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The text, authored by Pedro M. Ormazabal, delves into the life and legacy of Sir Thomas More, challenging the conventional narrative. It begins by questioning the accuracy of the most famous portrait of Thomas More by Holbein the Younger, noting inconsistencies with his appointment as Lord Chancellor of England. The author highlights Thomas More’s unique position as a lay saint, statesman, philosopher, and prominent figure, inspiring non-clerical Catholics.
The standard account portrays Thomas More as a devout Catholic and loyal statesman who ultimately resisted Henry VIII’s religious and political policies, leading to his execution in 1535 after a rigged tribunal. However, the author suggests that More’s story is more complex and raises several questions.
The surname More and its variants like Moore, Moro, and Maura are explored, with connections drawn to Aldo Moro, Emilio Moro, Emile Moreau, and Antonio Maura. The text explains that “Moro” in Spanish means “Moor,” referring to inhabitants of Mauritania, often confused with Arabs and Muslims. The author also mentions Wikipedia’s definition of Moors as primarily Berber.
The etymology of the surname Moore is traced back to the Old French “Maur” derived from the Latin “Maurus,” meaning “moor” or a person from North Africa. It also connects to the Anglo-Saxon word “mōr” meaning “heath.” The text notes that these names were brought to England by the Normans.
Thomas More is remembered as a statesman, scholar, author, and martyr, notably in the film A Man for All Seasons. This film depicts his friendship with Henry VIII and their final quarrel over Henry’s divorce from Catherine of Aragon. The author questions the historical accuracy and motivations behind the film and Henry’s actions. The film, based on a novel by Robert Bolt, featured Paul Scofield and Robert Shaw, directed by Fred Zinneman.
Robert Bolt’s background is examined, including his Methodist upbringing, education at Manchester Grammar School, and service in the RAF and Army during World War II. His later career as a playwright and his communist affiliations are also discussed. The author speculates that Bolt might have been a “spook” due to his unusual background.
The founding of Manchester Grammar School is linked to Hugh Oldham, a protégé of Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII. Oldham’s association with Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby, and Richard Foxe, Bishop of Winchester, is highlighted. Richard Foxe’s connection to Henry Tudor and his role in establishing Corpus Christi College, Oxford and Brasenose College, Oxford are noted. Foxe’s potential Jewish background is speculated upon.
The text further explores Thomas More’s family history, including his father, Sir John More, a judge, and his mother, Agnes Graunger. The unusual naming conventions of Agnes Graunger’s mother, Lady Margaret Hanscombe Sweetehanam, are pointed out, linking to Elizabeth Anscombe and Ludwig Wittgenstein. Sir John More’s ancestry as a baker and brewer is mentioned, along with his funding of an expedition to the New World by his son-in-law John Rastell, which ended in Waterford. The author questions the logistics of this expedition.
Thomas More’s own academic and judicial career is described as unusually rapid, becoming a judge at a very young age, which the author deems improbable. His diplomatic roles, particularly in Flanders and Calais for commercial issues, are discussed, with a suggestion of his potential awareness of the Jewish presence in the Low Countries.
The text introduces Luis Vives, a Spanish Humanist, as a second Jewish connection. Vives’s family converted from Judaism, and his father, grandmother, and great-grandfather were executed by the Spanish Inquisition as Judaizers. Vives’s family banking ties to Banca March are mentioned. Vives’s work and his tutelage of Princess Mary are noted, as is his opposition to Henry VIII’s annulment from Catherine of Aragon, leading to his confinement.
Thomas More’s alleged role in defending the seven sacraments against Martin Luther’s doctrines, specifically Henry VIII’s “Assertio Septem Sacramentorum,” is discussed. The title Defender of the Faith granted to Henry by Rome is mentioned, along with the possibility that Bishop John Fisher was the true author.
The author speculates about Henry VIII’s sexuality and Thomas More’s close relationship with him, suggesting More might have been Henry’s “handler” and “gay lover.” More’s resignation as Lord Chancellor and his subsequent refusal to attend Anne Boleyn’s coronation are presented as actions that led to his downfall. The secrecy surrounding Henry’s marriage to Anne Boleyn is questioned.
The refusal of Thomas More and Bishop John Fisher to take the Oath of Supremacy, which acknowledged Henry as the Supreme Head of the Church of England, is central to their conflict with Henry. The author suggests that More and Fisher were “controlled opposition,” playing a role in the rupture with Rome. The author speculates that Bishop John Fisher and Bishop Foxe were Jewish, drawing a parallel with Stanley Fischer.
John Fisher’s imprisonment, trial, and execution are described, with particular attention to the public reaction and parallels drawn to Saint John the Baptist. The author questions the similarity in the fates of More and Fisher, suggesting a staged narrative.
Thomas More’s burial in an unmarked grave and the veneration of his head are discussed, with skepticism about the authenticity of the remains. The author reiterates the idea that Thomas More and Bishop John Fisher’s stories were “stagings of the same script” designed to mislead.
The text concludes by questioning Thomas More’s sainthood, awarded centuries after his death, and reiterates the idea that More was a “clever Jew and tool of the Stanleys,” an advisor and actor whose trial and death were faked. Pope Pius, who canonized More, is linked to Damiano Ratti, and his alleged promotion of Nazis and signing of concordats with them is mentioned. The author also notes Hollywood’s later honoring of More for his acting abilities.
The text is supported by references to Wikipedia, forebears.io, and ancestors.familysearch.org. Other individuals and entities mentioned include Miles, Holbein the Younger, Catholic Church, Henry VIII, Catherine of Aragon, Roger Moore, Aldo Moro, Emilio Moro, Emile Moreau, Charles Maurras, Moorish ancestry, Mauritania, Berber, Arabs, Muslims, Islam, Maura, Antonio Maura, Jewish origins, Moore, Maurus, Othello, Normans, Morris, Britain, Ireland, A Man for All Seasons, Kremlin, Hollywood, Robert Bolt, Fred Zinneman, Methodist parents, Manchester Grammar School, RAF, Army, University of Manchester, Exeter, Millfeld School, Celia Johnson, Ralph Richardson, Jack Meyer, Haileybury, Imperial Service College, East India College, Honourable East India Company, Reverend Thomas Malthus, Communist Party of Great Britain, Czechoslovakia, Hugh Oldham, Exeter College, Oxford, Queens’ College, Cambridge, Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby, Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby, Henry VII, Bishop of Exeter, River Irk, Richard Foxe, Bishop of Winchester, Corpus Christi College, Oxford, Brasenose College, Oxford, Paris, Henry Tudor, Richard III, Henry ap Tuddor, Stepney, Lancastrian, Episcopal Conference, John Morton, Cardinal, New Learning, Humanism, London Humanism, Paul Scofield, Robert Shaw, Jewish film director, Anne Boleyn, Sir John More, Agnes Graunger, Graunger, Thomas Hanscom Graunger, Lady Margaret Hanscombe Sweetehanam, Margaret Graunger, Hanscombe, Elizabeth Anscombe, Gertrude Elizabeth Margaret Anscombe, Ludwig Wittgenstein, United Kingdom, William More, Joanna Joye, John Joye, John Leycester, Lincoln’s Inn, Serjeant-at-law, Justice of Assize, Justice of the Common Pleas, King’s Bench, manor of Gobions, North Mymms Hertfordshire, Edward IV, John Rastell, New World, Waterford, River Bean, St Lawrence Jewry, Old Jewry, Balliol College, Oxford, Third Order of St. Francis, Carthusian convent, Third Order Regulars, Third Order Seculars, Secular Franciscan Order, Order of St. Bruno, Franciscan monasteries, Parliament, Jane Colt, Essex, encyclopedia.com, Margaret, Elizabeth, Cicely, John, Alice Middleton, Alice More, Alice, Lady More (née Harpur), Dame Alice Moore, Richard Harpur, Elizabeth (née Adern), Sir Richard Harpur, Harper, Adern, Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand, Jewish Women in New Zealand, John Maynard Keynes, Cambridge, Jane Colt, known by Thomas’ friends as an “affable wife”, Margaret Giggs (later Clement), Anne Cresacre, John More, William Rastell, Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam, Oxford, Cardinal John Morton, scholastic doctrine, Thomas Linacre, William Grocyn, New Inn, ambassador of England, Minister of Economics, Flanders, Calais, Jewish presence in the mercantile community, Low Countries, Joan Lluis Vives i March, Joan Lluis, John Louis, Vives, March, Valencia, Valencian Jewish community, University of Paris, Joan Lluis Vives i March, Margarita Valldaura, Margaret Valley of Gold, Goldvalley, Bruges, Catherine of Aragón, Corpus Christi College, Oxford, Augustine’s De Civitate Dei, Henry VIII of England, Princess Mary, doctor of laws, philosophy, De Causis Corruptarum Artium, Bacon’s Novum Organon, scholastic philosophy, Aristotle, Christian Theology, Martin Luther, Assertio Septem Sacramentorum, Fidei Defensor, Defender of the Faith, FD, English coins, Bishop John Fisher, Federal Reserve, Bank of Israel, Barack Obama, Stanley Fischer, US Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Tower of London, Act of Succession, Pope Clement VII, Roman Rota, Old Testament, New Testament, Anglican Catholic Church, goddess pound sterling, theocratic-mercantile character, Yorkist opposition, World Economic Forum, Anglican Church, Church of England, Universal Church, Greek word “Catholic”, Papal supremacy, Pope of Rome, John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester, Gerard Valck, Adriaen van der Werff, Fischer, Stanley Fischer, Jewish banker, Jewish surname, Israeli American economist, Zambia, Pope Pius, Damiano Ratti, Nazis, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, Phoenix, Southern Phoenician, Northern and Southern Phoenicians, Saint Alban, the first martyr of Britain, Saint John the Baptist, King Herod Antipas, Herodias, Vigil of the feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, Tower Hill, St Peter ad Vincula, Roper Vault of St Dunstan’s Church, Canterbury, Margaret Clement (née Giggs), Henry VIII’s agents, Grace Kelly, theocracy, Papist oppression, Richard Rich, misprision of treason, See of Rochester, All Hallows’ Barking, All Hallows-by-the-Tower, Thames, Yorkist, Lancastrians, German Peasant’s War, Luther, Protestants, Hebrew, Constantinople, Papacy, Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Chancellor of England, Middlesex, London St Giles without Cripplegate, Christian Inquisition, Judaizers, Banca March, Balearic Islands, Valencian Jewish community, Corpus Christi College, Oxford, Humanist enterprises, Low Countries, Christianity, Papist, Catholic doctrine, Henry VIII’s plans, Ely, Bath, Pope Pius, Damiano Ratti, Nazis, concordats.