All language subtitles for The.Boleyns.A.Scandalous.Family.S01E02.Desire.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DDP5.1.H.264-NTb_[eng]

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- [bell tolls]
- [bird caws]

FEMALE NARRATOR:
She was our most infamous Queen.

The second wife of Henry VIII.

Tried on his orders for crimes
of adultery and treason.

Anne Boleyn was led from her
rooms at the Tower of London

to her death by an
executioner's sword.

[metal door clangs open]

[dramatic swell]

This Tudor saga is
one of the most familiar tales

in English history.

But to really understand
Anne's rise and fall,

we need to know more about
those who helped shape her.

Her tight-knit, cunning,
and power-hungry family.

The Boleyns are one of the great
stories in British history.

It is an extraordinary epic
of hubris and pain.

The good and the bad
kind of ambition.

[dramatic music]

NARRATOR: Every member of
the family had a part to play.

Thomas Boleyn,
the ambitious patriarch.

George, the fearless son.

His sisters:
Mary, the reluctant mistress;

Anne, the calculating courtier.

And their brutal uncle
Thomas Howard.

The Tudor public had always been
used to stories of tragic falls,

the stories of falls
of kings and princes.

But even they might not have
imagined a fall as graphic

as the fall of the
Boleyn family.

NARRATOR: Based on rare original
letters and documents,

the Boleyns will tell this story
from their own perspectives.

The Court could produce
no proof of my incestuous guilt.

Other than I had spent hours in
the presence of my own sister.

ANNE BOLEYN: I will not say
your sentence is unjust.

My Savior has taught me
how to die...

and he will strengthen
my resolve.

NARRATOR: The family played
a dangerous game

and paid the ultimate price.

But they left
a remarkable legacy,

changing the course
of British history

and taking their name
from obscurity

to the apex of power.

[church bell tolling]

NARRATOR:
Henry VIII has been
on the throne for 17 years.

The Boleyns are one
of many ambitious families

jostling for power
at the Tudor Court.

Led by Thomas Boleyn,
this is a dynasty on the make.

The Boleyns may not have begun

as a family
born into wealth and privilege,

but they were certainly
among those who achieved it.

By the mid 1520's,

Thomas Boleyn has an impressive
property portfolio

of over 30 manors.

Some of his properties end up

being some of the most beautiful
in Tudor England.

They are coveted
even by Henry VIII himself.

NARRATOR:
Thomas is a career courtier,

climbing the greasy pole

by exploiting the influence
of powerful patrons -

like his brother-in-law
Thomas Howard,

the Duke of Norfolk,

and the King's right-hand man,
Cardinal Wolsey.

I think we can see
from Thomas Boleyn's career

up to this point,
that he is an opportunist.

But he plays on his strengths.

And his strengths
are getting on with people,

charming them.

NARRATOR: His children
have vital roles to play.

His son George is forging
his own career as a courtier,

his daughter Mary
has been the King's mistress,

though Henry's interest
has now waned

and she has been cast aside.

But Anne remains
a valuable asset to the family.

Her star is on the rise.

[birds chirping]

[speaking French]

She has escaped the threat
of marriage to her Irish cousin,

and her father has secured her
the coveted position

of Maid of Honor
to Queen Katherine.

This puts her in close contact
not just with the Queen

but with the King.

The Tudor Court
is a complex web.

Henry sits at the center,

surrounded by his council
of ambitious, power-hungry men,

all jockeying for position.

But there is another
shadow court -

controlled by the Queen.

The Tudor Court is actually
a very strange phenomenon.

You have these two households,
the King and the Queen.

The Queen's household
full of her ladies in waiting.

It becomes a magnet for
all the young men of the court

fueled up with romance,
seeking the company of ladies.

OWEN EMMERSON:
I think, to modern eyes,

we might look at this
sort of beauty parade

as slightly problematic.

But this was a sort of
standard feature of the court,

women were there to be admired.

For Anne, it's an opportunity
for her to mark herself out.

We know that from her time
at the French court,

Anne very much
embodies the spirit of France.

It becomes part of her identity
and what made her different.

She is bright,
she's intelligent.

She is beautiful.

There are a lot of reports
about the beauty of Anne

but also her eyes,

everything goes
through her eyes.

She charms through her eyes.

Anne Boleyn is seen as being
a bit different and exotic.

It gave her
this kind of exoticism.

She's like no one else
at Henry VIII's court.

