The Tudors, Season 2

Cardinal Campeggio:
[regarding a letter Henry VIII has sent demanding an annulment] He uses some intemperate language, Holiness, claiming that "Never was a prince so poorly treated by a Pope"

Pope Paul III:
He meant my predecessor, and to be fair, he has a point. Clement was a terrible procrastinator. Although it was terribly wrong for some to dig up his dead body, stab it, and drag it through the street, I can well understand their sentiments; he was never popular.

Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk:
I'm going to have to attend on the king and that bitch of his at her coronation! What didWolsey used to call her? "The Black Crow".

Catherine Brandon, Duchess of Suffolk:
Can you not plead some indisposition?

Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk:
I could, even though the king has made me high constable for the day, but if I did, His Majesty would remove my head. And then, I should be genuinely indisposed!

Catherine Brandon, Duchess of Suffolk:
[flirtingly] Very well. So keep your head. It's a pretty head in any case, and I don't want to lose it either. [serious] But store up your knowledge and your anger. Don't act impulsively; it's always a mistake. But one day, with others so disposed, use them both...and if you can, bring her down, and destroy her.

Anne Boleyn is going into labor. Henry is positive this is his long awaited son

King Henry VIII:
I've asked the French Ambassador to hold him (the baby) at the font during his christening. If he drops him, it's war!

Thinking of baby names

King Henry VIII:
Still not sure whether he should be known as Henry IX or Edward VI!

Henry VIII:
[speaking while holding his newborn daughter] Who knows, perhaps one day this little girl will preside over empires.

Thomas Cromwell:
Majesty, I have just heard that the Pope intends to make Reverend Fisher a cardinal. [Henry laughes coldly at this] Apparently, he has already dispatched a cardinal's hat.

Henry VIII:
Then Fisher will have to wear it upon his shoulders, for by the time it gets here, he won't have a head to put it on!

Thomas Cromwell:
It is rumored that, perhaps, you have a great sympathy for the Dowager Princess Catherine of Aragon.

Charles Brandon:
Don't you?

Thomas Cromwell:
(pause) Actually, I do. I'm not heartless, whatever some people think- quite the contrary. (pause) But...I serve the King. (pause) The King intends to emplace the succession in the children he will have with Queen Anne Boleyn. A bill is to be put before Parliament- he wants to know if it will have your support. (pause as Charles considers his position)

Pope Paul III:
You and I, Campeggio, have done well to avoid the craft of women. Celibacy is an immense relief.

Cardinal Campeggio:
...Holy Father?

Pope Paul III:
Do you know who that was? (the Cardinal shakes his head) Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni.

Cardinal Campeggio:
Michelangelo?! That was him?!

Pope Paul III:
That was him. We forgive him, because he is a genius... whatever that means.

[After Anne reveals her paranoia of Henry having an affair]

Henry VIII:
That's enough!

Anne Boleyn:
No, you told me that we would always be truthful with one another! You said it was the definition of love!

Henry VIII:
Then here's the truth. You must shut your eyes and endure [contemptuous] like your betters have done before you!

Anne Boleyn:
[angrily] How can you say that to me!? Don't you know I love you a thousand times more than Catherine ever did!?

Henry VIII:
[stands up, furious] AND DON'T YOU KNOW THAT I CAN DRAG YOU DOWN AS QUICKLY AS I RAISED YOU!? T'is lucky you have your bed already, madam, because if you did not, I would not give it to you again! [moves to leave, but stops] Francis won't accept the betrothal.

Anne Boleyn:
Why?

Henry VIII:
[angrily] Why do you think!? Because the Pope, and he, and the Emperor ALL AGREE she is a bastard, and you are not my wife!

Sir Henry Norris:
I was married before and, I must confess, I rather like the liberty of not being married again!

Henry VIII:
[laughes] I can understand that!

George Boleyn:
[talking to his father after Henry VIII is left fighting for his life in a jousting accident] You know, I cannot think whether it would be a bad thing, or a good thing if he died. For as Lord Protector, you would ipso facto be King of England.

[Thomas Cromwell is interrogating Lady Margaret Sheldon regarding Queen Anne's infidelity, and has extracted a list of her supposed lovers, save one]

Thomas Cromwell:
And!? [he slams his fist on a table] AND!?

Margaret Sheldon:
[sobbing] I saw her hugging and kissing her brother!

Thomas Cromwell:
[horror-struck and disgusted] Her brother!?

[At a later interrogation of Lady Rochford]

Thomas Cromwell:
Do you believe this to be true?

Lady Rochford:
I believe that is true, yes. [Cromwell walks over and looks her in the eye]

Thomas Cromwell:
[skeptical] You believe that your husband committed incest with the queen!?

[Lady Rochford looks at Cromwell with a sly smile. Cromwell looks surprised, then returns the smile; the pair understand each other perfectly]

Henry VIII:
What of the others!?

Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk:
Smeaton, Brereton, Norris and George Boleyn have been found guilty, and are to be executed tomorrow.

