[[File:Thomas Cromwell.jpg|thumb|200px|Thomas Cromwell, earl of Essex]]
[[File:Thomas Cromwell.jpg|thumb|200px|Thomas Cromwell, earl of Essex]]
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'''Thomas Cromwell''' (1485 – July 28, 1540) was the principal adviser to King [[Henry VIII]] of England from 1532 to 1540. He played a major role in establishing the Protestant faith in England during the [[Protestant Reformation | Reformation]], as seen in his role in dissolving the monasteries. His enemies arrested him for heresy and treason, and he was executed in 1540. [[Oliver Cromwell]] is a distant relative.
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'''Thomas Cromwell''' (1485 – July 28, 1540) was the principal adviser to King [[Henry VIII]] of England from 1532 to 1540. He played a major role in establishing the Protestant faith in England during the [[Protestant Reformation | Reformation]], and managed the dissolution of the monasteries. His enemies arrested him for heresy and treason, and he was executed in 1540. [[Oliver Cromwell]] is a distant relative.
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When Henry failed to convince to pope to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, Cromwell proposed breaking papal authority over English church and replacing it with royal supremacy. To achieve these purposes, Cromwell supervised to the drafting of the Act in Restraint of Appeals (1533) and the Act of Supremacy (1534).
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When Henry failed to convince to pope to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, Cromwell proposed breaking papal authority over the English church and replacing it with royal supremacy. To achieve these purposes, Cromwell supervised to the drafting of the Act in Restraint of Appeals (1533) and the Act of Supremacy (1534).