flanders and Italy, where he served as a mercenary soldier. While abroad he had an opportunity to learn French and Italian and to observe something of the diplomatic maneuvers of the European powers. When he returned to England about 1513, he married Elizabeth Wykes, whose father was also a shearer.
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Thomas Cromwell