GREG WALKER:
Anne was sophisticated
in terms of her style,

in terms of her knowledge
of flirtation

which the French Court

was decades ahead
of the English with.

So, you know, she could flirt,

she could present herself
as an alluring woman.

We have to remember that
Henry himself lived in a bubble

in which there were probably
only 30 women.

So to have Anne there

bringing in this sophistication
from outside,

I suspect would have looked
remarkably attractive.

NARRATOR: And indeed,

Anne does catch the eye
of the King.

Little clues begin appearing

that suggest
the start of a budding romance

between Anne and Henry.

How do you communicate
with a lady

in your wife's household?

So secret notes,

these are one of the few ways

in which courtly love
can express itself.

There were real pieces
of concrete evidence

that link Anne with Henry.

One is a book of hours,

in which he had written
a love note to her.

Now, if you think about that,
that's a remarkable thing to do

to deface a religious book
with erotic messages.

OWEN EMMERSON:
They choose specific
illuminated images

in which to write
their messages to each other.

Henry chooses an image
of the wounded Christ

to write to Anne of his pains
of love towards her.

Anne writes a rather clever
little couplet to Henry.

ANNE BOLEYN:
By daily proof you shall me find

to be to you
both loving and kind.

OWEN EMMERSON:
It's a very eloquent message.

The image that she chooses
to convey this to Henry

alongside is an image
of the Annunciation.

So here, Anne is saying,
I will provide you with an heir.

Because it's very unlikely that
Queen Katherine of Aragon will.

I think he certainly,
at this point,

is obsessed with her.

He wants to possess her.

He's physically attracted
to her.

As for Anne,

I would be surprised

if she was really in love
with Henry VIII.

That's mainly because
I can't imagine anyone

being in love with Henry VIII.

But she could see a
very bright future ahead of her

if she became Queen of England
and the mother of the next king.

I think we can sense

that Henry is the one
that falls in love first,

he is attracted to her.

But Anne does
what all Boleyns do

and makes use
of a good opportunity.

When Thomas finds out
about Henry's interest in Anne,

he takes her away from court,

to their family seat
of Hever Castle in Kent.

So this is a place
where the Boleyns often retreat,

to get away
from the court gossip,

and to discuss, to plan,

and they can do so
in relative privacy.

NARRATOR:
This is a pivotal moment
for the family's fortunes,

one they've experienced before.

The King has already taken
and discarded Mary,

staining her reputation.

[bird cawing]

So how does Mary Boleyn react

when she sees
the King's attentions

falling on her sister Anne?

She surely felt
very worried for her,

very fearful,

very concerned
for Anne's future.

I think everyone was unsure
where they were,

Anne would have been anxious,
excited, but wary,

rightly wary of what
being Henry's mistress involved.

Like all relationships at court,
they are fraught with danger.

To have a member of your family
as the King's mistress

was both a possibility,
but also a time limited issue.

The moment he discards her,

does he also discard
the whole family?

Thomas would be
somewhat more reluctant

and reticent at this point.

He knows the natural limitations
of such relationships.

Indeed, he has seen it
with his own daughter Mary.

Is Anne different?

Will this opportunity
be different?

Or is he recognizing

that absence
makes the heart grow fonder?

Is this a strategy
on Thomas's part?

LAUREN MACKAY:
Whilst down in Hever,
Anne writes to Henry.

Now, we actually
don't have her letters,

but we can understand a bit
of what she was talking about

from Henry's responses.

There is a sense that perhaps
she is being advised

by her father.

I mean, this is a man
who is the Master of Diplomacy.

So if anyone is going to know
how to react to Henry,

it's Thomas.

[reciting letter in French]

His French is impossible.

GREG WALKER:
Some of them
are written in French.

Is this Henry
showing off his sophistication

to the sophisticated,
French-educated Anne?

Possibly, it is.

"In turning over in my mind

the contents
of your last letters,

I have put myself
into great agony,

not knowing
how to interpret them,

whether to my disadvantage,
as you show in some cases,

or to my advantage,
as I understand them in others.

I beseech you earnestly

to let me know expressly
your whole mind

as to the love between us two.

If you please to do the office
of a true friend, and mistress,

and give yourself,
body and heart, to me,

then I will be
your most loyal servant.

If your scruples allow you
to become my mistress,

in this full sense,

I promise not only
that you shall be given the name

and status befitting you,

but also that I will take you
for my only mistress,

casting off all others
to serve you alone."

