Thomas Cromwell, chief architect of the English Reformation, served as minister of Henry VIII from 1531 to 1540, the period during which more political and religious reform was accomplished than at any other time in Henry's thirty-seven-year reign. This biography_the first in a generation and the only one now in print_looks at his work and achievements during this period, and includes earlier and more critical assessments that view Cromwell as a disciple of Machiavelli.

Chapter 1 Preface Chapter 2 Cromwell Timeline Chapter 3 I. Introduction: Thomas Cromwell and the Sixteenth Century Chapter 4 II. Sources: Marsilius and Machiavelli Chapter 5 III. The Pre-Ministerial Years Chapter 6 IV. Henrician England Chapter 7 V. To Parliament and the Court Chapter 8 VI. The Reformation Parliament Chapter 9 VII. The Fall of Anne Boleyn Chapter 10 VIII. Rebellion Chapter 11 IX. Henrician Protestantism and the Return to Orthodoxy Chapter 12 X. Matrimonial Diplomacy Chapter 13 XI. The Fall of Thomas Cromwell Chapter 14 XII. Conclusion: Cromwell, the Man, and the Record