"Sir Thomas." "Your Grace." "Your Grace." "Sir Thomas." "Ambassador Chapuys, I thought you had abandoned us." "It's true. I did." "Or tried to." "In all conscience, I could never abandon Her Majesty." "She is the most gracious and wonderful woman in the world." "And the saddest." "l agree with you." "So does the emperor." "He has written this letter of encouragement and support for your efforts on her behalf." "I beg you not to deliver it to me." "Although I have given sufficient proof of my loyalty to the king I must do nothing to provoke suspicion." "Consider the times we live in." "I don't want to be deprived of the liberty which allows me to speak boldly in private about those matters which concern your master and the queen." "I understand." "You need say no more." "Thank you, Mr. Cromwell." "Your Majesty." "Sir Thomas More." "Cromwell." "Sir Thomas." "Your Majesty." "I must tell you, I have received a petition from the members of the House of Commons." "Complaining of the cruel behaviour and abuses of the prelates and the clergy." "Thomas people are asking for freedom from clerical rule." "Your Majesty knows very well that I have always condemned the abuses of the clergy when they have been brought to light." "As your chancellor I have worked hard to eliminate them and purify our Holy Church." "But...." "You know where l stand." "You've always known." "I cannot condone this newfangled vision of private belief and personal grace." "For me, the Church is the permanent and living sign of God's presence." "It is a visible, palpable community." "Not just a few brethren gathered in secret rooms." "Then you will speak against me?" "My loyalty and love for Your Majesty is so great that I will never say a word against you in public." "So help me God." "All arise for the king!" "Your Majesty." "Your Majesty." "Your Majesty." "Your Majesty." "Your Majesty." "Your Majesty." "My Lords, Your Graces we have come here to hear your response to the charges and responsibilities laid against you." "You are charged with supporting the authority of the late Cardinal Wolsey and the bishop of Rome, against that of your own king and country." "Some here among you may suppose I seek personal advantage." "It is not so." "As your king I am commissioned to restore right order on Earth and assert the immunities and princely liberties of our realm and crown." "This is my sacred duty sealed before God and by solemn oath at my coronation." "What is your conclusion, Archbishop Warham?" "Your Majesty, before I deliver it, I give way to His Grace the most Reverent Bishop Fisher, the Bishop of Rochester." "My Lords we are asked to admit His Majesty as supreme head of the Church in England." "Unfortunately, we cannot grant this to the king without abandoning our unity with the see of Rome." "If we are to renounce the unity of the Christian world and leap out of Peter's ship then we shall be drowned in the waves of all heresies sects, schisms and divisions." "I say to you that the acceptance of regal supremacy over our Holy Church would represent a tearing asunder of the seamless coat of Christ." "Your Grace we will hear your judgement." "I will put this proposal to convocation that Your Majesty has a new title:" "Supreme head of the Church and clergy of England." "But I add the caveat:" ""As far as the law of Christ allows."" "A trick." "Those in favour?" "Very well." "Whoever remains silent shall be assumed to agree." "Thank you, Your Grace." "Cardinal Campeggio." "Holy Father." "Sit down, Cardinal Campeggio." "I know you are a martyr to gout." "And my feet are killing me too." "What do you want to see me about?" "We have received two new letters regarding the King of England's great matter." "Oh, that again." "What do they say?" "Well, the first is from the king himself urging the curia to make a final and favourable decision on his annulment for the sake of peace in England." "He uses some intemperate language, Holiness, complaining that:" "" Never was there any prince handled by a pope as Your Holiness has treated us."" "He meant my predecessor and, frankly, he has a point." "Clement was a terrible procrastinator." "Although it was very wrong for some people to dig up his dead body and stab it in the street, I can well understand their feelings." "He was never popular." "And the second letter?" "From the emperor." "On behalf of his aunt, Catherine, the unhappy queen urging you to prevent the annulment and excommunicate the king." "It is true we must come to a judgement." "On the other hand to protect the interests of the Church we should try not to antagonize one power above the other." "After all, they have soldiers and guns whereas we must make do with beauty and truth." "What of this girl, this putain, the king's whore?" "Anne Boleyn." "Yes." "Why doesn't someone just get rid of her?" "No." "Don't get up." "Stay like that." "You're