SUSAN DORAN:
What Henry is doing is asking
for a carnal relationship,

a sexual relationship.

He wants her
to give herself, body to him.

And that in so doing,
he will give her,

in return, the honor and status

of being his only
and official mistress.

It's a form of negotiation

in what kind of relationship
they're going to have.

"I beseech you
to give an entire answer

to this, my rude letter,

that I may know on what
and how far I may depend.

Written by the hand of him

who would willingly
remain yours, Henry Rex."

ELIZABETH NORTON:
He's still married
to Katherine of Aragon,

but she would be known
as the King's mistress.

He would be faithful to her.

Their children
would have status,

albeit they'd be illegitimate
and couldn't inherit the throne,

but they would have a status.

What's also very clear
from the sequence of the letters

is that Anne Boleyn says no,
she doesn't want this.

SUSAN DORAN:
Anne, it seems to me,

is holding off
having a relationship

which would be
like the one her sister had,

where she would be
the mistress of the King

and might very well,
as Mary was, be cast off.

ELIZABETH NORTON:
We can also get a sense
of Thomas Boleyn

and what he feels in this

because, of course,
Hever is his house.

If he said,
"No, you cannot go back there,

you must stay at court,"

then that would be a sure sign

that he wants her
to become the King's mistress.

But he takes her back to Hever.

So, it's clear that Thomas
Boleyn also wants more for Anne.

NARRATOR:
The entire Boleyn family

is being drawn into these
delicate negotiations,

including Anne's brother
George,

who quickly benefits

from his sister's
new-found favor with the King.

George Boleyn, he's at court

and still in attendance
on the King.

And where before,
he's been a bit of an outlier,

not particularly close to Henry,

now that Henry is interested
in George's sister,

he's all over George Boleyn.

It had a massive impact
on George Boleyn's standing

and on his fortunes.

He'd been steadily rising
through court

for a number of years.

Firstly, he's a royal cupbearer,

he's in attendance
at every ceremonial event.

He's there with his cup,

offering it to the King
at banquets, at dances,

when he meets ambassadors.

Through the relationship
with his sister,

his career is accelerated.

He is able to access patronage
from the King

in a way that he didn't
necessarily get before.

He's Master
of the King's Buckhounds,

which means that he's in control
of the King's hunting dogs.

And in fact, we have payments
in royal accounts,

but George being paid to buy
the dog food for these dogs.

NARRATOR: George Boleyn
begins to act as a messenger

between Anne and Henry,

taking letters back and forth

between the court
and the family's home in Kent.

[horse snorts]

LAUREN MACKAY:
He is intemperate,
he's cocky, he's popular,

he's very handsome,
he's athletic.

He's not quite as smooth
as his father,

he doesn't quite have that
natural instinct for diplomacy.

He's seen as the messenger.

So, he becomes closer to Henry,

but really,
only because, at this stage,

he is Anne Boleyn's brother.

"Dearest Anne...'

ELIZABETH NORTON:
George and Anne Boleyn
were an absolute pair together,

so they were perfectly matched

and they have
this very, very special bond.

"I thank you most cordially

for the gift of the fine diamond
attached to the little ship

within which the solitary damsel
rattles about inside

and for the fine interpretation
you sent me

to explain its meaning."

Henry thanks her
for the image of a maiden

tossed in a storm in a boat,

which is a very pointed gift
for her to send to him, I think,

suggesting the woman
who is at sea

who does not quite yet trust

the security
of getting to the harbor,

getting to land
in Henry's promises.

She's saying, look, I don't know
how to take what you're saying.

And he again reassures her

that his desires are honest
and trustworthy.

"...and for submitting
yourself to me

with all your goodness."

When we look at the letters,

we can actually see the moment

when Henry VIII's
intentions towards Anne change

and when he makes her an offer
that she can't refuse.

"...from this point on,

my heart shall be dedicated
to you alone.

I wish my person was so, too.

God can do it, if He pleases,

to whom I pray every day
for that end,

hoping that at length
my prayers will be heard."

ELIZABETH NORTON:
This is the moment
that the relationship changes.

And this is undoubtedly
Anne's acceptance

of the offer of marriage.

She knows it's going to be
a difficult path

that they're going to follow.

But marriage is an offer
that she is prepared to accept.

NARRATOR: As she reaches this
new understanding with Henry,

the balance of power

between Anne
and her father, Thomas, shifts.

