History UsefulNotes / ThomasMore

He ended at #37 in ''Series/OneHundredGreatestBritons''.

* ''A Response to Luther'' (1523): One of More's works critiquing Protestantism, written at the request of Henry VIII. King Henry had written a work called ''Defence of the Seven Sacraments'' in response to Martin Luther's attacks on the Catholic faith. In response, Luther wrote ''Against Henry, King of the English'', and More wrote this work against Luther, defending the papacy, the sacraments, and Catholic doctrine in general.

He is generally seen as an [[OnlySaneMan upright politician in a country facing huge upheaval]], [[FairForItsDay with some very modern ideas regarding women's equality and education]], and a talented satirist and philosopher. Oh, and he was a whip-smart barrister, as well. He was also canonized by the Catholic Church in 1935 and declared the patron saint of lawyers and politicians. On the other hand, some people see him as an example of religious intolerance, accusing him of using his position as Lord Chancellor to persecute the Protestants.

He is generally seen as an [[OnlySaneMan upright politician in a country facing huge upheaval]], [[FairForItsDay with some very modern ideas regarding women's equality and education]], and a talented satirist and philosopher. He was also canonized by the Catholic Church in 1935 and declared the patron saint of lawyers and politicians. On the other hand, some people see him as an example of religious intolerance, accusing him of using his position as Lord Chancellor to persecute the Protestants.

The year is 1530. UsefulNotes/HenryVIII and his good Queen Catherine are on the throne of England, with renowned scholar and lawyer Sir Thomas More as Lord Chancellor (the highest political office a non-royal could attain, [[UsefulNotes/BritishPoliticalSystem somewhat like British Prime Minister]]). All of Europe's Catholic monarchs envy Henry VIII for having a Lord Chancellor with whom he can co-write blistering tracts condemning Martin Luther. Whatever could come between such good friends?

* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: In ''Literature/WolfHall'', a novel that sympathetically portrays its main character Oliver Cromwell, Thomas More is portrayed as a man who used his position of Lord Chancellor to persecute the Protestants.

* ''Theatre/AManForAllSeasons'', a play by Robert Bolt (adapted into an Oscar-winning movie starring Paul Scofield) about his family life and conflict with the King. Played by Creator/CharltonHeston in the 1988 made-for-TV remake.

* ''Literature/{{Utopia}}'' (1516): Probably More's most famous work. It is a satire that examines questions such as: "What is the best way for human beings to live, both personally and politically?" What does humanity need to flourish in justice, peace, friendship, and concord? What kind of citizens and leaders does a commonwealth need to achieve such ends?" More presents these answers in the words of a traveller named "Raphael Hythloday", who describes the titular island. Some of his descriptions of Utopia are reminiscent of life in monasteries.

* ''The Sadness of Christ'' (1535): The last book Thomas More has ever written, before his eventual execution for refusing to betray the Catholic faith. Here, he reflects on the Gospel passages depicting the agony of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.

:: Of course, More was actually beheaded for treason, not burned at the stake for being Catholic. His Catholicism did play a role in his eventual execution, though.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/617px_hans_holbein_the_younger___sir_thomas_more___google_art_project.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350: A portrait of the man for all seasons by Hans Holbein the Younger]]

* ''Literature/{{Utopia}}'' (1516): Probably More's most famous work. It is a satire that examines questions such as: "What is the best way for human beings to live, both personally and politically?" What does humanity need to flourish in justice, peace, friendship, and concord? What kind of citizens and leaders does a commonwealth need to achieve such ends?" and More presents these answers in the words of a traveller named "Raphael Hythloday", who describes the titular island. Some of his descriptions of Utopia are reminiscent of life in monasteries.

* ''The Confutation of Tyndale's Answer'' (1532-1533): William Tyndale, a scholar known for being one of the earliest translators of the Bible into English, wrote ''An Answer unto Sir Thomas More's Dialogue'', in which he responds to More's critiques of Protestantism in his dialogue. More, who suspected that Tyndale deliberately mistranslated the Bible to promote heresy, wrote back not using a fictional framing device, but by quoting Tyndale's work, analyzing his arguments, and refuting them.

