The Reformation Parliament 1529-1536

"The Elton book helps you understand the “state” part of Thomas Cromwell’s statecraft. This book helps you understand the “craft” aspect. In other words, Cromwell’s talent specifically as a politician. Lehmberg is great at showing how Cromwell was very important in the Reformation Parliament, right from its inception in 1529, long before he was a prominent figure on the King’s Council. He was an exceptionally cunning politician. Particularly in the early part of the Parliament, when conservative forces were very strong, his management and sequencing of the legislative programme was masterful. You get the impression that he had Henry VIII round his little finger. Support Five Books Five Books interviews are expensive to produce. If you're enjoying this interview, please support us by donating a small amount . But there’s another thing about this book that I find incredibly helpful. The Reformation Parliament lasted for nearly seven years and transformed England’s religious life. But it was a slow process. If you just look at a sequence of big headline events, the calling of the Parliament, the resignation of Thomas More, the declaration of the royal supremacy, the execution of More and John Fisher, the Boleyn marriage, the Pilgrimage of Grace, the various shifts in doctrinal position, it is hard to understand why these things happened when they did and why. The engine that drove all of these events was the legislative programme of Parliament. This book really helps one understand the constitutional mechanisms and innovations that were used to push through the Reformation in England by looking at the work of the Reformation Parliament from beginning to end, rather than in a thematic way. It shows how the machinery of Court, Council, Church and Parliament actually interacted and drove the political drama."