lsey and that of his king. Both were working for a
divorce, but Wolsey wanted Henry to marry as his second wife Renee,
the daughter of Louis XII., and thus bind more closely the two kings,
upon whose union the Cardinal's personal and political schemes were
now exclusively based. Henry, however, had determined that his (p. 203)
second wife was to be Anne Boleyn, and of this determination Wolsey
was as yet uninformed. The Cardinal had good reason to dread that
lady's ascendancy over Henry's mind; for she was the hope and the tool
of the anti-clerical party, which had hitherto been kept in check by
Wolsey's supremacy. The Duke of Norfolk was her uncle, and he was
hostile to Wolsey for both private and public reasons; her father,
Viscount Rochford, her cousins, Sir William Fitzwilliam and Sir
Francis Brian, and many more distant connections, were anxious at the
first opportunity to lead an attack on the Church and Cardinal. Before
the divorce case began Wolsey's position had grown precarious; taxes
at home and failure abroad had turned the loyalty of the people to
sullen discontent, and Wolsey was mainly responsible. "Disaffection to
the King," wrote Mendoza in March, 1527, "and hatred of the Legate are
visible everywhere.... The King would soon be obliged to change his
councillors, were only a leader to present himself and head the
malcontents;" and in May he reported a general rumour to the effect
that Henry intended to relieve the Legate of his share in the
administration.[570] The Cardinal had incurred the dislike of nearly
every section of the community; the King was his sole support and the
King was beginning to waver. In May there were high words between
Wolsey and Norfolk in Henry's presence;[571] in July King and Cardinal
were quarrelling over ecclesiastical patronage at Calais,[572] and,
long before the failure of the divorce suit, there were other (p. 204)
indications that Henry and his minister had ceased to work together in
harmony.

[Footnote 569: _Ibid._, iv., 3400.]

[Footnote 570: _Sp. Cal._, iii., 109, 190, 192,
193; _cf._ iv., 3951, Du Bellay to Montmorenci,
"those who desire to catch him tripping are very
glad the people cry out 'Murder'".]

[Footnote 571: _L. and P._, iv., 1411.]

[Footnote 572: _Ibid._, iv., 3304.]

It is, indeed, quite a mistake to represen