More was a renowned writer and wit, whose ''Literature/{{Utopia}}'' was widely read and imitated -- and still is to this day. He became Speaker of the House of Commons in 1523. He was also the first layman to become Lord Chancellor, after the fall of [[CorruptChurch Cardinal Wolsey]] in 1529. Queen Catherine could not provide Henry with a male heir, and Henry saw this as a punishment from God for marrying her, [[IncestIsRelative as she had been his elder brother's widow]]. He wanted UsefulNotes/ThePope to annul the marriage for being invalid, but a previous Pope had already declared it valid (not to mention the fact that the troops of the [[UsefulNotes/HolyRomanEmpire Holy Roman Emperor]] -- Catherine's nephew -- had looted Rome very recently, and he was the last guy the Pope wanted to offend). So, Henry decided to break away from Rome, declare himself Head of the Church in England, and annul the marriage himself. This went against Sir Thomas' most cherished beliefs: he thought it was impossible for a human institution (the king and Parliament) to usurp the authority of an office established by God Himself (the Papacy). Sir Thomas chose to resign and live in poverty rather than have anything to do with the new changes.

* FamousLastWords: Before being beheaded, he moved his very long beard aside so it wouldn't fall under the axe as well and said: "Pity that should be cut, that hath not committed treason." Another report says that More said this: "I die the king's faithful servant and God's first."

* ''The Four Last Things'' (c. 1522): A work written by More in a contest with his daughter Meg. Here, he examines and reflects on the "Four Last Things" in Christianity: death, judgment, heaven, and hell.

* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: In ''Literature/WolfHall'', a novel that sympathetically portrays its main character Oliver Cromwell, Thomas more is portrayed as a man who used his position of Lord Chancellor to persecute the Protestants.

* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: In ''Literature/WolfHall'', in which he is portrayed as a man who uses his position of Lord Chancellor to persecute the Protestants.

:: Of course, More was beheaded for treason, not burned at the stake for being Catholic.

* ''A Response to Luther'' (1523): One of More's works critiquing Protestantism. It was written at the request of Henry VIII, who had written a work called ''Defence of the Seven Sacraments'' in response to Martin Luther's attacks on the Catholic faith. Luther wrote ''Against Henry, King of the English'' in response to Henry VIII's work, and More wrote this work against Luther, defending the papacy, the sacraments, and Catholic doctrine in general.

The year is 1530. UsefulNotes/HenryVIII and his good Queen Catherine are on the throne of England, with renowned scholar and lawyer Sir Thomas More as Lord Chancellor (the highest political office a non-royal could attain, [[UsefulNotes/BritishPoliticalSystem somewhat like British Prime Minister)]]. All of Europe's devout Catholic monarchs envy the devoutly Catholic Henry for having a devoutly Catholic Lord Chancellor with whom he can co-write blistering tracts condemning Martin Luther. Whatever could come between such good friends?

* ''The Confutation of Tyndale's Answer'' (1532-1533): William Tyndale, a scholar, wrote ''An Answer unto Sir Thomas More's Dialogue'', in which he responds to More's critiques of Protestantism. More wrote back not using a fictional framing device, but by quoting Tyndale's work, analyzing his arguments, and refuting them.

He is generally seen as an [[OnlySaneMan upright politician in a country facing huge upheaval]], [[FairForItsDay with some very modern ideas regarding women's equality and education]], and a talented satirist and philosopher. He was canonized by the Vatican in 1935 and declared the patron saint of lawyers and politicians. On the other hand, some people see him as an example of religious intolerance, accusing him of using his position as Lord Chancellor to persecute the Protestants.

* ''Literature/WolfHall'' which portrays him in a negative light, since the main character is his rival Thomas Cromwell.

* ''Literature/WolfHall'' which portrays him in a negative light, since the main character is his rival Thomas Cromwell. Of course, it must be noted (as seen below) that his authorization of Protestant suppression is [[ValuesDissonance quite consistent]] [[TruthInTelevision with his Catholic beliefs]]--and his proud acceptance of his condemnation to death, while easily visible in a point of suicidal, egotistic arrogance[[note]]He is shown as saying ''"Against Henry's kingdom, I have all the kingdoms of Christendom! Against each one of your bishops... Against your Parliament! I have all the general councils of the Church stretching back for a thousand years!"''[[/note]] would actually do justice to how an unbending man of principle might actually do it.

* HistoricalHeroUpgrade: Representations of More often overlook his suppression of Protestantism and approval of execution for heresy, instead focusing on his more traditionally moral beliefs and personal integrity.
* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: In ''Literature/WolfHall''.