Cromwell: The Secretary Who Survives
First appears: Act 3, Scene 2
Cromwell first appears as Wolsey's loyal secretary. When Wolsey falls, he is there at his side, and Wolsey's last real act of kindness is to send him away before the worst, telling him to serve the king instead.
Wolsey's parting advice to Cromwell is one of the play's most cited passages: 'Be just, and fear not.' It is advice Wolsey himself never fully followed, which gives it a particular weight.
In Act 5, Cromwell has risen to the council, and Henry trusts him enough to defend him against the same political attacks that destroyed Buckingham and Wolsey.
Key Scenes
Famous Quotes
“O my lord, Must I, then, leave you? must I needs forego So good, so noble and so true a master?”
Thomas Cromwell — Act 3, Scene 2
“My Lord of Winchester, you are a little, By your good favour, too sharp; men so noble, However faulty, yet should find respect For what they have been.”
Thomas Cromwell — Act 5, Scene 3
Themes
Other Characters in Henry VIII
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