St. Thomas More

Thomas More was born in London on February 7, in either 1477 or 1478 to Sir John More and his wife Agnes Graunger. Thomas was well-educated and at thirteen he began serving Cardinal Morton, Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Chancellor of England. His intelligence so impressed the Cardinal that he sent Thomas to further his education at Oxford. Here he studied Latin, Greek, French, mathematics, and history; he went on to study law in London and became a lawyer. He was drawn to the priesthood, but after prayerful consideration decided that the vocation of marriage was his calling. In 1501 he was elected to Parliament, where he opposed the exorbitant tax Henry VII was requiring from his subjects; he succeeded in having the sums reduced, but the king was furious with him. More married Jane Colte in 1505 and she bore him three daughters and a son, but their happy life together was brief; she died in 1511. Anxious to give his young children a mother, More re-married soon after Jane's death. More was becoming a well-known statesman, achieving several high offices. In October 1529, he became Lord Chancellor of England, the first layman so appointed. As Chancellor he distinguished himself as a fair judge who actually ran out of cases, because he decided them so efficiently. His favor with Henry VIII did not last long; he opposed the king's divorce and his marriage to Anne Boleyn and when Henry demanded that the clergy acknowledge the King of England as the Supreme Head of the Church in England, More tried to resign as Chancellor. His resignation was not accepted until May 1532. After this More tried to stay out of the public arena. In March 1534, Henry demanded that anyone called upon must take the oath declaring that the heir of Henry and Anne Boleyn was the legitimate heir to the throne and renouncing all foreign powers, including the pope. More could not in conscience sign such an oath; he was arrested and after an imprisonment of more than a year, was beheaded on July 6, 1535. Throughout his life, Thomas More was known for his good humor, zest for life, and his faith; during his imprisonment, he prayed long hours, wrote devotional works and continued to joke with his friends and family on the rare occasions they were allowed to see him. Many of his writings, including the famous Utopia, are classics. Thomas More was canonized in 1935.