Emperor with a
combination of France, England, and perhaps the Papacy, which would be
powerful enough to defy him. The policy was Cromwell's, who had inherited
from his master, Wolsey, a leaning for the French alliance; but Norfolk
and the rest of Henry's advisers were heavily bribed by France, and were
on this occasion not inimical. The people at large, as usual, looked
askance at the French connection. They dreaded, above all things, a war
with Spain and Flanders, and recollected with apprehension the fruitless
and foolish waste in splendour on the last occasion of the monarchs of
France and England meeting. An attempt was made to provide that the
preparations should be less costly and elaborate than those for the Field
of the Cloth of Gold, but Henry could not forego the splendour that he
loved, and a suite of 3000 or 4000 people were warned to accompany the
King across the Channel to Boulogne and Calais.

[Illustration: _ANNE BOLEYN_

_From a portrait by_ LUCAS CORNELISZ _in the National Portrait Gallery_]

For the interview to have its full value in the eyes of Henry and his
mistress, the latter must be present at the festival, and be recognised by
the French royal family as being of their own caste. Francis was not
scrupulous, but this was difficult to arrange. His own second wife was the
Emperor's sister, and she, of course, would not consent to meet "the
concubine"; nor would any other of the French princesses, if they could
avoid it; but, although the French at first gave out that no ladies would
be present, Anne began to get her fine clothes ready and enlist her train
of ladies as soon as the interview between the kings was arranged. So
confident was she now of success that she foretold to one of her friends
that she would be married whilst in France. To add to her elation, in the
midst of the preparations Archbishop Warham died, and the chief
ecclesiastical obstacle to the divorce in England disappeared. Some
obedient churchman as Primate would soon manage to enlist a sufficient
number of his fellows to give to his court an appearance of authority, and
the Church of England would ratify the King's release.

The effects of Warham's death (23rd August 1532) were seen immediately.
There is every probability that up to that time Anne had successfully
held her royal lover at arm's length; but with Cranmer, or another such as
he, at Lambeth her triumph was only a matter of the few weeks necessary to
carry ou