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Feb 7, 1478
Birth Of St Thomas More; an introduction to his life
St Thomas was born in Milk Street, London, England on the 7th of February 1947. Born to Sir John More a successful Lawyer and his wife Agnes Graunger. Thomas More attended St Anthony’s school in Threadneedle street in London (considered to be one of the finest schools at the time in London). Born in a Roman Catholic family. -
Period: Jan 1, 1490 to Jan 1, 1492
More as a Page
Thomas More spent the years 1490-1492 as a page in the household service of John Morton the Archbishop of Canterbury. -
Jan 1, 1492
Intelligence was shown
Archbishop believed that More showed so much potential, for John Morton (Archbishop) nominated More for a place at Oxford University, where he began his studies of Law. (Greek and Latin) -
Jan 1, 1492
Lincolns University
More became a student at Lincolns Inn to further his legal studies. After his father urged him to move. -
Jan 1, 1499
More a Barrister
Thomas More became a Barrister after the completion of his law studies. -
Period: Jan 1, 1503 to Jan 1, 1504
Mores spiritual life
Between the years 1503-1504 Thomas More lived near the Cathusian Monastery 9(Outside the walls of London) and joined the Monks spiritual exercises. -
Jan 1, 1504
Elected to a higher level.
More was elected to become a member of the Parliament ( to represent Great Yarmouth) -
Jan 1, 1505
More's Life Priesthood or Marriage
St Thomas More considered entering the priesthood but he would much rather become a good husband than a bad priest. So he married his beloved wife, Jane Colt who bore him four children: Margaret, Elizabeth, Cicely and John. -
Jan 1, 1511
What happened after Jane Colt More's wife passed on.
Jane Colt the wife of St Thomas More passed away at a young age. More almost immediately remarried a rich widow Alice Middleton. (who was a Widow for 7 years) Alice Middleton had a daughter who Thomas adopted. -
Period: Jan 1, 1512 to Jan 1, 1519
The book: Henry
Between the year 1512-1519 , Thomas More worked on a History book on ‘Richard III’, which was never finished. William Shakespeare was influenced by Mores work which then developed a play by Shakespeare “Richard III”. The works were controversial and contemporary to historians, for it had bias opinions. -
Jan 1, 1516
The Book Utopia
St Thomas wrote a WORLD famous book called ‘Utopia’
Utopia by Thomas More was written in the period of the English Renaissance time and one of the critical works that served as a predecessor of the Reformation -
Jan 1, 1529
Henry VIII and More
Henry VIII like St Thomas More, for he then appointed him to succession of high post and missions, then finally made him Lord Chancellor in 1529. -
Jan 1, 1530
Sir Thomas Disagreed
In 1530, More refused to sign a letter by the leading English churchmen and aristocrats asking Pope Clement VII to annul Henry's marriage to Catherine, and also quarrelled with Henry VIII over the heresy laws. -
Jan 1, 1532
Sir Thomas More doesnt agree with the King
Thomas More resigned from Lord Chancellor in 1532, at the height of his career and reputation, when Henry persisted in holding his opinions regarding marriage and the supremacy of the Pope. -
Jan 1, 1533
The Coronation of the Queen
In 1533, More refused to attend the coronation of Anne Boleyn as the Queen of England. Truthfully, this was not an act of treason, as More had written to Henry acknowledging Anne's queenship and expressing his desire for the King's happiness and the new Queen's health. Despite this, his refusal to attend was widely interpreted as a snub against Anne, and Henry took action against him. -
Jan 1, 1534
Accused of Conspiracy
In early 1534, More was accused of conspiring with the "Holy Maid of Kent," Elizabeth Barton, a nun who had prophesied against the king's annulment, but More was able to produce a letter in which he had instructed Barton not to interfere with state matters. -
Apr 13, 1534
Consipiracy
More was asked to appear before a commission and swear his allegiance to the parliamentary Act of Succession. More accepted Parliament's right to declare Anne Boleyn the legitimate Queen of England, but he steadfastly refused to take the oath of supremacy of the Crown in the relationship between the kingdom and the church in England.More refused to take the oath and furthermore publicly refused to uphold Henry's annulment. Alongside John Fisher. -
Jul 1, 1535
Mores Trial
More was tried before a panel of judges that included the new Lord Chancellor, Sir Thomas Audley, as well as Anne Boleyn's father, brother, and uncle. He was charged with high treason for denying the validity of the Act of Succession. Jury Only took 15 minutes to find that he is guilty. -
Jul 6, 1535
St Thomas More convicted of Treason
After spending fifteen in the tower of London, St Thomas More was beheaded 9 days after ST John Fisher.
St Thomas More was convicted of treason. He told the court he couldn’t go against his conscience and whished his judges that: ‘We may yet hereafter in heaven merrily all meet together to everlasting salvation’. He then said to the crowd on the scaffold ‘The Kings good servant BUT GOD’S FIRST) -
The Beatification of Bl. Thomas
Bl. Thomas More was Beatified by Pope Leo XIII in 1886. -
Canonisation
St Thomas , along with his companion St John Fisher were canonized on the 19th of May 1935 by Pope Pius XI -
More on the English calender of saint & heroes
More was added to the church of England’s Calender of Saints and Heroes of the Christian church, jointly with St John Fisher. -
Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II declared More the ‘Heavenly patron of statesmen and politicians’ -
Bibliography
Bibliography:
Catholic Online,2012,Copyright 2012 Catholic Online. Us, 17/03/2012, Catholic.Org
Video: St Thomas More video,13/08/2006, Biography, Youtube.
St Thomas More picture
W:Stmaustim Website
