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Thomas More: A Very Brief History
‘If the English people were to be set a test to justify their history and civilization by the example of one man, then it is Sir Thomas More whom they would perhaps choose.’ So commented The Times in 1978 on the 500th anniversary of More’s birth.
Twenty-two years later, Pope John Paul II proclaimed Thomas More the patron saint of politicians and people in public life, on the basis of his ‘constant fidelity to legitimate authority and . . . his intention to serve not power but the supreme ideal of justice’.
In this fresh assessment of More’s life and legacy, John Guy considers the factors that have given rise to such claims concerning More’s significance. Who was the real Thomas More? Was he the saintly, self-possessed hero of conscience of Robert Bolt’s A Man for All Seasons or was he the fanatical, heretic-hunting torturer of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall? Which of these images of More has the greater historical veracity? And why does this man continue to fascinate, inspire and provoke us today?
Twenty-two years later, Pope John Paul II proclaimed Thomas More the patron saint of politicians and people in public life, on the basis of his ‘constant fidelity to legitimate authority and . . . his intention to serve not power but the supreme ideal of justice’.
In this fresh assessment of More’s life and legacy, John Guy considers the factors that have given rise to such claims concerning More’s significance. Who was the real Thomas More? Was he the saintly, self-possessed hero of conscience of Robert Bolt’s A Man for All Seasons or was he the fanatical, heretic-hunting torturer of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall? Which of these images of More has the greater historical veracity? And why does this man continue to fascinate, inspire and provoke us today?
134 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2000
4 people are currently reading
187 people want to read
About the author
John Guy
140 books256 followersJohn Guy is recognised as one of Britain's most exciting and scholarly historians, bringing the past to life with the written word and on the broadcast media with accomplished ease. He's a very modern face of history.
His ability for first class story-telling and books that read as thrillingly as a detective story makes John Guy a Chandleresque writer of the history world. Guy hunts down facts with forensic skill, he doesn't just recite historical moments as they stand; he brings names and faces to life in all their human achievements and weaknesses. He looks for the killer clues so we can see how history unfolded. Like a detective on the trail of a crime, he teases out what makes his subjects tick. With his intimate knowledge of the archives, his speciality is uncovering completely fresh lines of enquiry. He's never content to repeat what we already know but rather, he goes that extra step to solve history's riddles. He takes you on a journey to the heart of the matter. Forget notions of musty academics, when Guy takes hold of history the case he states is always utterly compelling. Whether it's Thomas More or Mary Queen of Scots, Guy makes these people so real you suddenly realize you are hearing them speak to you. You enter into their world. You feel you can almost reach out and touch them.
Born in Australia in 1949, John Guy grew up in England and by the age of 16 he knew he wanted to be a historian. In 2001 he made an accomplished debut as a presenter for the television programme Timewatch, on the life of Thomas More. Today he's turning history books on their head as he wins universal praise and the 2004 Whitbread Prize for biography for his thrilling account of the life of Mary Queen of Scots.
As well as presenting five documentaries for BBC 2 television, including the Timewatch film The King's Servant and the four-part Renaissance Secrets (Series 2), he has contributed to Meet the Ancestors (BBC 2), and to Channel 4's Time Team and Royal Deaths and Diseases. Wolsey's Lost Palace of Hampton Court was a short-listed finalist for the 2002 Channel 4 television awards.
John Guy also appears regularly on BBC Radio 2, Radio 3, Radio 4, BBC World Service and BBC Scotland. In print he currently writes or reviews for The Sunday Times, The Guardian, The Economist, the Times Literary Supplement, BBC History Magazine and History Today.
His broadcast and journalism experience builds upon his impeccable CV as an academic and author.
Having read History under the supervision of Professor Sir Geoffrey Elton, the pre-eminent Tudor scholar of the late-twentieth century, John Guy took a First and became a Research Fellow of Selwyn College in 1970. Awarded a Greene Cup by Clare College in 1970, he completed his PhD on Cardinal Wolsey in 1973 and won the Yorke Prize of the University of Cambridge in 1976.
John Guy has lectured extensively on Early Modern British History and Renaissance Political Thought in both Britain and the United States. He has published 16 books and numerous academic articles.