I don't think we can see
the hand of Thomas Boleyn here.

Anne is a very independent woman,

and I think she is probably
doing much of the negotiations.

However,
it's perfectly plausible

that she would discuss
with her father,

and possibly even her mother,
about the way to go

sound out their opinion.

She's not a weak part or a pawn
on the political chessboard,

she's sort of
positioning herself

as a woman of power

who commands respect
from the King

and I think that only furthers

to fan that flame of desire
in Henry.

Henry must have realized

that the very precariousness
of his own dynasty.

Katherine is considerably older.

There are no offspring
in the offing.

Miscarriages have begun
to peter out.

Once he comes to the conclusion

that Katherine is not going
to bear him a legitimate son,

he decides to invest all he has
in Anne Boleyn.

NARRATOR: It appears that Anne
has skillfully negotiated

her own position
in this relationship.

And by securing
a marriage proposal,

has achieved
exactly what she wants.

In so doing,

she turns the role
of Tudor women

and Royal mistresses
upside down.

[birds chirping]

Anne returns to court,

eager to exert
her new found influence.

But one major obstacle
stands in her way.

OWEN EMMERSON:
In order to progress,

she needs
to become Henry's wife.

How is that going to play out?

How is she going to resolve

the very real
and problematic issue at hand,

the fact that Henry is married
to Katherine of Aragon?

[church bell tolling]

NARRATOR:
To help him end his marriage,

Henry turns to Wolsey,

the most senior churchman
in England.

His hope is that Wolsey
can persuade the Pope

to grant an annulment.

Wolsey's first reaction

is probably being
rather appalled at the prospect,

but the King must have
what the King wants.

As far as Wolsey is concerned,
at the outset of all of this,

it was a relatively
straightforward case,

clergy to clergy,
canon law to canon law,

we'll sort it
and everything will be alright.

Henry isn't asking for something
completely unprecedented.

Kings annul marriages,

Queens retire into a life
of religious chastity

and Kings move on all the time.

NARRATOR: This won't be Wolsey's
first dealings with the Boleyns.

Thomas has worked closely
with him in the past

and the two get on well.

Unlike Wolsey and Thomas Howard
who are old rivals.

But the Cardinal's relationship
with Anne is strained.

He was responsible
for ending her tryst

with the man she considered
her first true love,

Henry Percy,

leaving her,
according to one source,

swearing vengeance upon him.

If it ever lies in my power,

I will work as much displeasure
for Wolsey

as he has shown me.

NARRATOR: But Anne can't afford

to let her animosity
towards Wolsey show.

Although she is suspicious
of Wolsey,

thinking he's not going
to promote her interests,

she realizes that she's got
to get him on her side.

And she will use him
as best she can

to get what she wants.

[church bell tolling]

NARRATOR: When Wolsey returns
from a mission abroad,

he suddenly realizes
quite how much power

Anne and the Boleyns now hold.

GLENN RICHARDSON:
The first thing that Wolsey
knows when he comes back

is that he's used to walking

more or less
straight in to the King.

But he's told to wait at
the insistence of Anne Boleyn,

and only when she says so
that he's allowed in

and that certainly telegraphs
immediately to Wolsey

that things have changed.

She's making it quite clear
to Wolsey

that there are two ears
that he needed to please now.

This is a very bold move
on Anne's part

and it must have been
fairly humbling for Wolsey.

GLENN RICHARDSON:
Wolsey's very well aware

that Anne and her family
are a force to be reckoned with.

NARRATOR:
Anne's position of influence
is steadily growing.

Now, even the King's
right-hand man

is under her sway.

Behind her, her Boleyn relatives

are also moving closer
to the center of power.

The family are in
an unprecedented situation.

This is much more complicated

than Thomas simply
wanting to slip his daughters

into the King's bed
for his own betterment.

Henry very much
is in control here.

He is the one
that has singled out Anne

but that doesn't mean to say
that Thomas,

ever the strategist,
isn't going to make the best

of the opportunity
in front of him.

NARRATOR:
For Anne's uncle, Thomas Howard,

the situation
also brings new possibilities.

GARETH RUSSELL:
The news that Anne Boleyn
is on the rise

as a potential love interest

and then incredibly as a
potential Queen for Henry VIII

certainly offers Thomas Howard opportunity.

