King's Secretary

Andrew Johnston taught medieval and modern history at the University of St Andrews, where he completed his PhD. He has taught in schools for over twenty years.

“This is the book about William Paget we have long needed. Johnston gives us a Paget who was the most gifted politician of his generation, the attentive pupil of Thomas Cromwell, the model for William Cecil, and the man who could understand the mind of King Henry.”—Stephen Alford, author of All His Spies“King’s Secretary is an exciting new look at the final years of Henry VIII’s reign. Based on rigorous original research, this book is both an important contribution to scholarship and a compelling story about a forgotten Tudor mastermind.”—Joanne Paul, author of Thomas More“Arguably the most successful English politician of the 1540s, William Paget is surprisingly little remembered today. Fast paced and compelling, King's Secretary brings to life the man who held the reins of power in the dying days of the Henrician regime.”—Elizabeth Norton, author of Women who Ruled the World“Andrew Johnston brings Paget to life, and leads the reader through the complex and often contradictory politics of the later years of Henry VIII’s reign. A must for both Tudor historians and general readers wanting to understand what happened after the execution of Thomas Cromwell.”—Natalie Mears, author of Queenship and Political Discourse in the Elizabethan Realms“The true story of the aftermath of Wolf Hall told through the eyes and career of William Paget, Thomas Cromwell’s successor. A masterfully researched, superbly readable account of court intrigue and the struggle for political survival during the perilous last years of Henry VIII.”—John Guy, co-author of Hunting the Falcon