John Guy lives in North London. He is a Fellow of Clare College, University of Cambridge, where he teaches part-time so he can devote more time to his writing and broadcasting career.
His ability for first class story-telling and books that read as thrillingly as a detective story makes John Guy a Chandleresque writer of the history world. Guy hunts down facts with forensic skill, he doesn't just recite historical moments as they stand; he brings names and faces to life in all their human achievements and weaknesses. He looks for the killer clues so we can see how history unfolded. Like a detective on the trail of a crime, he teases out what makes his subjects tick. With his intimate knowledge of the archives, his speciality is uncovering completely fresh lines of enquiry. He's never content to repeat what we already know but rather, he goes that extra step to solve history's riddles. He takes you on a journey to the heart of the matter. Forget notions of musty academics, when Guy takes hold of history the case he states is always utterly compelling. Whether it's Thomas More or Mary Queen of Scots, Guy makes these people so real you suddenly realize you are hearing them speak to you. You enter into their world. You feel you can almost reach out and touch them.
Born in Australia in 1949, John Guy grew up in England and by the age of 16 he knew he wanted to be a historian. In 2001 he made an accomplished debut as a presenter for the television programme Timewatch, on the life of Thomas More. Today he's turning history books on their head as he wins universal praise and the 2004 Whitbread Prize for biography for his thrilling account of the life of Mary Queen of Scots.
As well as presenting five documentaries for BBC 2 television, including the Timewatch film The King's Servant and the four-part Renaissance Secrets (Series 2), he has contributed to Meet the Ancestors (BBC 2), and to Channel 4's Time Team and Royal Deaths and Diseases. Wolsey's Lost Palace of Hampton Court was a short-listed finalist for the 2002 Channel 4 television awards.
John Guy also appears regularly on BBC Radio 2, Radio 3, Radio 4, BBC World Service and BBC Scotland. In print he currently writes or reviews for The Sunday Times, The Guardian, The Economist, the Times Literary Supplement, BBC History Magazine and History Today.
His broadcast and journalism experience builds upon his impeccable CV as an academic and author.
Having read History under the supervision of Professor Sir Geoffrey Elton, the pre-eminent Tudor scholar of the late-twentieth century, John Guy took a First and became a Research Fellow of Selwyn College in 1970. Awarded a Greene Cup by Clare College in 1970, he completed his PhD on Cardinal Wolsey in 1973 and won the Yorke Prize of the University of Cambridge in 1976.
John Guy has lectured extensively on Early Modern British History and Renaissance Political Thought in both Britain and the United States. He has published 16 books and numerous academic articles.
John Guy lives in North London. He is a Fellow of Clare College, University of Cambridge, where he teaches part-time so he can devote more time to his writing and broadcasting career.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
April 22, 2017
Very brief indeed...
According to A Man for All Seasons, Thomas More was a man of principle, willing to sacrifice his life rather than compromise his beliefs. Hilary Mantel's portrayal of him in Wolf Hall gives an alternative view, of a man who was happy to burn heretics, sarcastic and cruel to those around him, and something of a misogynist. In this truly very brief history, John Guy tries to reveal the real man behind the myths.
My existing knowledge was that More was Henry VIII's Lord Chancellor during Henry's attempt to ditch Katherine of Aragon in favour of Anne Boleyn; that More drew the line when Henry decided to ditch the Catholic Church, too, and declare himself the Supreme Head of the Church in England; and that for his defiance, More was executed. Oh, and that he wrote a book called Utopia, which I haven't read. And tortured and burned heretics, although of course he wasn't alone in enjoying that sport.
Sadly, once I had read this, I found that my existing knowledge hadn't really expanded much at all. The book runs to 144 small pages, including notes, etc. I was reading the e-book, but at a guess I'd say 100-110 pages of text maximum, during which Guy romps through his life, discusses the writing and history of Utopia, talks about the portrayal of him in art following his death and in literature more recently, and finishes up with his route to sainthood. When I tell you that More dies at the 40% mark, you will be able to tell that the book doesn't go into much depth regarding his life.