Of course, it's going to offer

greater access to the heart
of the royal family,

to the heart of patronage,

and to increased privileges as
the uncle of the future Queen,

but it does also carry
great risks.

If the love affair runs sour
between Henry and Anne,

the family are going
to be caught in the crosshairs,

they are going to be left
to pay a price for this.

Her becoming Queen
might be a silver noose

around the family's neck.

ELIZABETH NORTON:
In 1528,

all of the Boleyn family's hopes
could have come crashing down.

In Tudor England,

there's an illness
called the sweating sickness.

It's possibly some type of flu,
nobody quite knows,

but clearly very catching,
and very, very deadly.

It was known
for taking out the fittest,

the youngest in society.

And it reaches the court.

[church bells knelling]

GREG WALKER:
This is COVID with bells on
to the Tudor period.

That intimacy
between Henry and Anne at court

is then suddenly disrupted

because the sweating sickness
is unpredictable,

and it's virulent.

You could be happy
in the morning,

dead by teatime.

And Henry knows absolutely

that his own personal safety
is not only prime to him,

but it's the future
of the nation as well.

He can't get sick.

All the performance
of the ardent, desirous lover,

that has to go on hold
until the sickness is over.

ELIZABETH NORTON:
He sends Anne away,
he sends her back to Hever.

Unfortunately, for the Boleyns,
all wasn't well at Hever.

And Thomas Boleyn
and Anne Boleyn

both came down with the
sweating sickness themselves.

[bird cawing]

[breathing shakily]

Henry VIII was hugely anxious.

He sent Anne
his second best doctor,

obviously keeping the first
with him just in case

but it's a mark
of his respect for Anne

that he was prepared to get rid
of his second best doctor

to send him to her.

But he's clearly very,
very anxious about Anne Boleyn

and with good reason.

Very, very fortunately
for the family,

both Thomas Boleyn and Anne
survived the outbreak

of sweating sickness.

But the Boleyn family
don't escape entirely unscathed.

Mary Boleyn's husband,
William Carey,

dies during this outbreak.

William Carey was young
and healthy

with his future ahead of him,

but this disease took him out,
leaving her a widow.

[crying softly]

LEANDA de LISLE:
There are advantages
to being a widow

in Tudor England.

Suddenly you're independent.

You can make your own choices,
you have your own money.

But Mary doesn't seem
to have seen

many of these advantages.

So we know that Mary Boleyn
was left in financial straits,

and that Thomas Boleyn
doesn't seem

to have been very willing
to support her.

In fact, one of Henry VIII's
letters to Anne Boleyn

actually mentions this

and talks
about getting her father

to pay for Mary Boleyn's upkeep.

HENRY VIII:
For surely, whatsoever is said,

it cannot so stand
with his honor

but that he must needs take her,
his natural daughter,

now in her extreme necessity.

ELIZABETH NORTON:
Does this show a rift

between Thomas Boleyn
and his daughter, Mary,

at this stage.

Certainly, he wasn't willing

to put his hand in his pocket
to support her as a widow.

It does rather suggest

that maybe
he wasn't particularly proud

of the marriage
that she had made,

because Mary Boleyn's husband,
William Carey,

was a solid match.

He was a courtier, a gentleman,

but Thomas Boleyn
is a highly ambitious man

and highly ambitious
for his daughters.

So, perhaps he was disappointed
in Mary.

LEANDA de LISLE:
You could say that her father
did not technically have

any responsibility,
financial responsibility

for his adult widowed daughter.

But I think we'd all agree

that a loving father
would want to help his daughter

to give her emotional,
as well as financial support.

We just know

that she was unhappy,
desperate, alone.

Her sister
is becoming more important,

and she is being kept
in the shadows,

possibly because of her previous
relationship with the King.

NARRATOR:
Reputation means everything
to families at the Tudor Court.

Perhaps to the more ambitious
members of the Boleyn clan,

Mary is regarded
as no longer worth helping.

LEANDA de LISLE: However these
two sisters may have felt

when they were young,

they certainly
go very different ways

as they become older.

Anne is interested
in power and influence

in a way
that Mary does not appear to be.

NARRATOR: After recuperating
from her illness in Kent,

Anne returns to court,

keen to regain her position
at the center of power.

OWEN EMMERSON
Of course, the great matter,
the annulment,

is the great issue at hand

and things are rumbling on
at a slow pace.

I think we can actually gain

a sense of acute frustration
on Anne's part

that the divorce proceedings

or the attempt
to even get close to them,

by Wolsey,

are taking quite as long
as they are.

