[MR] History Blog: Thomas Cromwell's and Henry VIII's Bible Past-overs

[Garth Groff and Sally Sanford]

Noble Friends,

When Thomas Cromwell had Henry VIII's Great Bible published in 1539, two
special copies on vellum were made, one for Henry and one for Cromwell.
Both men are shown on the lavishly decorated title page in a rather
self-serving fashion.

Flash forward to the next year when Cromwell went to the block for
arranging Henry's rather farcical, and possibly unconsumated, marriage to
Anne of Cleves. The title pages of both Bibles were altered to remove
Cromwell, something like those Russian photos where purged members of
Stalin's inner circle magically disappear from the Kremlin reviewing stand
in each subsequent issue. And who says you can't change history? Well,
maybe not, but self-serving despots often try.

You can read the whole story at http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/59185
. Don't forget that you can click on the History Blog's photos to blow them
up to a viewable size. In this case, it is well worth the click.

Yours Aye,


Mungo Napier, Laird of Mallard Lodge  🦆