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he besotted Henry VIII never suspected that the wife he presumed to be pure and innocent was carrying on an affair behind his back. When the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, presented Henry with evidence of Catherine's indiscretions, the king was stunned. Cranmer, a reformist, was determined to push Catherine Howard and her Catholic family out of power, but did not get his opportunity until the brother of a chamberwoman to the Dowager Duchess of Norfolk, John Lascelles, came to him with details of Catherine's affairs.
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Lascelle's sister, Mary, had witnessed Catherine's affairs with Henry Manox and Francis Dereham (see Trouble Alert) while the two women were living in the Duchess of Norfolk's Lambeth house. Initially, Henry refused to believe that Catherine was guilty of what Cranmer called "dissolute living." However, by this time, suspicion was second nature to the king. Henry gave Cranmer permission to continue investigations into the queen's past and had Catherine confined to her apartments. A few days later, Cranmer with his findings confirmed, reported the news of Catherine's love life to the king. Henry broke down in tears and left Hampton Court Palace brokenhearted, never to see Queen Catherine again.
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