Thomas More: Renaissance Humanist and Statesman

Thomas More

An English lawyer, judge, politician, thinker, writer, theologian, and Renaissance humanist. As a close advisor to Henry VIII, he served in state affairs and held the office of Lord Chancellor from 1529 to 1532. In 1516, he wrote his major work, Utopia, discussing the nature of society and politics. Conversely, he opposed the Reformation and refused to accept Henry VIII's break with the Papacy in Rome and his policy establishing the King as the Supreme Head of the Church of England. Refusing to take the Oath of Supremacy, he was convicted of high treason and beheaded at Tower Hill in London in 1535.

Timeline

Category
Element

Year	Thomas More
1478	Birth of Thomas More (Period: February 7, 1478, Location: London (City of London))
1504	First Election to Parliament (Thomas More, Age: 25 years old, Period: 1504, Location: Parliament of England, London)
1505	Marriage (Thomas More, Joanna "Jane" Colt, Age: 26 years old, Period: 1505, Location: London, England)
1511	Marriage (Thomas More, Alice Middleton, Age: 32 years old, Period: 1511, Location: London, England)
1516	Publication of Utopia (Age: 37 years old, Period: 1516, Location: Louvain, Netherlands)
1523	Appointment as Speaker of the House of Commons (Thomas More, Age: 44 years old, Period: 1523, Location: London, Parliament of England)
1525	Raid on Hanseatic Merchants at the Steelyard in 1525 (Age: 46 years old, Period: 1525, Location: The Steelyard, London)
1534	Refusal to Take the Oath of Supremacy (Thomas More, Age: 55 years old, Period: 1534, Location: London, England)
1535	Trial of Thomas More (Age: 57 years old, Period: July 1, 1535, Location: London, England) Death of Thomas More (Age: 57 years old, Period: July 6, 1535 (aged 57)) Execution of Thomas More (Age: 57 years old, Period: July 6, 1535, Location: Tower Hill, London)
1935	Posthumous Canonization (Age: 399 years after death, Period: 1935, Location: Rome, Vatican)
Unknown	Wars of the Roses (Period: 1455–1487, Location: England) Studies at Oxford University (Thomas More, Period: c. 1492–c. 1494, Location: Oxford, England) Legal Studies at Lincoln's Inn (Thomas More, Period: 1496–1502, Location: London, England) Appointment as Undersheriff of the City of London (Thomas More, Period: 1510–1518, Location: London, England) Writing of The History of King Richard III (Thomas More, Period: c. 1512–c. 1519, Location: England) Participation in Diplomacy and Court Activities of Henry VIII (Thomas More, Period: 1514–1521, Location: London, Calais, Bruges, etc.) Counter-Reformation Polemical Activities (Thomas More, Period: 1520s–1530s, Location: England) Appointment as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Thomas More, Period: 1525–1529, Location: England) Appointment as Lord Chancellor (Thomas More, Period: October 1529–May 1532, Location: London, England) Dispute Between Thomas More and William Tyndale (Period: 1529–1532, Location: England and Continental Europe) Refusal to Take the Oath of Supremacy (Thomas More, Period: April 1534–1535, Location: London, England) Imprisonment of Thomas More (Period: 1534–1535, Location: Tower of London, London)

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Element

Europe World

Group	List
The English royal family	Henry Tudor Edward Tudor Mary Tudor Elizabeth Tudor
The English Reformation	Thomas Cranmer William Tyndale Thomas More John Fisher Hugh Latimer John Foxe John Jewel Richard Hooker
Renaissance science	Nicolaus Copernicus Andries van Wesel Gerard de Kremer John Napier Filippo Bruno Galileo Galilei
Renaissance Art	Leonardo da Vinci Benvenuto Cellini Andrea Palladio Philibert de l'Orme Pierre Lescot Jean Goujon

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Thomas More: Renaissance Humanist and Statesman

Thomas More

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