It is good
to return to this place.

Now the Cardinal is trying
to secure lodgings for me

miles away.

Let him try!

My Lord Henry's letters
counsel my patience

in our great matter.

It is all in hand, I am told.

We shall see about that!

[Anne sighs]

NARRATOR: Despite the urgency,

Wolsey finds it
harder than expected

to secure the annulment.

The Pope keeps stalling
due to family allegiances

with Katherine of Aragon.

But from Anne's perspective,

Wolsey still looks like
her safest bet.

There's no necessary reason
why they need to fall out,

provided Wolsey
has got the necessary means

to get the Pope
to do what's required,

and that's when we get
a series of letters

in which it's clear
that Anne is prepared

to recognize Wolsey's skills
and talents,

provided she can be sure
and he can assure her

that he's going to work
to the ultimate goal,

which is the annulment.

My Lord, in the humblest way
my heart can imagine,

please pardon me
for being so bold

as to trouble you
with my simple writing.

I assure you
it comes from the desire

to know that Your Grace
does well.

And also, My Lord,
I do so long to hear from you

news of the legate
who has come from Rome

to grant the King, our master,
his divorce...

...for I trust this man
will be most good and successful

in resolving our great matter,
as he has been chosen by you.

For I feel sure
you desire this divorce

every bit as much as I do.

Your humble servant,
Anne Boleyn.

SUSAN DORAN:
She writes in her own hand.

That is a sign of intimacy

rather than if she had left
a secretary to write.

But the reality is,

this is very much a sign
to Wolsey

that she is wooing him
and wanting him to work for her.

She wants to know the news:

what is happening on
the King's divorce?

And then there is
a postscript to the letter.

"The writer of this letter
would not cease

till she had caused me likewise
to add my hand,

desiring you to take it
in good part.

I ensure you both of us
greatly desire to see you

By your loving sovereign
and friend, Henry"

So the fact that Anne Boleyn
forced him to write

this brief postscript
speaks volumes

of how important it was to her.

She's making a very clear
statement of her power.

Because Henry VIII is doing
what she says,

he is writing to Wolsey because
she has told him to do so.

OWEN EMMERSON: My hunch is that
Anne begins to suspect

that things aren't developing
as they should.

And I think Anne's intuition
is kicking in here.

Whereas Henry I think
is still very much hoping

that Wolsey will deliver,

I think Anne has her suspicions.

You do start to see
through the end of 1528

and early into 1529 an awful
lot of court commentators,

ambassadors and people
writing letters back and forth,

are starting to note that Wolsey
is failing to get the King

what he wants,
which is never a wise move.

The lady Anne is the cause
of all disorder at court.

Now she finds her marriage
plans delayed,

she is becoming suspicious
that Cardinal Wolsey

is putting impediments
in her way.

Because when she is Queen
his power will decline.

Her father, Thomas Boleyn,
shares this view,

as does her uncle Thomas Howard.

People say power is increasingly
in their hands

and they have conspired
to overthrow Wolsey.

But there seems no evidence they
have persuaded the King yet.

Though I have observed at court

Henry is not so friendly
towards his cardinal.

NANDINI DAS:
There's a clear sense at court

that you're either on
Wolsey's side

or you're on the side of
the Boleyn-Howard faction.

And there's a certain degree of
pressure on choosing those sides

and very soon people start
shifting their allegiances

towards the Boleyns.

It's also obvious by
the number of other people

that are also now at court who
weren't necessarily at court

as regularly before and
Thomas Howard is among those.

While his niece is now starting
so clearly to rise

while the King
needs something done,

Thomas Howard
is straight in there.

While not particularly
politically sensitive,

he is by no means stupid

and he's disliked Wolsey
for so long that any hint

that Wolsey is out of favor,
he is going to jump on that.

NARRATOR: At the same time
the tables have turned

between Thomas and his daughter.

For the moment, Anne is the de
facto head of the Boleyn family.

Their fate and future
lie in her hands.

SUSAN DOLAN:
I think Thomas Boleyn is having
many sleepless nights.

I think he is very uncertain
about the future,

it could have gone
either way for him.

He could have had Anne
as Queen of England,

or he could have Anne
discarded as a mistress.

He's also terribly concerned
about his own position.

He's torn.

He has a lingering loyalty
to Wolsey.

He's being pulled
in different directions.

