Thomas Cranmer. A Life.

From 1529 until the moment in March 1556 when he stretched into the fire the hand which had signed so many recantations, Thomas Cranmer played a central part in the drama of the English Reformation. Yet his 'private face remains for the most part inscrutable'. His career is highly controversial and full of puzzles. To write a biography of such a man is one of the great tests of scholarly stamina and courage. This is the task which Diarmaid MacCulloch has successfully accomplished in a work of massive bulk, impressive erudition, great psychological insight, and considerable narrative skill.

The development of his theology is the most hotly debated element in Cranmer's career. MacCulloch's account is penetrating and original. He sees no sign that the future archbishop was anything but a conservative humanist before his involvement in the drive for the annulment of Henry's first marriage. The critical year was 1532. It was then that Cranmer became the friend of Andreas Osiander of Nuremberg (the only major Lutheran commentator to favour Henry VIII's theological …