Henry VIII Would Brag About the Ladies and Be a Fickle Friend
“Henry VIII has unfollowed Thomas Wolsey; Henry VIII and Thomas Cromwell are now friends.” It’s unsurprising that Henry VIII made the list of most obnoxious Facebook friends. We all know him as the man who went through six wives in his lifetime. But he wasn’t only a fickle lover… he was also a very fickle “friend”. At least politically speaking. Thomas Wolsey (circa 1475 – November 1530) made a name for himself as an efficient administrator, both for the Crown and the church. When Henry VIII became king in 1509, Wolsey’s rapid rise began. In 1514, he was created archbishop of York and a year later the pope made him a cardinal. Soon afterward the king appointed him lord chancellor.
The relationship broke down when Wolsey failed to get Henry an annulment to his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. It is generally accepted that as ‘legatus a latere’ (a legate sent from the pope’s side), Wolsey had told Henry that getting the Papacy to agree to the required annulment would be easy due to his influence in Rome. That… didn’t happen. And in true Henry VIII fashion, he needed to get rid of Wolsey once and for all because of his failure. Wolsey was accused of treason. However, before he could meet the end of an ax, he fell ill on the journey to trial and perished en route. Thomas Cromwell was another favorite of the King… until he no longer performed for him. And Thomas Cromwell was accused of heresy and met his end shortly after. So yeah. King Henry VIII would be friending and unfriending people left and right. But at least this would not end in blood.