The King's Confidante: The Story of the Daughter of Sir Thomas More (27 page)

His answer was: “Of all this, Meg, of this family of mine … this perfect contentment. On the day I die—no matter how I die—I shall remember this moment and say that my life brought me much joy.”

Then their eyes had met, and for a moment there was understanding between them as there never was between him and any other.

“Father,” she had cried out in panic, “I like it not when you talk of death. You frighten me.”

“Fear not, Meg,” he had answered, “for who knows when
death will come? Rejoice, Meg, in that uncertainty. You would be weeping if you knew I had a month to live. You were laughing a moment ago, though I might not have a day.”

“Father, I long for the time when you will leave the Court.”

Then he had smiled his sweet smile and had said: “Let us be happy in this moment, Meg. Is it not as happy a moment as any could ask?”

There was so much to think about, so much to talk about during those two years. One child was having difficulty with her teeth; another cried too much; another had too many colds. These were such important matters. How could they stop for a moment to consider what was happening in the Courts of Europe? The King of France had been taken prisoner at Pavia and carried to Madrid; Cardinal Wolsey's foreign policy was less successful than it had previously been. There was a certain subject about which there was much whispering in Court circles, and it was known as the King's Secret Matter.

But to the family living in the pleasant house on the bank of the Thames, life was good. The babies were a source of amusement and delight; the Latin verses composed by their mothers provided much entertainment when read aloud. It was enjoyable to stroll in the gardens on a summers night and watch the stars with Master Kratzer; it was so amusing to try to make Alice take an interest in astronomy and to listen to her scathing comments.

There was the fun of feeding the animals, watching them grow and teaching them tricks; there were the flower gardens to be tended; there was the pleasant rivalry between Elizabeth with her gilly-flowers and Cecily with her daffadowndillies; there was the fun of trying out new dishes. Ailie would come with the very latest recipes and show them how peacocks were served at a Court banquet, and how to make sugarbread and marchpane the royal way. There was the great tapestry to work on in hours of leisure; there were the herbs to be gathered in the surrounding fields, so that Mercy could make them into medicines and Alice use them for flavoring or garnishing a dish.

They were very happy during those two years.

Mercy was married to her Dr. Clement, but she lived with them still, dividing her time between the house and the hospital. Thomas had given them the old house in Bucklersbury as a wedding present, and the girls were busy making tapestry to hang in Mercy's new home; but she continued to live at Chelsea during those two happy years. When she went to live in Bucklersbury, Margaret would spend more time at the hospital, but that was not to be yet.

Every evening there were prayers in the private chapel with the family assembled; at mealtimes it was always Mercy who read from the scriptures. They would discuss together what she had read, and there would be interesting argument.

There were three new additions to die family during those years.

One was a poor man, Henry Patenson, who had need of succor. He had a certain sharpness of wit, and since it was not known what task could be given him in the household, he himself suggested that, as all great men whose work led them to the society of the wise needed a fool to amuse them in their leisure hours, Henry Patenson should become the fool of Sir Thomas More.

Thus Henry Patenson joined the household.

Then there was little Anne Cresacre, who came to Chelsea as the betrothed of Jack. Poor little girl, she was very frightened. She knew that she was going to live among the learned, and that terrified her; but she had been so delighted to find that her future husband was the dunce of the family that she saw him as a natural protector. As for Jack, he had himself often felt inadequate among the scholars, and understood her feelings and was able to reassure her. Consequently, Anne Cresacre found that, although her future husbands learned family might terrify her, he did not.

Moreover, Lady More took her to her heart—for she was a very rich little girl—but all the same, riches or no riches, she must learn how to manage a household and take over the arrangement of domestic matters in turn with the other girls.

The third visitor was a painter from Basle—a young man full
of enthusiasm and ideals, who had come to England to seek his fortune.

Erasmus—whom Thomas had visited on his trips to Europe and between whom there had been continual correspondence— discovered this man, and he wrote to Thomas asking him to receive him in his house. “His name,” he wrote, “is Hans Holbein, and I believe him to be a clever man at his craft. He wishes to come to England in order to earn some money. I beg of you, do all you can to help him.” Such a plea to Thomas could not be made in vain.

