The Tudors recap: Season 2, episode 4

After Elizabeth’s birth, King Henry demands that his subjects swear an oath recognizing the new royal succession and his supreme authority in England. Cromwell continues to pull the strings that will unravel England’s allegiance to Rome. The plan hits a snag, though, when Sir Thomas Moore — with the utmost respect for Henry, of course — refuses to take the oath. He’s a man of principles and prepares his family for his eventual martyrdom with grace, compassion and unwavering convictions. He’s then imprisoned in the Tower of London.

As her ambitions and anxieties grow, Anne strives to bring the king an heir. Pregnant again, she’s not able to satisfy Henry’s sexual appetite. When he sets his eyes on her blonde lady-in-waiting, Anne arranges for the young woman to be banished from court. After some counseling from her father, however, she swallows her pride and agrees that its natural for the king to take mistresses while she’s pregnant — as long as she can choose his partner. She promptly sets him up with her plump and eager to please cousin.

Meanwhile, the king’s oldest child, Princess Mary, refuses to acknowledge Anne as anything but Henry’s mistress — her mother is the true queen, Mary says. In punishment for her audacity, the king makes her a lady-in-waiting to her infant half-sister. Roped into service, Mary glowers at the baby, leaving little doubt as to the dark impulses that would later earn her the name Bloody Mary.