Henry’s Vulnerability and Cromwell’s Rejection
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Cromwell swiftly prevents a faltering Henry from falling, physically supporting the King, thereby highlighting Cromwell's attentiveness and Henry's declining health.
Henry, disoriented and angered by his display of weakness, orders everyone to leave, then pulls away from Cromwell's supportive touch, exposing his resentment and vulnerability.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Uneasy and humiliated, masking pain with false bonhomie, then erupting into fury when his vulnerability is exposed.
Henry stands rigidly for his portrait, his face puffy and pale with pain. He feigns cheer about the French king’s death but grows impatient with Holbein’s work. When Cromwell steadies him as he sways, Henry’s face fills with anger. He plucks Cromwell’s hand away and orders everyone out of the room, his humiliation turning to fury.
- • To maintain the appearance of strength and control in front of the court.
- • To punish those who witness his weakness, reinforcing his authority through fear.
- • Vulnerability is a sign of weakness that must be concealed at all costs.
- • Loyalty is conditional and must be tested repeatedly to ensure obedience.
Urgently compliant, ensuring the King’s needs are met without hesitation or question.
Richard Riche bawls for a seat for Henry as he sways, then helps disperse the onlookers after Henry’s outburst. His actions are reactive and obedient, ensuring the King’s commands are carried out immediately.
- • To prevent any further embarrassment to the King by securing a seat and clearing the room.
- • To demonstrate unwavering loyalty to Henry, reinforcing his own position in the court.
- • The King’s authority must be upheld at all costs, even in moments of weakness.
- • Cromwell’s influence is fragile, and aligning with the King’s moods is essential for survival.
Urgently obedient, ensuring the King’s privacy and authority are preserved without question.
A Councillor shouts for others to leave the room after Henry’s outburst, ensuring the King’s command is followed without delay. His role is reactive and subordinate, focused on enforcing Henry’s will.
- • To clear the room swiftly to comply with Henry’s order and avoid his wrath.
- • To reinforce the King’s absolute authority through immediate action.
- • The King’s commands must be obeyed without hesitation.
- • Disorder in the court reflects poorly on the monarchy and must be suppressed.
Cautiously observant, ensuring the King’s commands are followed without drawing attention to himself.
Fitzwilliam stands nearby with Cromwell and Riche, observing Henry’s instability. After Henry’s outburst, he helps shoo out the onlookers, complying with the King’s command without question.
- • To maintain order and avoid Henry’s wrath by swiftly complying with his demands.
- • To observe Cromwell’s interaction with Henry, assessing the shifting dynamics of power.
- • The King’s word is absolute, and dissent is dangerous.
- • Cromwell’s influence is precarious, and his fall could be imminent.
Slightly pressured by Henry’s impatience but otherwise professionally detached, observing the unfolding drama without direct involvement.
Holbein stands at his easel, sketching Henry’s portrait. He is pressured by Henry to finish quickly but remains focused on his work. The interruption of Henry’s outburst forces him to pause, though his role in the event is peripheral.
- • To complete the portrait as efficiently as possible to avoid Henry’s displeasure.
- • To remain neutral in the court’s power struggles, focusing solely on his artistic duty.
- • Artistic precision is paramount, even in the face of royal impatience.
- • Court politics are best observed from a distance to avoid entanglement.
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
Holbein’s easel serves as the focal point for the portrait session, symbolizing the court’s obsession with legacy and appearance. It anchors the scene physically, with Henry standing rigidly before it, his instability contrasting with the steadiness of the easel. When Henry sways, the easel remains unmoved, a silent witness to his fragility. After the outburst, the easel is left standing, its blank sketch paper a metaphor for the unfinished and unstable nature of Henry’s reign.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The Long Gallery at Hampton Court Palace serves as a grand yet intimate stage for Henry’s unraveling. Its elongated expanse and polished floors amplify the tension, while the tall windows cast light on Henry’s pallor, exposing his physical and emotional fragility. The gallery, typically a space for artistic and political display, becomes a witness to Henry’s humiliation, its grandeur contrasting with the raw vulnerability of the moment. The echoing footsteps and sudden flood of people underscore the public nature of his collapse, making his rejection of Cromwell all the more dramatic.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
Within this episode
"Rejection and dismissal from Henry transition to another discussion around his brother, which marks another negative conversation and shift in tone."
Henry interrogates Cromwell’s political judgmentAcross episodes
"In Episode 2, Riche approaches Cromwell with bureaucratic efficiency when summoned to arrange the Shaftesbury visit. In Episode 3, when Henry nearly faints during his portrait session, Riche immediately bawls for a seat, showing the same instinctive efficiency in serving the King—a callback to his role as ultimate facilitator."
Cromwell’s Ideological Justification Collapses"In E2, Cromwell shifts from portrait discussion to confrontation with Lady Margaret, demonstrating his ability to pivot between artistic patronage and political crisis. In E3, he remains by Henry's side during the King's portrait session, managing the monarch's outburst and physical collapse while Holbein works."
Cromwell shifts from reports to confrontation"In E2, the political tension involves a royal relative's secret marriage within Norfolk's orbit. In E3, Cromwell faces direct pressure from an unstable King Henry VIII during a portrait session, with the monarch's physical and emotional volatility threatening Cromwell's position more directly."
Cromwell learns of Margaret Douglas’s treasonous affair"E2's hint of Norfolk's faction seeking 'a new way to the throne' through Margaret Douglas foreshadows the factional pressures on Cromwell in E3, where he must navigate between Jane Seymour's pregnancy (a new potential heir) and the King's instability."
Cromwell learns of Margaret Douglas’s treasonous affair"In Episode 2, Henry is seated apart from revelers, nursing his leg, establishing his chronic pain. In Episode 3, Henry stands rigidly for Holbein's portrait, pale and puffy-faced, visibly suffering—the same physical frailty is consistent across episodes."
Henry orders Cromwell to marry off Mary and Margaret"Holbein's sketch of Henry during his vulnerable moment in episode 3 becomes the basis for the idealized depiction in the grand mural of episode 4."
Henry’s mural and Jane’s fragility"In E203, Henry's physical vulnerability is on display—pale, puffy-faced, in pain—and Riche bawls for a seat when Henry sways. In E204, Henry is again volatile, threatening invasion while relying on his council's support. Riche continues to react with visible fear, his earlier attentiveness to Henry's frailty now amplified by the king's unpredictable temper."
Henry Threatens French Invasion"Both events contrast Henry's physical frailty (pale and pained in episode 3; leaning on a stick in episode 4) with the idealized image Holbein creates—the sketch in episode 3 is unflattering, while the mural in episode 4 is gilded and grand."
Henry’s mural and Jane’s fragilityKey Dialogue
"HENRY: I hear a rumour that the King of France is dead."
"HENRY: ((False bonhommie)) You must finish this drawing today, Hans, or you will have to chase me. I shall not linger when I could be hunting."
"HENRY: ((Plucks Cromwell’s hand away)) Send them all out... Out! Out! Disperse!"