so very beautiful." "So very desirable." "I have to possess you utterly." "I can't wait." "Oh, my love just a little longer." "And then...." "l am made head of the Church of England." "is it true?" "Then I am so glad." "At last you have your right and can do as you will." "I'm going to have Cromwell refurbish some of the apartments in the Tower." "Every Queen of England stays there before her coronation." "Papa." "What's wrong?" "Don't you want to celebrate?" "It's far too early for that." "The bishops were not really defeated." "By default, they voted to make the king head of the Church but only as far as the law of Christ allows." "You don't have to be a lawyer to know that the law of Christ may be used to invalidate the vote itself." "Then it was all for nothing." "No." "Not for nothing." "The principle has now been effectively conceded by most of them." "As George told me, their resistance and recalcitrance really stem from only one man." "That bloody Bishop Fisher." "Fisher." "Sir." "Mr." "Cranmer." "I'm so sorry to be late, Mr. Cromwell." "It's unforgivable." "Nonsense." "We haven't yet begun to dine." "It's good to see you." "Mr. Boleyn, Mr. Wyatt, this is Mr. Cranmer." "Mr. Cranmer." "You're a man of the cloth, I believe?" "And are you not a poet, Mr. Wyatt?" "That's the least of my sins." "You may take my confession after supper." "I wouldn't if I were you." "It'll turn your hair white." "We were discussing, before you arrived the progress of the convocation of bishops which was called to decide upon the king's supremacy." "His Majesty has wisely decided to appoint George Boleyn here to negotiate with Their Graces." "I find most of them accommodating." "Of course, there are a few stubborn exceptions." "Bishop Fisher, I assume?" "Naturally." "May I ask who else?" "The archbishop himself, Warham after years of being pliable has suddenly become rather intransigent." "That's because he's old, consequently he's closer to his Maker to whom he must explain himself." "I'm sure it will be a simple matter to explain how he helped liberate his Church from superstition, religious falsehoods and clerical greed." "Mr. Roose." "Yes, sir." "A cook by trade." "Yes, sir." "You understand what's expected of you?" "I do." "Yes." "This is for your trouble." "If you betray us I will destroy your entire family." "Majesty, this is Mr. Cranmer, of whom I have often spoken." "It was Cranmer who first spoke to the fact that your Majesty's great matter was a theological issue, not a legal one." "Mr. Cranmer." "I have desired to meet you almost above any person now living." "You are most welcome here at court." "Majesty, l-- -lt's funny." "Some of the greatest and most celebrated minds in my kingdom sweated and struggled over an issue which you, an obscure cleric was able to resolve with perfect simplicity and a clarity of mind which put them all to shame." "Majesty, l-- l" "Mr. Cranmer, His Majesty has decided to appoint you his personal chaplain." "l" "You must thank His Majesty." "Of course." "Majesty." "You are welcome here, Mr. Cranmer." "Mr." "Cromwell." "Majesty." "Well done, Mr. Cranmer, well done." "So you married your ward." "What's her name?" "Catherine Brook." "Catherine." "Why her?" "I love and admire Miss Brook." "And my young son needs a mother." "How old is she?" "Seventeen." "Some mother." "Poor Catherine." "You're incapable of fidelity, Charles." "You always have been." "This time is different." "How different?" "I don't know." "I just feel it." "And it's not just because she's beautiful." "It's a marriage of true souls." "Surely you can understand that." "Oh, sun, go away." "And leave us to our own devices." "And I love you, Anne Boleyn." "And I always will." "Always?" "How can you say that, Thomas?" "Or know what fortune brings or time changes?" "Time won't change me." "Or this." "Thomas." "My Lady Anne you are to be congratulated for reaching so high." "Thank you, Thomas." "I shall never forget that we were once true friends." "I wish I could forget." "But I see you are raised too?" "Only as a sometimes diplomat." "Thanks to the patronage of Mr. Cromwell, we" "We poets and painters sometimes have our uses." "There is someone here I should like you to meet." "Lady Anne Boleyn, this is Mark Smeaton." "Dancing master, singer, musician, and general all-round genius." "Mr." "Smeaton." "He likes to be called just plain Mark." "How could he possibly be called plain?" "My Lady. lt's a great pleasure." "You play the violin?" "indeed." "Play me something." "Of course." "Will you show me?" "There's another guest at the table." "Who is it?" "Sir Thomas More is staying." "I wanted to thank Your Grace for your speech to convocation." "lt was well said and very brave." "l spoke only truth." "I believe that the caveat "so far as the law of Christ allows"  does indeed invalidate the whole bill." "How can the law of