Well, the second episode of the second season of Wolf Hall, the Mirror and the Light, gets into the scandal of Lady Margaret Douglas’ secret marriage to Lord Thomas Howard. Let’s dig in and look at the truth behind the drama.
Watch the video, or read a rough transcript below.
Related Link: Episode 53: Tudor Times on Margaret Tudor
 Hey friend, welcome back to the YouTube channel for the Renaissance English History Podcast. I am your host, Heather. I’ve been podcasting on Tudor England since 2009 with my show, making it the original Tudor History Podcast. This channel is where I put all of my episodes from all of my shows, as well as lots of extra content like this video right here.
This video today. We are going to talk more about Wolf Hall, the second episode, uh, aired in the UK on Sunday of the Mirror and the Light. I did a video on Monday or Tuesday talking about, uh, was Cromwell really going to marry Princess Mary? Because that’s something that was portrayed, the, the rumor of that was.
portrayed in the second episode. The other main thing that came in that second episode was we saw Lady Margaret Douglas and her secret marriage and we saw Cromwell interrogating her and the kind of repercussions and fallout from that. So today we’re going to talk about about the truth of what happened with Lady Margaret Douglas and her secret marriage, which is indeed historically accurate.
Uh, we’re going to talk about how Cromwell might have been involved, what we know about how he might’ve been involved and what was an interpretation, that kind of thing. So let’s get started and dig right in. Before we do that though, if you would like to see more Tudor history in your YouTube feed, why not go ahead and hit subscribe right now so you never miss a video that I put out.
Okay. I have to put on my glasses to do this so I can see my notes. Ah, age. All right, so let’s talk a little bit about who Lady Margaret Douglas was and this secret marriage that she had. So it’s the summer of 1536. Henry is basking in his new marriage to Jane Seymour and hopeful for his long awaited male heir and scandal erupts in his court.
His beloved niece, Lady Margaret Douglas, secretly pledged herself to Lord Thomas Howard, a move that set the court ablaze with whispers of treason and ambition.
This is the story of how Margaret’s love affair nearly toppled her future and the The life of her lover and brought her under the sharp scrutiny of Thomas Cromwell. Someone whose sharp scrutiny you never wanted to attract. So Margaret was born in 1515. She was the daughter of Margaret Tudor, Henry VIII’s older sister, and Archibald Douglas, the Earl of Angus.
So Margaret Tudor had married into Scotland. Her husband had died and then she remarried Archibald Douglas, Earl of Angus.
This makes Lady Margaret Douglas very important. Henry’s daughters, Mary and Elizabeth, are still at this point declared illegitimate after his marriages to Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn unraveled. Margaret Douglas was seen as a potential heir to the English throne.
Uh, she was of the three, of three women there, she was the only one who wasn’t declared illegitimate, so good for her.
Margaret’s early life had been shaped by the dramatic fallout of her parents turbulent marriage. Her mother had scandalized both England and Scotland by marrying the Earl of Angus, Archibald Douglas, following the death of her first husband, uh, that was James IV , so when James the fourth died, Margaret Douglas is, you know, the Dowager, she’s the regent, but she then remarries , the politics in Scotland were similar to the Tudor court in England. And so that kind of scandalized everybody.
She had to flee for her safety. Margaret Tudor had, Henry’s sister, had to flee for her safety more than once, often with her young daughter, Lady Margaret Douglas, in tow. Eventually, Margaret was sent to England, Margaret Douglas, The daughter was sent to England. She lived at Scotland Yard. You know, it’s funny because we think of Scotland Yard as where the police are, and no, we’re going to call Scotland Yard.
But it was actually a royal residence in Westminster named for its association with the Scottish monarchy. So Lady Margaret Douglas was living at Scotland Yard, where she was brought up in, you know, this political upheaval not around her mother, but her uncle, Henry VIII, did dote on her completely, just loved her, loved her, loved her.
Henry made sure that she was well placed at court. He showered her with gifts and favor, but her position has was always gonna be precarious. Her royal blood came with high expectations, and her actions could have far reaching consequences. In 1536, Margaret fell in love with Lord Thomas Howard. Lord Thomas Howard was a younger son in the powerful Howard family.
Though Thomas was from one of England’s most noble houses, he was far beneath Margaret in status. He was a younger son. Their engagement was a reckless gamble in the treacherous world of Tudor politics. Margaret, at that point, they would have wanted her for an international marriage. Henry didn’t have tons of kids to marry off and have alliances with.
So he would’ve wanted to save his niece for, you know, an international marriage, something that could help diplomatically, not just have her marry for love, which that in and of itself was like, why would you do that? The nobility didn’t particularly marry for love. They married for alliances. Um, and you know, then to someone so far beneath her.
It was pretty scandalous when it happened. The relationship was kept secret, but secrets did not last very long in the Tudor court. When news of the engagement reached the king, he was livid. The implications were both personal and political. With his marriage to Jane Seymour still quite fresh and no male heir yet born, the Tudor succession was fragile and Margaret’s engagement to Thomas Howard could be interpreted as a direct challenge to the throne, particularly since Thomas Howard’s uncle, who is the Duke of Norfolk, was already a pretty high power broker in court.
The Duke of Norfolk had also been Anne Boleyn’s uncle. So he was really high up there involved in everything and so for Lord Thomas Howard to marry the niece of the king who is in the line of succession, that could show that he maybe had some eyes on the succession himself.
Now, Thomas Cromwell was the king’s chief minister at this point, and given the nature of how sensitive it was, the ranks of the people involved, he would have played a central role in handling the fallout from the scandal.
