Nicholas Kratzer

Nicholas Kratzer is an astronomer and draughtsman within Thomas Cromwell’s household and wider circle of scholars, artists, and political advisers. His appearances connect technical learning and new ways of imagining the world with the practical world of patronage: he draws the heavens at a private supper, then seeks Cromwell’s help in winning the opportunity to paint Henry VIII.

Identity and Setting

Kratzer appears among the guests who gather at Austin Friars, where political conversation shares space with discussion of theology, diplomacy, astrology, and art. He is identified as the person who has been working on Cromwell’s portrait, and his skill as a draughtsman is shown when he produces drawings for the company. His presence places him among the household’s learned and artistic visitors, rather than among the men who directly conduct its political negotiations.

The King’s Horoscope

At supper, the guests discuss Henry VIII’s health and prospects. Dr Butts asks Kratzer what the planets suggest for the later years of a king whose chart is dominated by air and fire, and refers to Henry’s moon in Aries as a sign associated with rashness and haste. The exchange shows astrology as one of the languages through which the court tries to interpret the king, though Cromwell resists treating the stars as the decisive cause of human conduct. He argues instead for circumstance, necessity, and the choices made under pressure; the conversation therefore sets astrological prediction beside political judgment.

Drawings of a Changing World

After the guests rise from the table, Kratzer draws the sun and planets moving in their orbits according to a plan associated with Copernicus. He also demonstrates the idea that the world turns on its axis. The people present do not dispute the model. The moment gives his drawings a significance beyond decoration: they make a changing account of the cosmos visible within a room otherwise occupied by the familiar concerns of office, court, and faction. The passage sets this intellectual shift against the older world associated with Cromwell’s youth and with the time of Thomas Wolsey.

Portraiture and Patronage

Kratzer’s work on Cromwell’s portrait is not yet finished, and the French ambassador Jean de Dinteville hopes to take it home when recalled. At the supper, Kratzer says that he wants to exhibit the portrait and obtain commissions from it; he also hopes to paint Henry VIII. Cromwell replies that he will ask the king and choose the moment. The exchange makes Kratzer’s artistic ambition dependent on access and favor, while showing Cromwell using his position to open a possible path to royal patronage.