The Mirror and the Light

King Henry marries Jane Seymour, and the court is abuzz with fear and excitement. The court questions whether Jane will be able to produce a male heir, and whether Henry—whose manhood is the subject of numerous rumors—will be able to perform. Henry is now saddled with three children, none of whom are seen as legitimate heirs: Henry Fitzroy, the Duke of Richmond; Mary, born of his first wife, Katherine of Aragon; and Elizabeth, born of his recently disgraced and executed second wife, Anne Boleyn. Out of necessity, these marriages must be declared illegitimate for Henry to retain his grip on the English throne, and to provide an avenue for the succession of a male heir born of a legitimate union—which he hopes to secure with Jane. For her part, Jane is the picture of a demure, devout, and domesticated woman. She is Anne’s opposite in every way.

In the background are also rumors that Henry will abandon his attempts to remain head of the English church. The split with Rome—instigated by the Pope’s refusal to annul his first marriage to Katherine—has been costly, both politically and financially. Many people, like the ambassador to the Holy Roman Empire, Eustache Chapuys, hope that Henry will “take England back to Rome” (29). Cromwell has much to lose in this enterprise; his new status as Secretary to the king and Lord Privy Seal is in jeopardy, along with his very life. He keeps his house guarded well: “‘I neglect no precaution,’ he had said. ‘The times being what they are, a man may enter the gate as your friend and change sides while he crosses the courtyard’” (38).

Loyalist families, like the Carews, and old rivals, like the Plantagenet descendants the Poles, would very much like to see Mary on the throne. Mary remains loyal to her Spanish Catholic mother Katherine, and she would like see England return to the Catholic fold. The king’s supporters encourage Mary to sign the oath—“all subjects must take it, when the king requires” (43)—which affirms Henry to be both the legitimate king of England and the rightful head of the Church of England. Mary balks at the latter stipulation.

Henry is racked by suppressed guilt and embarrassment with regard to the Anne Boleyn scandal; if all that was said against her was true, Henry was made a cuckold a hundred times over. He is also battling ill health, the result of a leg injury he suffered in a fall last winter. There are hints that his excessive consumption of food and drink have also taken their toll. England itself is vulnerable, with both France and Spain allied to Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor. Nevertheless, King Henry VIII is still a strong prince with a strong will, and he will demand that Mary acquiesce to his wishes.

Meanwhile, the city is haunted by the executions of Anne and of her alleged lovers, including her own brother. Thomas Wyatt, another supposed lover, remains locked in the Tower under Cromwell’s protection; he promised Wyatt’s father he would try to keep him alive and releases him as soon as he is able. Henry’s son Henry FitzRoy, despite having no legitimate claim to the throne, confesses to Cromwell that he is the one fit to rule England: “With every breath he commits treason and does not hear it” (74). Cromwell negotiates delicately between many parties, always looking out for his own interests and bolstering the strength of his king on whom he depends.

Eventually, Cromwell convinces Mary to sign the oath, albeit in such a way that it will be easy for her to recant should the opportunity arise: “She shouted out, ‘I will sign. I must. Ambassador Chapuys counsels it, and my cousin the Emperor demands it, and the Pope will forgive it, for I am enforced, and so it is no sin’” (113). Arrangements are made for a reunion between father and daughter, and Mary meets Jane, who submits politely to her. The king and queen then return to court, where “Queen Jane is [finally] shown to the Londoners” (140).

For all the worry over succession, there is a contingency plan: “If Jane the queen shall fail and if Fitzroy [Henry’s illegitimate son] cannot command the support of Parliament, [Henry’s niece] Margaret Douglas will some day rule England” (142). Though she is a Scottish princess, she has lived so long in England that she is considered practically English. However, there is a problem with this plan: It has been rumored that Meg has betrothed herself—or besmirched herself, in the eyes of the courtiers and the king—in a relationship with Thomas Howard the Lesser, the Duke of Norfolk’s half-brother.

Meg is at first tearful and defiant, and she swears her allegiance to “Tom Truth,” as he is known for his rather wretched verse. But Cromwell and Thomas Wriothesley, 1st Earl of Southampton, slowly convince her that the king will not be pleased. If he has come to the brink of executing his own daughter for breaking her allegiance, there is no telling what he will do to his disobedient niece. Meg is to be kept in the Tower for now, while Cromwell works to turn the king’s heart to mercy. Memories of Anne’s last days flash through Cromwell’s mind. He also recalls the men, both noble and common, who were sacrificed to the rumors of infidelity, to make way for a new queen. He wants the killing to stop: “It would be a meagre triumph to have saved the king’s daughter, if he now turns and executes his niece” (156). The dead haunt Cromwell, and his many responsibilities burden him.

Cromwell also goes to visit Bess Darnell, Wyatt’s lover who is allegedly with child. He has promised Wyatt to find her a safe place to lodge; for now, she is housed by Margaret Pole, whose son makes threats against the king. Bess will spy for Cromwell, though she is most likely herself a papist, having once been Katherine’s maid. Still, she shows Cromwell what she has been sewing at the Poles’: It is a cloth emblazoned with the Pole’s signet commingled with Mary’s marigold, proof of their intentions.

Meanwhile, there are rumors across the continent that Henry has promised his daughter Mary to Cromwell; this is potent ammunition against the now knighted Sir Cromwell. The rumors are not true, of course, but Cromwell is surprised that the diplomat Eustace Chapuys has proved so treacherous, as he is the likely source of such rumors. Cromwell meets also with the French ambassador who warns Cromwell to counsel Henry to relinquish Calais, the one French garrison still in the hands of the British.

News closer to home brings grief: Henry FitzRoy has died. Cromwell worries about the king’s state of mind: “Forty-five years on this earth, twenty-seven of them as King of England—and all he has to show for it are three bastard children, one of them now a corpse” (193). In turn, Jane is worried about bearing Henry an heir; she does not enjoy his amorous attentions and fears that will thwart her ability to conceive. Cromwell recalls the conversation he had with Margaret Pole about the intentions—and treasonous writings—of her son, Reginald, also known as Reynold. The health of the king—“[t]his summer, [he] will not hunt on horseback” (210)—is never certain, and the line of succession remains undecided.