Thomas More's Imprisonment, Was It Suicide?

Thomas More's Imprisonment, Was it Suicide?

Thomas More's writings have always given us the impression of his undying belief in God, through his Catholic upbringing and his unwavering philosophy of righteousness. Yet, we still come up with some questions and several amended answers from many scholars. Were More's words and deeds consistent? Did Thomas More commit suicide by standing by his principals or did he know that his imprisonment and execution would lead to martyrdom and eventually to his canonization by the Roman Catholic Church? Contrary to what some scholars have written about Thomas More, I believe that he was sent to the Tower of London and jailed in a publicity stunt that went horribly wrong. Leaving the Commissioners no other option than to persecute him by trial and execute him.

In 1534, a Succession Act was passed describing the right of succession after the death of King Henry VIII. After his divorce from Queen Catherine and the announcement of his marriage to Anne Boleyn and the birth of Princess Elizabeth, Henry knew that a disputed accession could happen if no son was born to him. With this, the Succession stated that after King Henry's death, the crown would be passed to his eldest living son; failing a son, to the Princess Elizabeth. Thus, the Princess Mary was set aside. This oath not only covered the succession, but it also solidified; the annulment of the marriage with Queen Catherine, the validity of the marriage to Anne, and even the rejection of the authority of the Pope in matters of marriage. Those that refused to take this oath were found guilty of treason and would be imprisoned until they recanted and took the oath.

Thomas More received his summons in April of 1534, in which it requested him to appear in Lambeth before the Commissioners to take the oath to the Succession. More was brought in before the Act came into force and by doing so, the Commissioners and Henry must have thought by More's taking of the oath, would help by leading by example. Since Thomas More was still dearly thought of among his peers and by the public, by him taking the oath it would signify that the Act was beyond contestation and put to rest any rumors. Even though he never verbally addressed or wrote anything negative against the King, most knew of More's devotion to Queen Catherine and his distaste over the King's desire of marriage to Anne. Rumors circled that the reason More resigned his commission as Lord Chancellor with the King was due to More's disapproval of the divorce and eventual marriage. After several attempts by the Commissioners to get More to adhere to take the oath, they were left with no other choice but to imprison More to the Tower of London until the time came that he would finally agree to take the oath. Neither the Commissioners nor Henry realized to what extent More was willing to go and by all accounts seemed to forget what kind of character Thomas More possessed.

During his fifteen months of imprisonment, the Act of Succession was ratified and a few more Acts were passed that struck at the Pope. Taking powers away from the Papal authority and moving farther away from the Church was probably what More objected to in the taking of the oath and not so much of the succession right. But More never made this completely clear as to why he refused to take the oath. When asked by the Commissioners why he would not take the oath, More stated that he would write a letter to the King listing his reasons and no other. It was pointed out to him that the King could not stand against the application of the statue and hence More refused to give the grounds behind his objections.

For the first twelve months of imprisonment, Thomas More was not harassed nor did he live the life of a horrific prisoner. Instead, he was allowed visits from his family and together they walked through the Tower gardens. He was allowed books, supplies for his writings, and at his own expense, he was able to make his cell as comfortable as possible. Having his own personal servant attend him was also allowed during this time. The alterations he managed to pay for and do to his cell made for an acceptable living arrangement.

During these months no formal charges were ever brought against More and he was never brought before the court of law. He could have been charged with the refusal to take the oath of Succession which led to a punishment of life in prison and loss of goods. But it seemed that the King and Commissioners could not decide what to do with him. It is not known if his death was already contemplated by Henry, but what we can be certain of is that the King was determined to have his way and that he wanted More to take the oath.

By the end of 1534, Parliament turned its attention to the new Act of Treasons. Under such an Act, the following would be crucial for Thomas More:

...that is any person or persons...do maliciously wish, will or desire, by words or writing, or by craft imagine, invent, practice, or attempt any bodily harm to be done to the King's most royal person, the Queen's, or their heirs apparent, or to