He welcomed the young man to his house, and so there was yet another to join the happy family group. He would sit sketching whenever the light allowed, listening to their talk, learning to speak their language, delighted because he could capture their expressions and draw them all with loving care.

“This man hath genius,” said Thomas to Alice.

At which Alice laughed. “Genius! He was sitting out in the east wind yesterday, sketching away. He'll catch his death, I'll warrant. And
I
shall have to nurse him.
I
shall have to spend my time, which I can ill afford, making hot possets for him. And you call that genius!”

Thus during the happy years life went on.

AILIE CAME
one day with news hot from Court.

“Such a pother! It is Mistress Anne Boleyn. What do you think? She hath betrothed herself to Henry, Lord Percy. The eldest son of the Earl of Northumberland, if you please! Trust Mistress Anne to pick one of the noblest peers in the land.”

“Then the girl hath good sense,” said Alice. “For why should she not reach for the best plum on the tree?”

“And he was ready to fall to her touch,” cried Alice, “like a very ripe plum. Humble Anne Boleyn to mate with a Percy! So to Town comes my Lord of Northumberland, and poor little Percy hath been soundly berated. My lord Cardinal, in whose service he is, himself administered the scolding. And such a scolding! 'Tis said that poor Percy has not stopped weeping yet. And Mistress
Anne? That's a different matter. She has been going about the Court flashing her eyes, swearing she will not be told whom she is or is not to marry. But back she is gone to Hever Castle, and there she will stay for a while, so 'Tis said.”

“And what will you do for your fashions now?” asked Margaret wryly.

“She has left us a few. Methinks we must wait until she returns to Court, which, some say, will not be long.”

“Come and help me feed the peacocks,” said Elizabeth. “I never heard such fuss, and all over one stupid girl!”

EARLY IN
the following year, the King sent for Sir Thomas More. He was in his new Palace of Hampton Court, and he suggested that Thomas should take a walk with him, for he had heard that Thomas had made some pretty gardens round his house in Chelsea; he would like to discuss his own plans for altering the gardens at Hampton Court.

So they walked side by side, the man in the somber garments, his left shoulder a little higher than the right, his gown unadorned by jewels of any sort, and the gigantic, sparkling figure in doublet of purple velvet lined with ermine, his person sparkling with rubies and emeralds worth a fortune.

Now the King talked of the pond garden he would make; he talked of the beds of roses—red and white roses growing together side by side—symbols of the rival houses of Lancaster and York; and these should be enclosed by a wall, the pillars of which were to be made of stone and should be engraved with Tudor roses. All those who looked should see how the roses of York and Lancaster bloomed and faded while the Tudor rose altered not, engraved as it was on pillars of stone. The King enjoyed exploiting his fondness for allegory.

“Now, friend Thomas, what do you think of my pond garden? Have you anything to compare with that at Chelsea?”

“Nay, Sire. Our gardens are simple ones, tended mostly by my family.”

“Ah, that happy family of yours!” The King's heavy hand was on his shoulder; the King's flushed face was near his own and the little mouth was close to Thomas's ear. “I'll tell you a secret, Thomas, that I believe I have told you before: I envy you, man. Your King envies you. A happy family! How many grandchildren are there now? Six. And grandsons…. And your son soon to wed and provide you with more, I doubt not. You are a good man, Thomas More; and God has showered his favors upon you. Yet, Thomas, would you say your King was an evildoer?”

Into Thomas's mind there flashed a procession of murdered men—Dudley, Empson and Buckingham at the head of them; he thought of Elizabeth Blount, flaunting the King's natural son among her friends; he thought of wanton Mary Boleyn, and the quiet, long-suffering Queen Katharine. Was this King an evildoer?

What great good fortune that the King did not expect an answer to that which he considered a question so absurd that none could take it seriously!

