Although Thomas Boleyn fell from favour after the fall and execution of his daughter, he was a survivor and did not give up. He was active in squashing the rebellion of the Pilgrimage of Grace in 1536, he was present at Edward VI’s christening in 1537, and Ives talks of how he buttered up Cromwell by lending him his chain and Garter badge. By 1538, Thomas Boleyn was back properly at court and it was even rumoured that he would marry Margaret Douglas, Henry VIII’s niece! However, he did not live long after Anne’s fall, dying in March 1539, around a year after his wife. The fact that Henry VIII ordered masses to be said for Thomas’s soul is clear evidence that Thomas was back in favour by then.
Thomas Boleyn is buried in a tomb at St Peter’s Church, Hever, Kent, just near his former home, Hever Castle. His tomb is decorated by a magnificent brass which shows him dressed as a Knight of the Garter. Above his right shoulder is his daughter Anne’s falcon crest and at his feet there is a griffin. His son, Henry Boleyn, lies nearby.
Elizabeth Boleyn died before Thomas. She died on April 3, 1538 at the Abbot of Reading's place, Baynard’s Castle. She is buried in the Howard Family Chapel at St. Mary’s in Lambeth Cemetery. Although author and historian Elizabeth Norton believes that the fact that Elizabeth is not buried at Hever means that she and Thomas may have separated there is no real evidence of this, their burial places may have more to do with practicalities, i.e. where they died, rather than anything to do with their relationship.
