Henry VIII · Chapter
Scene II explained
Katherine, now ill and near death, is attended by Griffith and Patience.
What happens
Katherine, now ill and near death, is attended by Griffith and Patience. She asks Griffith about Cardinal Wolsey's death, and he recounts Wolsey's downfall, repentance, and peaceful end. Katherine offers a critical yet charitable assessment of Wolsey, and Griffith defends his virtues. Katherine then experiences a vision of spirits promising eternal happiness. She receives Capucius, the emperor's ambassador, and gives him a letter for the king, pleading for her daughter, her servants, and her women. She dies with dignity, requesting to be buried as a queen.
Themes in this chapter
Fall of the Mighty
Wolsey's downfall and death are recounted, illustrating the transient nature of power and the humility of his end.
Religion and Conscience
Katherine's spiritual vision, her prayers, and her concern for Christian peace reflect deep religious faith and moral reflection.
Loyalty and Betrayal
Katherine's loyalty to her servants and her daughter, contrasted with her sense of betrayal by the king and the court.
Characters to notice
- Queen Katherine
Ill and dying, she reflects on Wolsey's death, experiences a prophetic vision, and dictates her final requests to the king.
- Griffith
Katherine's gentleman usher, who recounts Wolsey's death and defends his virtues, and attends her in her final moments.
- Patience
Katherine's woman, who helps care for her and notes the sudden change in her condition.
- Cardinal Wolsey
Discussed posthumously; his death, repentance, and legacy are recounted by Griffith and critiqued by Katherine.
- Capucius
The emperor's ambassador, sent by the king to visit Katherine, who delivers her final letter to Henry.
- King Henry VIII
Mentioned as the sender of Capucius and the recipient of Katherine's letter; his conscience and grief are referenced.
Key passages
“O Griffith, sick to death! My legs, like loaden branches, bow to the earth, Willing to leave their burthen.”
Katherine says she is deathly ill, her legs weak and ready to give way, as if eager to release the weight of life.
Katherine's physical decline is vividly expressed.
“An old man, broken with the storms of state, Is come to lay his weary bones among ye; Give him a little earth for charity!”
Wolsey, worn out by political turmoil, asks the abbot for a humble burial place.
Wolsey's final words, as reported by Griffith, highlight his humility in death.
“He was a man Of an unbounded stomach, ever ranking Himself with princes; one that, by suggestion, Tied all the kingdom: simony was fair-play; His own opinion was his law.”
Katherine criticizes Wolsey as arrogant, power-hungry, and corrupt, treating bribery as acceptable and his own judgment as absolute.
Katherine's harsh assessment of Wolsey's character.
“Men’s evil manners live in brass; their virtues We write in water.”
People remember faults permanently, but good deeds are easily forgotten.
Griffith's proverb about the fleeting nature of virtuous memory.
“After my death I wish no other herald, No other speaker of my living actions, To keep mine honour from corruption, But such an honest chronicler as Griffith.”
Katherine says she wants only a truthful historian like Griffith to preserve her reputation after she dies.
Katherine's trust in Griffith's integrity.
“Spirits of peace, where are ye? are ye all gone, And leave me here in wretchedness behind ye?”
Katherine, waking from her vision, asks where the heavenly spirits have gone, feeling abandoned in her suffering.
Katherine's longing for the spiritual comfort she experienced in her dream.