In the series, they show Cromwell interrogating Margaret, showing his kind of dual loyalties. He was completely loyal to the king, but he also privately understood how love had the power to destroy people and, you know, could, could have a power all on its own. Under intense pressure, Margaret admitted her engagement to Thomas, but she denied any treasonous intent.
Nevertheless, Henry was unforgiving. Both Margaret and Thomas were imprisoned in the Tower of London. This was a chilling reminder of the consequences of defying Henry VIII. An act of attainder was passed against Thomas, accusing him of aspiring to marry Margaret to place himself in line for the throne.
The act also introduced a new law. No member of the royal family could ever marry without the king’s explicit permission. While Margaret languished in the tower, Thomas Howard fate. was sealed. Though his death sentence was not immediately carried out, he remained imprisoned in very harsh conditions.
He got ill and he died in the tower in 1537, likely of malnutrition or disease. He was only 26 years old. Margaret’s imprisonment was less severe, but still quite humiliating. After falling ill herself, she was moved to Scion Abbey. Her mother, Margaret Tudor, Henry’s sister, was writing these desperate pleas, asking him to move her, really trying to fight for her, but there wasn’t really anything she could do either.
By 1537, she was released and was gradually returned to the King’s good graces, though the episode would , leave a shadow over her reputation. This episode did harden Margaret Douglas, and in later years, she would become a very shrewd political operator, very, very deeply involved in Tudor succession intrigues. The law forbidding royal marriages without the king’s consent would also have lasting consequences.
It showed Henry’s determination to control the dynasty and protect his legacy at all costs, even if it meant crushing the romantic aspirations of his own family. Despite the scandal, Margaret Douglas’s life did not end in ruin. She went on to marry Matthew Stuart, the Earl of Lennox, and became the mother of Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley.
Now, if that name sounds familiar to you, it is because, , Lord Darnley married Mary Queen of Scots, and together they had James VI of Scotland, who then became the future James I of England, who united the crowns of England and Scotland after the death of Elizabeth I.
Now, how was Thomas Cromwell involved in the interrogation the way they show it in Wolf Hall? The historical records showing Cromwell’s direct involvement in interrogating either Margaret Douglas or Thomas Howard are sparse, but there are enough clues to build a nuanced narrative based on his role as Henry’s chief minister and the way he handled similar cases.
So here’s what we can reasonably infer or speculate, along with some insights as to whether others in Cromwell’s circle, such as somebody like Richard Rich or Rafe Sadler, might have been involved.
First, direct interrogations. So there’s no specific evidence in contemporary records that Cromwell personally interrogated either Margaret or Thomas, but it is entirely possible given his position. Cromwell oversaw most major investigations and interrogations on behalf of the king, particularly when they involved very sensitive political issues.
If the matter was as critical as this, directly tied to the succession and the potential breach of royal authority, Cromwell would likely have been involved. Then there was his role as an intermediary. Cromwell often worked as Henry’s trusted intermediary, handling sensitive matters with discretion. His legal training and methodical nature made him adept at extracting confessions and ensuring that evidence was aligned with the king’s objectives.
He would likely have conducted interrogators to handle it under his supervision. And then there’s the documentation of evidence. Cromwell was meticulous about recording confessions and correspondence. If he did not personally interrogate Margaret or Thomas, he would have overseen those who did and ensured that their testimonies were well documented in detail to justify the act of attainder against Thomas Howard.
In terms of the historical and dramatic elements in Wolf Hall, the depiction of his interrogation of Margaret is a dramatic interpretation, of course, but it does align with his known responsibilities. It’s worth noting that Margaret did confess. So if Cromwell or his team interrogated her, they might have framed her relationship as naive rather than treasonous to avoid alienating Henry entirely from his beloved niece.
And that is how it was framed. Thomas Howard’s confession might have been obtained under duress or through the promise of leniency, though it ultimately did not save him from imprisonment and an act of attainder.
And then Cromwell’s interrogation style. Historical accounts do show Cromwell as calm and calculating rather than overtly threatening. If he questioned Margaret, he likely appealed to her fear of the King’s wrath and emphasized her precarious position as a royal woman defying the King’s authority.
So there we have it, my friend, a little bit about Lady Margaret Douglas, her scandalous secret marriage, and how Cromwell might have been involved. I’m really loving Wolf Hall being back on, huh? Are you loving it? I’m totally loving it. It’s, uh, I’ve missed it. Really missed it. All right. Uh, we will leave it there for now.
Thank you so much for watching. If you want to keep watching Tudor content, here is a video that I did on Lady Margaret Douglas just recently, actually. And here’s a video that YouTube thinks you’ll enjoy. Thank you so much for watching. Remember, you are deeply loved. I’m so glad I share the planet with you.
Don’t forget to drink your water. Important to stay hydrated, and I will be back very soon. Bye bye.
Heather Teysko is the creator, writer, and producer of The Renaissance English History Podcast,  the original Tudor history podcast, started in 2009. She's been writing about history online for over 25 years, since her first site on Colonial American history became number one in history on Yahoo in 1998. In 2019 she created Tudorcon, which is now a yearly event, in addition to writing books, and running TudorFair.com - a whimsical Tudor Merch shop.
She has been passionate about Tudor England since she first read Alison Weir's The Six Wives of Henry VIII 30 years ago, and subsequently moved to London after college to spend her time immersed in Tudor history (how exciting when she got to interview Alison for the first time!). In addition to history, she is passionate about travel, and has lived in 3 countries and 4 states (not counting her perpetual state of confusion), and her family (who help her host her YouTube channel occasionally).