Guy always writes well and Thomas More has been a subject of study with him for many years, so there's no doubt of the scholarship. But truthfully the biography section is so superficial as to be almost pointless, unless one literally knows nothing about More going in. (Which begs the question: why then would you be motivated to read the book in the first place?) And the rest reads like the epilogue to a biography – the kind of thing that historians put in as a last chapter to round the thing off.
Some of it is quite interesting, like the fact that Marx adopted Utopia as a socialist text and as a result there was a statue to commemorate More along with other great socialists in the USSR. Or that his sainthood only came through in 1935, by which time one would have hoped that the Catholic Church might have stopped sanctifying heretic-burners. (Mind you, Wikipedia tells me the Anglican Church recognised him as a martyr of the reformation in 1980, so look out anyone who doesn't conform to Anglicanism – the days of burning may not be as far behind us as we thought!) It is mildly amusing in a surreal kind of way that in 2000, Pope John Paul II made him the patron saint of politicians...
Which brings me neatly to my conclusion – it grieves me to say it since I've been an admirer of John Guy's work for years but, frankly, reading the Wikipedia page on More is just about as informative as this book. I guess very brief histories just aren't my kind of thing. Guy wrote a longer biography of More some years ago (although still only 272 pages, according to Goodreads), so I may read that some day to see if it's more satisfying. 2½ stars for me, so rounded up.
NB This book was provided for review by the publisher, SPCK.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
According to A Man for All Seasons, Thomas More was a man of principle, willing to sacrifice his life rather than compromise his beliefs. Hilary Mantel's portrayal of him in Wolf Hall gives an alternative view, of a man who was happy to burn heretics, sarcastic and cruel to those around him, and something of a misogynist. In this truly very brief history, John Guy tries to reveal the real man behind the myths.
My existing knowledge was that More was Henry VIII's Lord Chancellor during Henry's attempt to ditch Katherine of Aragon in favour of Anne Boleyn; that More drew the line when Henry decided to ditch the Catholic Church, too, and declare himself the Supreme Head of the Church in England; and that for his defiance, More was executed. Oh, and that he wrote a book called Utopia, which I haven't read. And tortured and burned heretics, although of course he wasn't alone in enjoying that sport.
Sadly, once I had read this, I found that my existing knowledge hadn't really expanded much at all. The book runs to 144 small pages, including notes, etc. I was reading the e-book, but at a guess I'd say 100-110 pages of text maximum, during which Guy romps through his life, discusses the writing and history of Utopia, talks about the portrayal of him in art following his death and in literature more recently, and finishes up with his route to sainthood. When I tell you that More dies at the 40% mark, you will be able to tell that the book doesn't go into much depth regarding his life.
Guy always writes well and Thomas More has been a subject of study with him for many years, so there's no doubt of the scholarship. But truthfully the biography section is so superficial as to be almost pointless, unless one literally knows nothing about More going in. (Which begs the question: why then would you be motivated to read the book in the first place?) And the rest reads like the epilogue to a biography – the kind of thing that historians put in as a last chapter to round the thing off.
Some of it is quite interesting, like the fact that Marx adopted Utopia as a socialist text and as a result there was a statue to commemorate More along with other great socialists in the USSR. Or that his sainthood only came through in 1935, by which time one would have hoped that the Catholic Church might have stopped sanctifying heretic-burners. (Mind you, Wikipedia tells me the Anglican Church recognised him as a martyr of the reformation in 1980, so look out anyone who doesn't conform to Anglicanism – the days of burning may not be as far behind us as we thought!) It is mildly amusing in a surreal kind of way that in 2000, Pope John Paul II made him the patron saint of politicians...
Which brings me neatly to my conclusion – it grieves me to say it since I've been an admirer of John Guy's work for years but, frankly, reading the Wikipedia page on More is just about as informative as this book. I guess very brief histories just aren't my kind of thing. Guy wrote a longer biography of More some years ago (although still only 272 pages, according to Goodreads), so I may read that some day to see if it's more satisfying. 2½ stars for me, so rounded up.
