The Tudors: Henry VIII's Advisors

PowerPoint and two worksheets that considers what it was like to work for King Henry VIII. The lesson focuses on the careers and fates of Cardinal Wolsey, Thomas More and Thomas Cromwell.

Activities include

• Starter activity in which students analyse a source by the Venetian Ambassador about the relationship between King Henry VIII and Wolsey to consider what it tells us about Henry VIII as a king.
• Reading and comprehension activity on Wolsey, More and Cromwell. Pupils complete a comparative table on their attributes as Henry’s servants, their achievements, the reasons for their fall from power and whether they deserved their fate.
• Source evaluation of the scaffold speeches of More and Cromwell to judge the reliability of their words in context.
• Plenary / extension exercise in which students discuss why so many people aspired to work for Henry VIII given the risks.

Designed for teaching an academically able Key Stage 3 class covering the Tudors.
Lesson Length: 1hr depending on pace.