Henry VIII:
You know what Cromwell told me? He told me she'd had to do with over a hundred men. A hundred f***ing men, Charles! [angrily] You know what? My daughter, Mary, owes God a great deal for escaping the hands of that poisoning whore! Oh she planned to have her poisoned, Charles, it's true. Just like she poisoned Catherine. We have proof. And her baby. Her baby was deformed; did you know that, Charles!? [horrified, Brandon shakes his head] So how could it have been mine!? Perhaps Elizabeth isn't even mine! That f***ing bitch! [Henry breaks down in tears as Brandon tries to comfort him]

[In Thomas Wyatt's cell]

Thomas Cromwell:
The Queen was tried yesterday at Westminster Hall. She pleaded not guilty to all charges against her, but the evidence being overwhelming...she was sentenced to death, either by burning or decapitation according to the King's pleasure.

Thomas Wyatt:
[fighting back tears] And her accomplices? What of us?

Thomas Cromwell:
Smeaton, Brereton, Norris and George Boleyn, all guilty as charged.

Thomas Wyatt:
Thomas, what about me? Am I to be tried too?

Thomas Cromwell:
No. We found no evidence against you. You're to be released...eventually. [Cromwell leaves the cell]

Thomas Wyatt:
[tearfully] BUT I'M THE ONLY ONE WHO'S GUILTY!

Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk enters the jail cell of Thomas Boleyn

Thomas Boleyn:
Am I...Am I to be tried?

Charles Brandon:
No, you are to be released.

Thomas Boleyn smiles but tries to conceal his glee by covering his mouth with his hand

Charles Brandon:
But...Your Majesty commands that since you no longer have his trust and affection; that you are to be stripped forthwith of all your official purses and titles. You will no longer serve under the Privy Council, you will relinquish the role of Lord Privy Seal and all its privileges. His Majesty also desires that you leave court and that you never show yourself in his presence again on pain of death.

Thomas Boleyn:
So I am to keep my Earldom?

Charles Brandon is outraged by such a nonchalant attitude that he sails across the table and grabs Boleyn by the shirt of his prison uniform, slamming him against the wall

Charles Brandon{angry but controlled tone}:
Did you watch your son die?! What about your daughter, will you watch her suffer?! Will you watch her die?! Tell me, Boleyn, was it all worth it?!!

Archbishop William Warham:
(concerning the bill the King intends to put before Parliament) Mr. Cromwell, this does not strike me as an attack against the abuses of the clergy (coughs) but rather, an attack upon our very faith (coughs again) and upon the faith of our ancestors!

Thomas Cromwell:
(coldly) That is your judgement, Your Grace; it is not mine. Neither is it the King's.

Willaim Brereton:
(watching Anne dance with Henry) I could still do it. I could find a way to poison her.

Imperial Ambassador Eustace Chapuys:
No.

William Brereton:
But, I thought that was-

Eustace Chapuys:
It would be blamed on my master. At the moment, he doesn't need that; he has a war with the Turks to contend with.

William Brereton:
But, why should anyone ever know?

Eustace Chapuys:
Don't be stupid, Brereton. They would find you and torture you, and you would tell them everything.

William Brereton:
No I wouldn't. I'd die a martyr's death.

Eustace Chapuys:
(smirks) You've never even seen a man being tortured, have you? (pause) You understand? You don't act alone.

Page:
Sir Thomas More. (Cromwell looks up and smiles)

Thomas Cromwell:
Sir Thomas. (rises)

Thomas More:
Mr. Secretary.

Thomas Cromwell:
Please be seated. This is- er- quite an informal occasion. (picks up a pitcher) A little ale, perhaps?

Thomas More:
(stiffly) No, thank you.

Thomas Cromwell:
(smiles and shakes his head)... I'm sure we both know the object that has brought us together. It is very widely rumored, Sir Thomas, that you will refuse to take the Oath of Succession. Now, I say this to you very openly and sincerely, that I wish no harm to come to a great man who has, for years, enjoyed and deserved His Majesty's good graces. I would rather lose my own son, than to see any hurt come to you. (More smiles slightly) May I ask your opinion of the King's new marriage?

Thomas More:
(bluntly) I have no opinion. I neither murmur at it, nor dispute upon it. I never did- never will.

Thomas Cromwell:
Then, what of His Majesty's claim to supremacy over the Church of England?

Thomas More:
(nods thoughtfully) Mmm... I was... unsure about this matter. (pause) Until I re-read His Majesty's own pamphlet, the Assertio Septum Sacramentorum. (Cromwell frowns inquiringly) In fact, I, um, have a copy of it here. (sets the pamphlet on Cromwell's desk) Of course, in the pamphlet, the King asserts the divine origin of the Papacy. The Pope's supremacy descends directly from the Rock of Saint Peter. I think you'll find His Majesty's arguments are as... persuasive and powerful now, as they were when he first wrote them.

Thomas Cromwell:
... Will you take the Oath? I need hardly remind you of the consequences of not doing so.

Thomas More:
(quietly, coldly) Mr. Secretary, I am the King's loyal subject. I say no harm, I think no harm- but I wish everybody good. And, if this be not enough to keep a man alive, in good faith- then, I long not to live. (stands to leave)

Thomas Cromwell:
(exasperated) Sir Thomas. You should know that the King himself has no mind to coerce you. He simply asks that you relent- and condescend to his request that you take the Oath.

