Thomas Cromwell: detail from a portrait by Hans Holbein, 1532-3 Thomas Cromwell, 1st Earl of Essex (c. 1485 - July 28, 1540) was an English statesman, one of the most important political figures of the reign of Henry VIII of England.
Cromwell was born in about 1485 in Putney, the
son of Walter Cromwell (c. 1463 - 1510), a
tradesman. After studying law, he entered the service of Cardinal Thomas Wolsey and became a Member of Parliament in 1523. Following the crisis over Henry's
divorce from Catherine of Aragon, Cromwell came to prominence
at Wolsey's expense. By 1533, he had risen to the position of Chancellor of the Exchequer.
It was he who suggested to Henry VIII that the king make himself head of the English Church, and saw the Act of Supremacy of 1534 through
Parliament. As Henry's Vicar General, he presided over the Dissolution of the Monasteries, which began
with his visitation of the monasteries and abbeys, announced in 1535 and begun in the winter of 1536. As a reward, he was created
Earl of Essex in 1540.
Cromwell had supported Henry in disposing of Anne Boleyn and replacing her
with Jane Seymour. His downfall was the haste with which he encouraged the
king to re-marry following Jane's premature death. The marriage to Anne of
Cleves, a political alliance which Cromwell had urged on Henry, was a disaster, and this was the real motive for Cromwell to
be charged with treason. He was executed at the Tower of London on
July 28, 1540.
The inscription on the paper lying on the table in the original portrait describes Cromwell as "Master of the Jewell House,"
an official position that he occupied for just one year from April 12, 1532, thus neatly dating the portrait (illustration,
upper right).
The Lord Protector of England, Oliver Cromwell (1599 - 1658), was descended from his sister Catherine
Cromwell.
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