NB This book was provided for review by the publisher, SPCK.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
February 2, 2017
This is a model historical biography. Guy is critical of More's Catholic biographers' unquestioning reliance on the earliest hagiographical biographies of More (Roper, Harpsfield, and Stapleton), whose stories do not always align with recent historical evidence and who sometimes employ rhetorical tricks that render the truth elusive. However, Guy also exposes the biases of More's latest revisionist critics, G.R. Elton and Richard Marius, with his own research. Guy systematically lays out all of the problematic or ambiguous elements of More's career and carefully weighs the evidence available in order to come to his own conclusions. In the end this is a fair treatment of More's life that does not shrink from the problematic aspects or fail to give credit where it is due. The reading can be dry at times, but Guy's vivid account of More's imprisonment and "electric" trial had me on the edge of my seat.
April 11, 2017
this was a concise but wonderfully detailed book that explored both More's life and the legacy he left behind. Guy is an excellent historian and i will definitely read some of his other works.
February 18, 2024
During my high school freshman year Mr. Webb studied me for a moment, fished a book out of the stack he was carrying, and said, “you’ll like this one,” and presented me with a copy of A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS for my assignment. It was from reading this play in Speech class that I was introduced to the English official who dared to stand up to King Henry VIII, by not recognizing his divorce from Catherine of Aragon, and his subsequent marriage to Anne Boleyn. I was immediately enthralled with this account of Thomas More who boldly said “no” to his monarch and suffered death for faithfully standing up for his faith. Well, that is the narrative that playwright Robert Bolt crafted, and it was only over time that I learned the “rest of the story.”
Yes, More, stood up for the right of conscience, but it was the right of his conscience. It was not until further reading in college that I understood he had no problem executing others who stood for the right of their conscience that was in contradiction to his own. It was only later that I learned of the many early English Protestants that he sent to their deaths and more of his convoluted story. My initial reactions would have been different if I had a little more detail on More’s story.
John Guy has provided a fuller, yet short introduction to the life of Thomas More that I find quite helpful. His entry in SPCK’s “A Very Brief History” series does an admirable job of sketching the life of this major player of the English Reformation and examining his legacy, one that has been reshaped—by Bolt and others—for their contemporary purposes.
I believe that other readers and those seeking an understanding of the magisterial Reformations will find THOMAS MORE, A VERY BREIF HISTORY to be a useful introduction for their studies.
Yes, More, stood up for the right of conscience, but it was the right of his conscience. It was not until further reading in college that I understood he had no problem executing others who stood for the right of their conscience that was in contradiction to his own. It was only later that I learned of the many early English Protestants that he sent to their deaths and more of his convoluted story. My initial reactions would have been different if I had a little more detail on More’s story.
John Guy has provided a fuller, yet short introduction to the life of Thomas More that I find quite helpful. His entry in SPCK’s “A Very Brief History” series does an admirable job of sketching the life of this major player of the English Reformation and examining his legacy, one that has been reshaped—by Bolt and others—for their contemporary purposes.
I believe that other readers and those seeking an understanding of the magisterial Reformations will find THOMAS MORE, A VERY BREIF HISTORY to be a useful introduction for their studies.
March 24, 2017
Eminent historian John Guy has produced a short and incisive treatise on Thomas More. More is known as the advisor to Henry VIII who was executed rather than swear allegiance to Henry as Head of the Church in England, he is also known as the author of a number of works, particularly 'Utopia' a description of an idealised society. Whether one's view of More is that of 'A Man For All Seasons' or that of 'Wolf Hall' there is much about the man to admire.
Guy has used the restricted length of this book to his advantage, splitting his work into three sections. Having read Guy's previous biography of More's daughter, Margaret, I was satisfied with the short biographical section which was detailed enough. Following that is a look as More's writings, focusing mainly on 'Utopia', and finally there is a look at More's legacy, both in terms of his story and also the view of him as a religious figure. As ever, Guy's work is scrupulously researched but also very readable.
Guy has used the restricted length of this book to his advantage, splitting his work into three sections. Having read Guy's previous biography of More's daughter, Margaret, I was satisfied with the short biographical section which was detailed enough. Following that is a look as More's writings, focusing mainly on 'Utopia', and finally there is a look at More's legacy, both in terms of his story and also the view of him as a religious figure. As ever, Guy's work is scrupulously researched but also very readable.
