Hello and welcome to the Renaissance English History podcast. I'm your host, Heather Tusco. We're still in the midst of Henry the 8th's reign, and I would

be remiss if I didn't devote an episode or two to a few of the advisors who molded and shaped

Henry's policies and beliefs. This episode, we will talk about two of the four Thomases, who

are very important advisors to Henry

the 8th, Thomas Wolsey and Thomas Moore. Next week I will talk about another two, Thomas Cromwell

and Thomas Cranmer. The first Thomas that we'll talk about is Thomas Wolsey, a statesman,

cardinal in the church, and eventually

the Lord Chancellor for Henry VIII. Woolsey rose to power from a humble family, though

the meagerness of his beginnings may have been overestimated, both from those who thought

he had no place in a royal court, and from Molesi himself, doing a bit of PR to

exaggerate just how high he rose. He was born around 1471 in Ipswich, and he studied theology

at Magdalen College in Oxford. In 1507, he entered the service of Henry the 7th, who, if you remember from an earlier

podcast, was very suspicious of his nobility after a century of civil wars, and favored those

who came from humble backgrounds. This was to Woolsey's advantage, and he was appointed the

royal chaplain. Not only was Woolsey politically's advantage, and he was appointed the Royal Chaplain.

Not only was Woolsey politically astute, but he backed it up with intelligence, an amazing work ethic, and ambition.

In 1509, Henry the 7th appointed him Omnour. In this role, he would be responsible for much of the charitable giving of the court,

but it had greater implications. He now had a seat on the Privy Council, and was able to become known both by the nobles and by the king himself. When Henry VIII succeeded his father,

Woolsey recognized that Henry was not interested

in government, still being young and interested only in the benefits of being king, namely

sports, hunting, and women.

So Woolsey made a role for himself, with his thoroughness and his attention to detail,

...