We reach the end of Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, and history tells us how Thomas Cromwell’s story ends. What happens after he is arrested for treason?
Caution: This post contains SPOILERS for Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light episode 6.
The episode picks up off the back of the previous episode, with Cromwell arrested for treason. He heads through Traitor’s Gate to the Tower of London, going into the same place Anne Boleyn was held before her own execution. Sure enough, this brings back memories of Anne Boleyn hoping for mercy and safety before the end.
Cromwell does hope that someone will speak out for him. Rafe comes to visit to explain that Edward Seymour stood up for Gregory Cromwell, but nobody has spoken out for Thomas. There is a chance that Archbishop Cranmer will write to the king, and Cromwell would like to read that letter — he gets to, and it’s not the safety net that Cromwell needs.
Made up evidence to support treason in Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light
Cromwell knows how it will all go, though. He gets everything that he once did to Anne Boleyn and her faction. The enemy will make up the evidence, and Cromwell is smart enough to see that. He even points out that he has no idea what will be fabricated.
It’s funny that Richard Rich and Thomas Wriothesley can’t even look Cromwell in the eye when they sit with the Duke of Norfolk and Stephen Gardiner opposite Cromwell during questioning. They know that it’s because of Cromwell that they are even in the positions that they are, and now they are turning against him.
It’s hard not to understand why they’re doing this, though. Cromwell also understands. He even points out that Rich, Gregory, and Rafe need to avoid each other for now. If there is any thought that the three are trying to get Cromwell freed then they will be taken down as well. At least right now, Henry VIII is only after Cromwell.
It hurts, though. It’s even worse when Cromwell learns that Norfolk wants him to be hanged, drawn, and quartered. It’s an excruciating death reserved for non-noblemen who are convicted of treason. As Cromwell came from lowly beginnings, it is possible that he could go through with this.
Cromwell can tell there is no hope in Wolf Hall
There are glimmers of hope every now and then. Cromwell learns that he is permitted to write to the king, and that suggests to Cromwell that maybe the king will hear him out. Maybe there is a way on the right side of him. After all, Henry does decide not to arrest Gregory as well.
However, it’s soon clear that all this hope is false. After Wriothesley goes to Austin Friars, where Cromwell lived, and dissolves the house, there are questions about the 3000 people he had on staff. While Cromwell points out that he took in the boys of men around him, he didn’t pay everyone. In many cases, the fathers were paying him to give their boys a chance in life, and Cromwell wanted to help as many people as possible.
We know from history that there is no hope. The evidence was against him. Something that Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light doesn’t go into is the fact that Henry has to bring a Bill of Attainder against Cromwell. None of those against Cromwell can risk Cromwell defending his own case in a court of law. Cromwell was a lawyer, so he knows the way to speak to the people. The best option is for a bill that makes him guilty.
The only good thing for Cromwell is that Henry decides that his sentence can be commuted to the ax. At least it’s not the poor man’s traitor’s death.
As Cromwell prepares for his execution, he sees Wolsey’s ghost, making it clear that he never intentionally turned against Wolsey. The ghost of his friend and mentor is by his side until the end, even as Cromwell points out to the people that Henry will have to face his choices when his own death comes. Thinking of the king’s death is treason, so by saying this, he makes himself guilty of treason. However, the people remain silent, making it clear that they respect Cromwell and are sad to see him go.
We end Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light with the ghost of Cromwell walking to the abbey with the bees that he had told Jenneke about. While he didn’t make it there in life, he has gone there in death. However, I do wish that his wife and daughters were waiting for him in the afterlife considering their deaths was how Wolf Hall began.
Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light is available to stream on PBS.org.
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