“Nay, Thomas,” he went on. “I hear Mass many times a day. I am a devout man. I have dedicated my life to my country. You, my statesman, my Councillor who has lived close to me, know that. Is it not therefore a marvelous thing that God should deny me that which I most crave! Not for myself do I crave it. Nay. It is for this realm. Thomas, I must have a son. I need a son. I need a son for England.”

“Your Grace is young yet.”

“I
am young.
I
am in the full vigor of my youth and manhood.
I
could have sons. I have proved… I have no doubt of that. And when a man and woman fail to produce an heir, when they wish above all things for a son, there is one explanation only of that Master More. They have displeased Almighty God.”

“Your Grace, have patience for a while. The Queen has given you a healthy daughter.”

“A healthy daughter! Much good is she! I want sons … sons…. I am King of England, Thomas More; and it is necessary for a King to give his country an heir.”

Thomas was silent and the King frowned as he went on: “There is a matter which lies heavy on my conscience. The Queen, as you know, was my brother's wife ere she became mine. You are a learned man, Master More, a religious one. You read your Bible. God inflicts a penalty on those who commit the sin of incest. That is what I fear I have done in marrying my brothers wife. Every son has died… every son the Queen has borne has died. Is that not significant? Is that not a sign from Heaven that I am a victim of Divine judgement? The more I study this matter, the more certain I become that I have offended God's Holy Laws in my marriage.”

Thomas was deeply shocked. He had heard rumors of the King's Secret Matter, and he had dreaded being asked to give an opinion. He thought of the Queen, that grave and gracious lady, who had offended none but the King; and him she had offended merely because she was growing old and unattractive and had been unable to provide him with a male heir.

The King had stopped in his walk and turned to face Thomas. He rocked on his heels; his face was creased with emotions— sentiment, cruelty, cunning and simplicity, and chiefly with his determination to make Thomas see him as he saw himself.

“I was against this marriage ere I made it. You remember the protest! made?”

Thomas looked in surprise at the King. “I remember, Sire.”

“There you see, I did not wish to enter into the marriage, then. She was, after all, my brother's widow.”

Thomas dared not say: You protested on your father's orders. It was when you made the protest that you determined to marry Queen Katharine.

Thomas was aware of the selfish cruelty, the predominant desire in the King to see himself as a righteous man. It would not be worth risking his displeasure by making such a remark. It would be folly to anger him at this stage. At this moment Henry was so carefully nursing his conscience that any man who dared suggest that his conscience was really his own desire would surely forfeit his head.

“But… I married her,” went on the King. “I married her, for she was a stranger in a strange land and she had been brought to us for marriage with the heir of England. And, because she was my wife, I cherished her and I loved her, as I still do. To part with her … that would be a bitter blow to me. You, who have married two wives and lived with them in amity, know that. It is nearly twenty years since I married the Queen. A man cannot cast off, without a pang, a woman to whom he has been married twenty years. Yet, though I am a man—aye, and a loving husband—I remember first that I am a King. And, Master More, if it were demanded of me to cast off this wife of mine and take another… though this matter were hateful to me, I would do it.”

“Your Grace should not sacrifice his happiness so lightly,” said Thomas, seizing the opportunity the King had given. “If a King has his duty to his country, a husband has his duty to his wife. And if the crowning of a King is a holy sacrament in the eyes of God, so is the ceremony of marriage. You have a daughter, Sire, the Princess Mary….”

The King waved his hand impatiently.

“That gives us much anxious thought. This country has never been happily ruled by a woman. You know that, Master More. And you, who call yourself a religious man, should ponder this: Is an incestuous marriage a holy one? Can it find favor in the sight of God? And what of a man and woman who, disturbed by their conscience,
continue
to live in such a marriage? Nay, this state of affairs cannot go on.” The King smiled slyly. “Nor will my Ministers allow it. Warham, the Archbishop, and Wolsey, the Papal Legate, are bringing a secret suit against me.”

“A secret suit against Your Grace!”

The King nodded mournfully. “A pretty pass when a King's subjects act thus against him. Mark you, I have tried to be an honest man over this matter and, much as I deplore the action of Warham and Wolsey, I yet admit they act with reason and within their rights.”