Was Wolf Hall's Dorothea really Cardinal Wolsey's daughter? Real history explained
The truth behind episode 2's devastating ending.
Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light episode 2 gives us a deeper insight into the profound guilt felt by Thomas Cromwell (Mark Rylance) over the undignified death of his mentor, Cardinal Wolsey (Jonathan Pryce).
We learn that the holy man had an illegitimate daughter named Dorothea (played by Hannah Khalique Brown), who was born before he became a bishop and housed in a convent.
The show depicts Cromwell as still fixated on Wolsey's death despite years having passed, to the extent that he is imagining conversations with the late cardinal and goes on to track down Dorothea too.
He makes the young nun a surprising offer of marriage, an offer made only slightly less creepy by the promise that it could be merely a wedding of convenience – meaning financial security and companionship, but not necessarily intimacy.
Dorothea strikes down the suggestion in a most brutal fashion, leaving Cromwell reeling from her accusation that Wolsey felt betrayed by him in his dying days.
It's a powerful scene indeed, but to what extent is it based in historical fact? Here's what you need to know about Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light's Dorothea – and her connection to both Wolsey and Cromwell.
Was Wolf Hall's Dorothea really Cardinal Wolsey's daughter?
Yes, historical records suggest that Cardinal Wolsey most likely did have a daughter named Dorothy (spelt Dorothea in Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light).
During Wolsey's younger years, the vow of celibacy by Catholic priests had not yet been widely adopted, and so he had a relationship with a woman named Joan Larke, with whom he had two children: Thomas and Dorothy.
Thomas was adopted by the Wynter family and went on to hold various positions in the Church, including Archdeacon of Cornwall and Prebend of Saunderton.
Meanwhile, Dorothy was adopted by John Clancey, who arranged a place for her at Shaftesbury Abbey convent – known for housing daughters of wealthy individuals – where she became a nun until it was dissolved.
The abbey's fate is alluded to in Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, with Cromwell making assurances to the head of the convent that the property would not face the same fate as many monasteries at that time. That comment aged poorly!
Although there is no evidence to suggest that Cromwell proposed marriage to Dorothy, or even that she should live with him, it is possible that he felt some loyalty to her because of who her father was.
Evidencing this is the fact that Dorothy received a pension from Cromwell after Shaftesbury Abbey was dissolved, which would have helped her to sustain herself in the years ahead – although little more is known about her life.
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Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light airs Sundays on BBC One and iPlayer.
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Authors
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