Christ permit a layman, even a king to be head of the Church?" "Boy, a little for me." "Amen." "Amen." "I must ask you, Sir Thomas if you still have a mind to resign your office?" "After the vote, Your Grace, I must confess I was sorely tempted." "But, on reflection I am content to stay and fight for Christendom." "Oh, this is excellent news." "As, indeed, is the turning again of the archbishop." "I thank God that his conscience has finally driven him to condemn the king's nullity suit." "And he has stated his intention to oppose any legislation which might be injurious to the Church." "Get a doctor." "Fetch a doctor, quick." "Help, please help." "God." "God." "Four men died of their pains." "Bishop Fisher survived only because he ate so little of the soup." "It's very unfortunate, Sir Thomas." "It's more than unfortunate, Your Majesty." "Fisher's cook has been arrested." "But I must tell you that" "That rumours abound as to the identity of those who plotted against him." "Who?" "Wiltshire has been named." "Boleyn?" "Yes." "And...." "Well, some people even blame the Lady Anne." "Some people will blame her for everything!" "They will blame her if it rains or if the rains fail." "They'll blame her for the barrenness of the queen and that I love her." "They'll blame her for the wind that destroys our crops and the storms that sink our ships." "It's all the fault of the Lady Anne." "What about you, Sir Thomas?" "Do you blame her?" "Do you think she tried to poison Bishop Fisher?" "Harry, l" "The time for Harry is over." "Whoever was to blame the cook, Roose, tried blatantly and almost successfully to poison one of Your Majesty's great public servants a bishop of our Holy Church, as well as me." "If Your Majesty were to turn a blind eye to the offence everyone would be forced to assume that the attempted murders were done with your blessing." "My Lord Boleyn." "Mr. Roose we've been going over and over this all day, so one more time:" "Who gave you the poison?" "Mr. Roose, it is inconceivable that you suddenly take it upon yourself to murder your master and his household after serving him so diligently these past four years." "Who gave you the poison?" "Sir, I have three daughters." "What is that to me?" "I want them to find good husbands." "But that takes money." "We can pay you for your information." "No, sir." "The payment is already made the account settled." "You're a fool." "And you will die for it." "Hurry, come along." "Hold on, sir." "Lady Anne." "Lady Anne." "Lady Anne." "Lady Anne." "My lady." "You." "Hold a moment." "Where are you taking this linen?" "To the Queen's Majesty." "Why?" "To make shirts for His Majesty." "She always has done." "She still makes his shirts?" "Yes, Mistress Anne." "Sweetheart." "How could you?" "What?" "Your shirts." "She still makes your shirts." "How could you let her?" "I hadn't even thought about it." "You told me there was nothing intimate between you anymore." "There isn't." "What's intimate?" "They're just shirts, for God's sake." "No, they're not just shirts." "They are you and me." "They are you and her." "I don't understand." "Then you ought to." "It's so hard, when we're to be married, but she's still here." "You can't have three people in a marriage." "Why can't you see that?" "Why can't you understand that I have more things to think about than my shirts?" "The king has agreed to a new and harsh treatment of poisoners." "They're to be boiled alive." "He is wise to have dealt so severely in this case." "But he cannot avoid some suspicion." "At least against the Lady and her father." "We are all in the hands of God." "But I worry that, while I lie here uselessly the king may proceed with his divorce since he has given himself the power." "I was told that at the last council the king became angry and demanded to know what would happen if he went ahead and married Anne without the pope's permission." "And what did they say?" "Only Boleyn supported him." "Not even his friend Brandon." "Thank God." "Catherine." "Majesty." "Husband." "How are you feeling?" "What?" "They told me you are suffering from a toothache which is a terrible pain." "And someone even said you had a touch of gout." "Of course I don't have gout." "I don't know why you even listen to such stupid rumours." "Because I care for you." "Catherine, you're going to have to stop making my shirts." "I thought you liked the shirts I made for you." "I see you are wearing one." "Henry" "What now?" "Our daughter Mary has been unwell." "She has not kept any food down for eight days now." "Do you not think we should visit her?" "You can go and visit the princess if you like." "And you can stay there." "Henry, not for our daughter, nor for anyone, would I dream of leaving you." "You know my rightful place is by your side." "I consign myself to God's mercy." "Bless you, sir." "Tell my girls I died easily and with