ometimes, later in the evening, there would be seen a very grand barge
indeed, with scarlet and cloth of gold, sweeping up to the
landing-place; and then someone would call out 'The King!' and presently
King Henry VIII. himself would step out and come up to see his
Chancellor, and would walk up and down the garden with his arm round
More's neck. He was very fond of More, and asked his advice about all
sorts of things. More wanted to show him young Holbein's paintings, so
he had his hall hung with many of them, and one day, when the King came
in unexpectedly, he took him in there to show them to him. Henry was so
delighted with them that he ordered Holbein to paint a picture of
himself and others of many of his courtiers, and Holbein was well paid,
and made a large fortune.

One day, when the King had been very gracious, and had left Chelsea to
go back to Westminster, young Roper said to More how lucky he was to be
such a favourite with the King; but More knew what a tyrant Henry was,
and how dangerous it was to have anything to do with him, and he
answered at once he had no cause to be proud, for if his head would win
the King a castle in France it would go. He was quite right; for his
head went afterwards for a much less thing than that.

When More was still in the height of his power his daughter Margaret
married William Roper. But More could not bear to part with Meg, and the
house was large, so he said the young married couple should go on living
with him and his wife just the same as before.

More built a chapel on to Chelsea old church--a chapel which is there
now, and you may see it--and in it there is a large monument to his
memory. Of his great house and garden all is gone except a bit of
red-brick wall, which is said to have been the wall of the garden.

Now, just about this time Henry had grown tired of his wife, Catherine
of Arragon, and wanted to marry Anne Boleyn, so he thought he would
divorce Catherine. But even a king can't get rid of his wives whenever
he likes; so he asked all his lords and nobles to say that he was quite
right, and that Catherine ought to be divorced, and that he ought never
to have married her, because long years before she had been married to
his brother, who had died. A great many of the nobles would have said
anything Henry wanted, but More was braver than that; he said plainly
that it would not be right for Henry to do this thing. So the King was
very angry, and More found it