Look, he says: once you have exhausted the process of negotiation and compromise, once you have fixed on the destruction of an enemy, that destruction must be swift and it must be perfect. Before you even glance in his direction, you should have his name on a warrant, the ports blocked, his wife and friends bought, his heir under your protection, his money in your strong room and his dog running to your whistle. Before he wakes in the morning, you should have the axe in your hand.
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Welcome to Wolf Crawl. I am your guide, Simon Haisell, and this is a year-long slow read of Hilary Mantel’s Cromwell trilogy: Wolf Hall, Bring Up the Bodies, and The Mirror and the Light.
Each week, I dive into the details, with summaries, background, footnotes and tangents to enrich your reading. I am joined on this journey by Bea Stitches, who delves into the archive on our behalf, and Matt Brown, who makes maps to help us find our way through Cromwell’s world.
You can find the reading schedule and plot summaries for the full cast of characters on my website, Footnotes and Tangents. There, you can join other slow reads, including Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace, The Inheritors by William Golding and Treacle Walker by Alan Garner.
I start each post with a summary of the week’s story, illustrated by a map created by Matt Brown. This week, we are reading the fourth of five sections from Part Two. Chapter II. Master of Phantoms. London, April–May 1536.
UK Fourth Estate edition, pp. 406–441
US Picador, pp. 340–369
US Henry Holt, pp. 342-371 (guide only, editions vary)
Ben Miles audiobook, 13:38:29–14:51:25
First Line: May is blossoming…
Last Line: If ever a man came close to beheading himself, Thomas More was that man.
This summary is followed by a few footnotes of interest.
This week, we look at the indictments and a ghostly woman in the Tower. Anne imitates Queen Esther, William Kingston provides evidence, and we ask whether Thomas Wyatt is Cromwell’s muse. In the archives, Bea Stitches finds herself a little too close to William Brereton.
And then it is over to you. In the comments, let us know what caught your eye and ask the group any questions you may have. And if you’ve tumbled down a rabbit hole or taken your reading off on a tangent, please share where you have been and what you have found.
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