no pain." "Head first?" "Or however it comes?" "Save me." "Sit." "Your wife looks very beautiful." "You seem very happy together." "Yes, we are." "A happy marriage is devoutly something to be wished for." "Talking of which, I want you to do something for me." "Your Grace." "Madam." "I need to speak to Your Majesty alone." "The king has sent you?" "At this hour?" "Why?" "The king asks you to be sensible." "Withdraw your appeal to Rome and entrust your affairs to his hands." "And he promises to be more than generous." "Parliament has now voted to make him supreme in all matters spiritual as well as temporal." "No." "Only the pope has God's power here on Earth and is the image of eternal truth." "Yes, but the king is" "Your Grace." "I love and have loved His Majesty as much as any woman can love a man." "But I would not have borne him company as his wife one moment against the voice of my conscience." "I am his true wife." "Go to Rome, if you want, and argue it there with lots of important men instead of here with just one poor woman." "What did she say?" "She said she would obey Your Majesty in everything save for her obedience to two higher powers." "Which two higher powers?" "The pope and the emperor?" "No." "God and her conscience." "Chapuys." "Majesty." "You can tell your master" "Actually, you can tell anyone you like." "l will never agree to be judged by the pope." "I don't care of his threat to excommunicate me." "He can do what he likes in Rome." "I'll do what I like here." "Majesty." "And by the way welcome back to court." "Majesty." "How was the queen?" "She was beautiful." "It's like a thing of the other world to watch her courage." "I remember you once told me that you might sometimes have to make me feel sad." "Even if you didn't mean to." "Are you really going to make me sad?" "No." "I swear to all that is holy, all things worthy and good that to you I will always be true and never changing." "I wouldn't blame you if you don't believe me." "Do you believe me?" "Majesty." "You sent for me?" "Anne." "How should you like to go hunting tomorrow?" "If that is what Your Majesty desires." "We may be away for a while." "Visit people." "Stay with them." "Majesty, what is this all about?" "l" "And when we return we shall be alone." "Alone?" "You and I." "Here." "No third person." "Do you mean it?" "I've already given instructions for Catherine to leave." "My God." "Are you the most happy?" "Husband, what is it?" "l saw it." "What?" "What did you see?" "l knew it a long time." "I knew Luther and Tyndale were false prophets." "There's so many signs." "I still don't understand." "What is it you've seen?" "The beast." "The Antichrist." "He is near at hand, Alice." "Here we go." "Did you remember to pack my dress?" "Yes, madame." "Beautiful morning for a ride." "Beautiful." "Get it tighter." "Be very careful with her, John." "On your arm." "Get ready." "Let's go." "Walk on." "My Lady, Mr. Secretary Cromwell is here to see you." "Madam." "His Majesty commands that you be gone from this place within the month and settled at his house, the More." "He did not even say goodbye." "You're free, of course, to take with you your attendants and servants." "Wherever I go I remain his wife." "And I will pray for him." "There is a further matter." "His Majesty wishes that you return to him the official jewels of the queens of England." "No." "I will not give up what is rightfully mine to adorn a woman who is the scandal of Christendom." "God bless Your Majesty." "Your Majesty." "Your Majesty." "Thank you." "Your Majesty." "God bless Your Majesty." "God bless you." "Thank you." "God bless Your Majesty." "Thank all of you." "Your Majesty." "Your Majesty." "Your Majesty." "Your Majesty." "Your Majesty." "Blessed Lady." "Queen of hearts." "There will be even greater crowds than these to welcome you when you return to London." "God bless Your Majesty." "Thank you." "Yes?" "Come." "Well?" "Majesty, I am asked to pass on a message of farewell from the queen." "She regrets that you did not wish her goodbye and she enquires after Your Majesty's health." "Tell the queen I do not want any of her goodbyes and have no wish to offer her consolation." "I do not care whether she asks after my health or not." "Let us stop this and mind our own business." "Do you understand me?" "Yes, Your Majesty." "Get out." "I'm sorry." "Don't apologise." "How could it have been different?" "And yet everything is beautiful." "Don't you think?" "Everything is beautiful?" "Yes." "Everything is beautiful." "She's a witch who deserves no other fate than to be dispatched to hell." "And you will assassinate the Lady Anne?" "Being a close servant of the king, I'm in a position to do so." "She has seduced and bewitched him." "He considers betraying his lawful wife and the Holy Church." "You must not stay any longer." "But our prayers and hopes go with you."