He was the friend
and companion of Erasmus during the residence of that distinguished man in
England. More was gifted as an orator, and rose to the distinction of
speaker of the House of Commons; was presented with the great seal upon
the dismissal of Wolsey, and by his learning, his affability, and his
kindness, became the most popular, as he seemed to be the most prosperous
man in England. But, the test of Henry's friendship and of More's
principles came when the king desired his concurrence in the divorce of
Catherine of Arragon. He resigned the great seal rather than sign the
marriage articles of Anne Boleyn, and would not take the oath as to the
lawfulness of that marriage. Henry's kindness turned to fury, and More was
a doomed man. A devout Romanist, he would not violate his conscience by
submitting to the act of supremacy which made Henry the head of the
Church, and so he was tried for high treason, and executed on the 6th of
July, 1535. There are few scenes more pathetic than his last interview
with his daughter Margaret, in the Tower, and no death more calmly and
beautifully grand than his.
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