Mad Bios: Cardinal Beaufort–A Man of God?

Cardinal Beaufort’s tomb. Image: Wikipedia.

In the last few lines of the final play of the second tetralogy, Shakespeare assigns blame for the disasters that befall England in the Henry VI plays: referring to the child king, Henry VI, and those who will rule in his name, the chorus in Henry V warns that “so many had the managing / That they lost France and made his England bleed.” (Emphasis mine.) 

This ineffective group of leaders includes one man of God: Henry Beaufort, Bishop of Winchester and later Cardinal Beaufort. Contrary to what one might reasonably expect of a church leader, he has no redeeming qualities. His sole agenda is political power, not the welfare of the kingdom.

Initially described as never going to church “Except it be to pray against thy foes,” Beaufort does little to counter this negative first impression. When Henry V’s funeral is interrupted by reports of military defeats in France, the other leaders of the court rush off to respond. The Bishop, however, makes no effort to help, but instead says he will concentrate on gaining power for himself. This destructive behavior continues throughout 1 Henry VI, with Beaufort ultimately buying his way into a cardinal’s position, a position he intends to use not to serve God and country but to destroy his arch-rival, Humphrey of Gloucester.

By the beginning of 2 Henry VI, most of the positive forces in the court have been replaced by Beaufort and those like him. Distrustful of each other, they unite to destroy Gloucester, the sole remaining responsible leader. Gloucester is arrested on false charges of treason, placed in Beaufort’s custody and murdered. To the conspirators’ surprise, however, Humphrey’s removal leads to their own destruction, beginning with Beaufort. Almost immediately after Gloucester’s murder, the cardinal himself dies in great agony. At Beaufort’s deathbed, England’s political leader, Henry VI, prays for the country’s religious leader who is “Blaspheming God and cursing men”–-hardly the ideal ending for a prince of the church. 

Like Beaufort, almost all of those bent on self-aggrandizement in the Henry VI plays come to a bad end. In most cases, however, there is at least one person who mourns for them. The sole exception is Beaufort, his only eulogy being that “So bad a death argues a monstrous life.” A country where those entrusted with moral leadership are immoral themselves is well on the way to disaster.