And he has no real agency here.

NARRATOR: From May 1529,

letters show the Cardinal's
failure to deliver the annulment

to be the talk of the King's
inner circle.

MALE SPEAKER: Wolsey is in
the greatest pain he ever was.

NARRATOR: The French ambassador
even reports

that the Boleyn faction
are beginning to turn

the King's mind
against the Cardinal.

MALE SPEAKER: The Boleyns
lead the King to believe

that he has not done as
much as he could have done

to promote the marriage.

NARRATOR: With Henry
losing patience,

Wolsey takes a huge gamble.

He announces a public trial
which he hopes will prove,

before a representative
from Rome,

that Henry's marriage
to Katherine

was never legal
in the first place.

GLENN RICHARDSON:
Well, the atmosphere of
the Blackfriars trial

is likely to have been quite
formal, quite, quite tense.

Um, Henry has asked the papacy

to rule on the validity
of his marriage.

So a lot is riding on it,
everybody knows about it,

everybody who's anybody is
there or close by in attendance.

Wolsey was always capable
of pulling the rabbit

out of the clerical hat.

GREG WALKER: But Katherine
spectacularly upstages him

on the opening day.

She stands up, crosses the court
and kneels at his feet,

and tells him that he knows
in his heart

they were truly married.

GLENN RICHARDSON: And then she
walks out of the courtroom.

And she's called back I think
two or three times,

but with her ladies and her
courtiers of her household

around her, she makes
this dramatic exit

from the court.

She completely undercuts
from the outset

the basis of the trial.

After Katherine's dramatic
withdrawal from the trial,

Wolsey is just exhausted
and trying to give himself

some space to think, what
can I do next, you know?

NARRATOR: But Henry
wants immediate action.

He wants Wolsey to try again
to get Katherine

to accept the annulment.

And the person he sends
to tell Wolsey this

is Thomas Boleyn.

The King demands you must repair
to Katherine without delay.

As always, I am ready
to fulfill the King's pleasure.

If you are now his messenger,

tell him I am readying myself
to come.

The split feelings that, that
Thomas has, becomes obvious

particularly at the moment when
Thomas Boleyn recognizes,

of course, this it isn't
going to work.

That Wolsey is going to be
in trouble with the King,

He is in as impossible
a situation as is Wolsey.

We're not looking at
Thomas Boleyn as a man

who is in charge
and in control

and manipulating Anne
onto Katherine's throne.

We're looking at a man,
I think, who is extremely

worried about the future.

If I have taught you
any foresight,

you know the outcome
will be nothing.

You and your party
are in no small part

to blame for this matter.

You have fed the King's
fantasies,

put new ones into his head.

The power you crave

makes you the cause
of the trouble in this realm.

And in the end you will get
no thanks -

in this world or the next.

LAUREN MACKAY: It is at this
moment when Thomas Boleyn

begins to see Wolsey
is not their route

to this annulment anymore.

It's not that he's turning
against Wolsey,

it's that he's starting
to realize

he has to back his family now
rather than the Cardinal.

NARRATOR: The Blackfriars trial
is suspended,

and with it all hopes of Wolsey
ending the marriage.

Finally, it's clear
this isn't going to produce

the verdict that Wolsey wanted.

Henry is furious,
ballistically angry.

There is no gentle
retirement at the Tudor Court.

You're either in or you're out.

And suddenly Wolsey is out.

[fire crackles]

[book closes]

GARETH RUSSELL:
Thomas Howard has a particularly
unpleasant trait

in how hard he kicks when
someone is on the ground.

I told you I would be
returning today.

Not good to see you.

He enjoys humiliating
the politically out of favor.

And so as a result,
this almost hunter's instinct

is on full display when it comes
to Cardinal Wolsey.

NARRATOR: Thomas Howard
pays the Cardinal a visit

to remove his 'Great Seal' -

the thing which once gave Wolsey
the power to authorize

state documents
on behalf of the King.

I came here yesterday
to demand that Wolsey

surrender into my hands
the Great Seal

and that he ready himself
to depart this place

and quit London.

The curious Cardinal wished
to know what authority I had

for this command.

I would regard my presence as
authority enough in that regard.

But no.

As the Great Seal of England,
the symbol of royal power,

was delivered to him
by the King himself,

Wolsey insisted that only the
King's word could relinquish it.

So, an extra journey.

But there you have it.

