Henry also closed down all the monasteries and oratories established to pray for the dead in England, confiscated their goods and property, and handed some of it out to his favorites. He said the monks were “greedy”—kind of like Obama closing down or raising taxes on coal and oil companies because they are greedy. Maybe some of them are, but not as greedy as the Absolute Monarch, which is what Obama thinks he is.
Then, when Henry VIII died, he asked in his will that the monks should pray for his soul in Purgatory. Unfortunately, there weren’t any monks left to do it. They had all been dispersed.
Please read the book reviewed: Thomas Cromwell, Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantell.
Henry VIII lied to Wolsey, the Pope lied to Wolsey and Henry VIII. Ann Boleyn lied to everybody. Thomas More, the "Great Catholic Martyr" was a PIA who liked nothing better than torturing heretics. Henry VIII loved a good heretic roast, too. The only reasonable guy vis-a-vis your basic heretic was Cardinal Wolsey! He also comes off as the only sincere guy in this whole cast of characters, or at least more sincere than the others. And, one can see that it is through his incredibly brilliant efforts that England became a a creditable European power. He is also the guy that gave Henry the idea of, and the legal basis for "regulating" the monasteries!
Queen Catherine of Aragon was incredibly unreasonable, rejecting many a decent compromise offer from the Pope AND her husband. The confiscation of the monasteries sort of reminds me of the reassignment of assets carried out after the Soviet collapse. Once the nobles got their hands on those assets at knock-down prices, they were never about to give them up! It also meant the collapse of "social services" to the poor in England!
Read this. It is a brilliant psychological portrait of the times ... and it might even be true!