Thomas More:
(turns back)... Mr. Cromwell, please impart to the King my utter faithfulness, truthfulness and loyalty to him. (leaves)

Upon hearing that Parliament has passed a "treason act" making failure to swear the Oath of Supremacy a crime punishable by death

Catherine of Aragon:
Poor Fisher. He was a lion in my defense. Now he will die ashamed and alone in a prison cell.

Thomas Cromwell:
What a pleasure to have both you and your lovely wife to sup with, Your Grace.

Katerina Cranmer:
So, tell me- you are suppressing some religious houses?

Thomas Cromwell:
I am starting to, yes.

Katerina Cranmer:
Und what else?

Thomas Cromwell:
I am intending to abolish almost all the Holy Days of the Lord's service- and, during the harvest. (scoffs) These enforced holidays- they damage the country's economy, stop vital works! (the Cranmers nod in agreement) And, in fact, they also impoverish workers!

Katerina Cranmer:
Und the priests?

Thomas Cranmer:
As far as the clergy are concerned, we mean to issue a set of injunctions, requiring them to preach the Supremacy. There will also be an injunction requiring parents and employers to teach their children and servants the Lord's Prayer, Creed and the Ten Commandments in English, rather than Latin.

Thomas Cromwell:
And all clerics will be put on notice to attack the superstitious cults surrounding images and relics. They will be told it will profit more upon their souls to bestow upon the poor and the needy, what they currently waste on relics.

Katerina Cranmer:
(shrugs, nods) That's... very good, gentlemen. (Cranmer and Cromwell smile, pleased) But, allow me to chide you. I don't think that you are going far enough, or fast enough.

Thomas Cromwell:
(glances at Cranmer, surprised)... Your wife is a great radical, Thomas.

Thomas Cranmer:
She is - and, illegal. (he and Cromwell chuckle and toast) Two reasons to hide her.

Katerina Cranmer:
(glances away, irritated) Being carried around in a box does not make you laugh.

Thomas Cranmer:
(hastily) My dear, I am sorry about that-

Katerina Cranmer:
I'm not your dear- I'm nobody's dear. I'm a woman, und I demand equal respect for my ideas! For me, the practices of the Catholic Church are evil! The way people are kept in total ignorance und made to feel guilty about their own bodies und their own thoughts- and even worse, the idea that the rich can buy a plot in Heaven for their souls!

Thomas Cromwell:
(startled) Well, I agree with you! The Catholic Church is corrupted- it's irredeemable!

Katerina Cranmer:
Then you should smash und destroy it- utterly, totally und without pity. That is my advice to you, Mr. Cromwell. (Cromwell stares at her, intrigued; she turns back to her husband and stands up, smirking) Now, you can put me back in my box.

Thomas Cromwell:
I am also preparing for an emergency session of Parliament-

Thomas Boleyn, Earl of Wiltshire:
Bah! Kings had no need of Parliament in the old days!

Thomas Cromwell:
(coldly, not looking up from his paperwork) These are not the old days, my Lord.

Anne Boleyn:
Good Christian people, I have come here to die according to the law and thus yield myself to the will of the King, my Lord. And if ever in my life I did offend the King's grace, then surely with my death I do now atone. I pray and beseech you all to pray for the life of the King, my sovereign Lord and yours who is one of the best princes of the Earth, who has always treated me so well. Where for I submit to death a goodwill, humbly asking for pardon from all the world. If anyone should take up my case, I ask them only to judge it kindly. [her tearful attendants take off her cloak and jewelry; she gives them a weak smile]

French Executioner:
(kneels before Anne) Madam... forgive me, for what I must do.

Anne Boleyn:
Gladly. And here is your purse. (hands him a pouch with payment for the beheading) Thus I take my leave of the world and of you.

Thomas Wyatt:
(in tears at the back of the crowd) Bless you.

Anne Boleyn:
I heartily desire all of you to pray for me. [she kneels; the onlookers begin to kneel and pray for her, led by Archbishop Cranmer; eventually, even Charles Brandon, reluctantly, does so]

Anne Boleyn:
(glancing fearfully at the executioner) Jesus Christ receive my soul, oh Lord, God have pity on my soul. Jesus Christ receive my soul, oh Lord, God have pity on my soul. Jesus Christ receive my soul, Oh Lord God have pity on my soul. Jesus Christ receive my soul, oh Lord, God have pity on my soul, to Lord Christ I commend myself. To Christ I commend myself...

French Executioner:
Boy! Fetch my sword! [Anne glances reflexively to the right. Behind her, the executioner swiftly draws his broadsword from beneath a burlap sack, and raises it to swing]

Anne Boleyn:
Here is a book of prophecy [looking at the cards laid out by a Papal agent] This is the King- this is the Queen- and this is myself... with my head cut off.

Anne Boleyn:
Now, my love, let me conceive... and we will have a son.

Anne Boleyn:
[smiling after hearing the news of Katherine of Aragon's death] Now I am indeed Queen.