About

For much of the 1530s, Thomas Cromwell ran the Tudor government for Henry VIII. As the king’s chief minister, he was responsible for overseeing the huge volume of matters that needed royal consideration.

But there is a large gap in the archival record as the majority of Cromwell’s outgoing letters were destroyed at the time of his arrest. This makes his surviving papers and notebooks all the more important as from them we can see the daily business of government happening from Cromwell’s perspective. Using his notebooks as a guide, this talk will showcase these archival treasures to explore the inner workings of Tudor government from the mundane to the magisterial.

Secrets of The National Archives showcases some of the most notable documents and stories from the collection. From iconic documents such as Domesday, to hidden gems, discover The National Archives’ unique and rich collection and explore history as it really happened.