GARETH RUSSELL:
This marks really the end of
Wolsey's official might.

It looks like a settling
of scores between them.

Thomas Howard, who has felt that
he has had this stunted career,

who has endured things
being taken of him,

seemingly by Wolsey's
initiative,

can now take the greatest symbol
of Wolsey's success from him.

NARRATOR: The deposing of Wolsey

is the Boleyn family's greatest
victory so far.

OWEN EMMERSON: I think
ultimately Anne is responsible

for Wolsey's downfall.

Thomas Boleyn had had a lasting
working relationship

with Wolsey,
Anne never had that.

He was purely
a functionary person

who was there to do
the King's bidding

and therefore her bidding, and
he'd utterly failed to do so.

And it's a ruthless downfall.

This is the only time that
Wolsey isn't able to deliver.

But Anne is
unforgiving in that regard.

ELIZABETH NORTON: There's
no doubt that Anne Boleyn

relished Wolsey's fall.

She goes with Henry to his
palace to view his goods

and possessions
to decide, what do they want?

What would they like to keep
of his goods

because they don't belong
to Wolsey anymore.

They're the King's
and through the King,

of course, they're Anne's.

Ultimately, that is
the prize of ambition,

and Anne seems to be
unashamed by that.

I think Anne can be vengeful.

She really is dancing
on Wolsey's grave.

NARRATOR: The Boleyns
and Howards are now

the most powerful people
in Henry VIII's Court.

Thomas Howard takes over
the role of President

of the Royal Council.

Thomas Boleyn is made
Earl of Wiltshire

and becomes Lord Privy Seal.

George Boleyn takes
on his father's former title,

Viscount Rochford.

GREG WALKER: Who is left
to carry out the King's will

when Wolsey has gone?

There's Thomas Howard,
the most powerful nobleman,

who's good at shouting
and bullying people

and leading armies, but not
a sophisticated operator.

Then there's Thomas Boleyn,
a diplomat,

someone with greater skill,

someone with a facility
with languages

who can talk to ambassadors
in their own language.

And of course,
then there's George Boleyn,

who has a certain style
and elegance of his own.

And of course above them all
there's Anne Boleyn herself,

directing Henry's attention
one way and another,

suggesting strategies,
urging him and pushing him

to get on with the job
of producing the divorce.

LAUREN MACKAY: All of a sudden
the Boleyn ambition

has been revealed and exposed

and of course with that
there's a lot of judgments.

They always have relied
on Wolsey

and Wolsey is now gone.

They have to actually
solve the dilemma

that they accused Wolsey
of not being able to solve.

They are in uncharted waters.

- [waves lapping]
- [gulls squawking]

NARRATOR:
Holding the reins of power

makes the Boleyns
acutely vulnerable.

Henry is a dangerous and
unpredictable master to serve.

Now that Wolsey is gone, there's
no one standing between them

and the increasingly unrealistic
demands of the King...

GREG WALKER: Henry begins
to make impulsive decisions,

some of which look
outrageously ill advised.

For instance, he sends
Thomas Boleyn as the envoy

to the Pope himself
to try and persuade him

to support the case
for a divorce.

He hasn't quite thought
through the obvious logic

that Thomas Boleyn,
Anne's father, is the last man

who's going to persuade the
Pope of absolutely anything.

The ambassadors
from continental Europe

who are observing this
from the sidelines,

are, I think, generally
all quite puzzled.

Why is Henry taking this step?

Thomas is an experienced diplomat

but he's also
an interested party.

LAUREN MACKAY: It's incredibly
awkward for all involved.

I don't think Thomas believes
he has any hope of succeeding

in this embassy
but his hands are tied.

He was able to meet the Pope

but he was immediately
shot down.

His very presence there
was an offense.

What it really shows Thomas
is that

they have to find alternative
routes to an annulment.

[sigh]

It would be wrong, I think,
to consider this

a carefully worked out
coup d'etat by the Boleyns

and their allies.

No one was confident
in this period.

Everyone was playing an
extraordinarily high stakes game

to try and achieve what Anne
and what Henry wanted.

ELIZABETH NORTON:
Wolsey is gone,

but Katherine of Aragon
is still there.

She's still Henry VIII's wife,
and Anne Boleyn

is as far from being Queen
as she ever has been.

The Boleyn's have power.

They've removed
potential enemies

and they're rather stuck.

What are they going to do now?

[bird caws]

[church bell tolls]