August 18, 2023
A brief biography on Thomas More, followed by an analysis into his legacy, this book offers a palatable introduction to one of the most significant figures in Tudor history, and possibly, the whole of English history. Its challenge to the currently popular conception of More derived from Hillary Mantel is inspiring, and Guy gives a more genuine account into the ex-Lord Chancellor’s life: one full of juxtapositions and ironies, and which (most probably) explains why he is the patron saint of politicians.
July 6, 2025
I wanted to read this book for the information it had on Thomas More in art and literature, including the 20th Century play "A Man for All Seasons" and the fictional book "Wolf Hall." I was particularly interested in reading the details of More's beatification by Pope Leo XIII in 1886 and his canonization to sainthood by Pope Pius XI in 1935. I found the description of the canonization ceremony in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome on Sunday 19 May 1935 to be fascinating.
September 29, 2025
Basic enough introduction to More with no academic jargon and very brief as the title promises, although left wanting 'more'. Guy is a very good writer, but almost doesn't seem to have an opinion on More (which is probably a good thing because he's permitting the reader a certain freedom in judging him on their own).
January 26, 2024
Great biography. ‘It is as if More was told to stake his life on a doctrinal position, only to find the rug pulled out from under his feet by the King.’ Among the most resounding arguments I’ve ever seen from literature on Thomas More, though sort of fanfic-like.
December 19, 2017
this was .... oddly spicy
July 28, 2018
John Guy, Thomas More: A Very Brief History. London: SPCK, 2018. 116pp.
Will the real Thomas More please step forward?
Since the mid-Twentieth Century there have been at least two "Thomas Mores" vying for supremacy in the mind of the reading public. One is the principled, self-assured philosopher-kind of the A Man for All Seasons (1966). The other is the sneering sadistic zealot of Wolf Hall (2009). One is a saint, the other is very much, so to speak, a sinner.
John Guy--Fellow of Clare College, Cambridge--offers an eminently readable history of the enigmatic Thomas More, perhaps one of the most fascinating individuals in English history. In a quick 116 pages (TOC below) he whisks us through More's life, death, and then explores his legacy and representation in modern literature.
The book begins, as it ought, by exploring some of the internal tensions that More himself seems to have experienced, beginning with his childhood. His story begins in the conflict between his desire for the cloister and his father's desire for him, the chambers.
As the story unfolds, these two Thomases appear in conflict.
On the one hand, he is the renaissance man capable of writing the jovial, witty Utopia and carrying on a learned correspondence with his friend--that ultimate of renaissance men--Desiderius Erasmus. He is the capable theologian able to, at Henry VIII's request, pen refutations of Luther's doctrines. At the same time he appears to be at least savvy enough a politician to become Henry VIII's Lord Chancellor and to advance Henry's agenda.
Without tracing More's entire life, it seems (in Guy's estimation) that there was a tipping point. A moment--not necessarily an instant--in which the theologian and author of Utopia won out over the political More. It would lead to his death.
Guy does a wonderful job of unwinding the threads of More's self and offering a helpful topography of the religious and civil realities of Tudor England. A particularly unique contribution is his treatment of the reception of More in subsequent generations. He includes More's successors who engaged in a successful campaign to rehabilitate More for a post-reformation society. I heartily commend it.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements
Chronology
Part 1 - The History
Shaping a mind
Utopia
The king's servant
The dissident
Part 2 - The Legacy
More's writings
Thomas More in art
Canonization
The lure of fiction
Epilogue
Will the real Thomas More please step forward?
Since the mid-Twentieth Century there have been at least two "Thomas Mores" vying for supremacy in the mind of the reading public. One is the principled, self-assured philosopher-kind of the A Man for All Seasons (1966). The other is the sneering sadistic zealot of Wolf Hall (2009). One is a saint, the other is very much, so to speak, a sinner.
John Guy--Fellow of Clare College, Cambridge--offers an eminently readable history of the enigmatic Thomas More, perhaps one of the most fascinating individuals in English history. In a quick 116 pages (TOC below) he whisks us through More's life, death, and then explores his legacy and representation in modern literature.
The book begins, as it ought, by exploring some of the internal tensions that More himself seems to have experienced, beginning with his childhood. His story begins in the conflict between his desire for the cloister and his father's desire for him, the chambers.
As the story unfolds, these two Thomases appear in conflict.
On the one hand, he is the renaissance man capable of writing the jovial, witty Utopia and carrying on a learned correspondence with his friend--that ultimate of renaissance men--Desiderius Erasmus. He is the capable theologian able to, at Henry VIII's request, pen refutations of Luther's doctrines. At the same time he appears to be at least savvy enough a politician to become Henry VIII's Lord Chancellor and to advance Henry's agenda.
Without tracing More's entire life, it seems (in Guy's estimation) that there was a tipping point. A moment--not necessarily an instant--in which the theologian and author of Utopia won out over the political More. It would lead to his death.
Guy does a wonderful job of unwinding the threads of More's self and offering a helpful topography of the religious and civil realities of Tudor England. A particularly unique contribution is his treatment of the reception of More in subsequent generations. He includes More's successors who engaged in a successful campaign to rehabilitate More for a post-reformation society. I heartily commend it.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements
Chronology
Part 1 - The History
Shaping a mind
Utopia
The king's servant
The dissident
Part 2 - The Legacy
More's writings
Thomas More in art
Canonization
The lure of fiction
Epilogue
February 12, 2017
History has left us so many Thomas Mores - the principled objector; the humanist; the saint; the idealistic author of Utopia; the burner of heretics. How can we find our way through the mire? Fortunately this short, lucid and lively book offers a crash course in all things More - and our guide is one of the world's foremost Tudor historians. John Guy has spent his whole career working on this period and has already published two books on More, so you know you're in safe hands here. More importantly, he writes in a very accessible way: this is not an academic tome but a light, brisk introduction to a major figure in British history. At only 144 pages, the book is further broken down into sections: first a standard biography, giving the details of More's life, and then chapters exploring More's afterlife in art and fiction, as well as following the lengthy campaign for his canonisation...
For the full review, due to be published on 13 February 2017, please see the link below:
https://theidlewoman.net/2017/02/13/t...
For the full review, due to be published on 13 February 2017, please see the link below:
https://theidlewoman.net/2017/02/13/t...
February 10, 2017
Thank to NetGallery and SPCK publisher for preview.
A good introduction to Thomas More's life. Clear, but not trivial.
The first part focuses on the life and writings of the philosopher, concerning in particular the book "Utopia".
The second part, however, discusses the inheritance of More: the legacy of his writings, his presence in art, the process of his canonization.
It's interesting especially the part about More's presence in movies and TV series.
Signed as to be seen "A Man for All Seasons", and to be read Mantel's "Wolf Hall".
Buona introduzione alla vita di Thomas More. Chiara, ma non banale.
La prima parte si concentra sulla vita e gli scritti, soffermandosi in particolare su "Utopia".
La seconda, invece, tratta dell'eredità di More: negli scritti, nell'arte, il suo processo di canonizzazione.
Interessante soprattutto la parte riguardante in film e le serie tv sul tema.
Segno come da vedere: "Un uomo per tutte le stagioni" e da leggere: Mantel "Wolf Hall".
A good introduction to Thomas More's life. Clear, but not trivial.
The first part focuses on the life and writings of the philosopher, concerning in particular the book "Utopia".
The second part, however, discusses the inheritance of More: the legacy of his writings, his presence in art, the process of his canonization.
It's interesting especially the part about More's presence in movies and TV series.
Signed as to be seen "A Man for All Seasons", and to be read Mantel's "Wolf Hall".
Buona introduzione alla vita di Thomas More. Chiara, ma non banale.
La prima parte si concentra sulla vita e gli scritti, soffermandosi in particolare su "Utopia".
La seconda, invece, tratta dell'eredità di More: negli scritti, nell'arte, il suo processo di canonizzazione.
Interessante soprattutto la parte riguardante in film e le serie tv sul tema.
Segno come da vedere: "Un uomo per tutte le stagioni" e da leggere: Mantel "Wolf Hall".
August 14, 2018
An excellent brief introduction, including interesting chapters on More in art and literature.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews