Even with the king's pressure, Sir Thomas More could not bring himself to grant the divorce. Sir Thomas More determined the only way was to solve this dilemma was to claim ill health so that he would not be in the position to grant the divorce. So he retired from his position as Lord Chancellor of England and was not forced to grant the divorce. .
When Sir Thomas More refused to grant the divorce, King Henry VIII took it upon himself to take matters into his own hands. The king enacted the Oath of Supremacy and the Act of Succession. The Oath of Supremacy recognized the king as the Supreme Head of the Church and enabled him to grant his own divorce from Catherine. When the Oath of Supremacy was passed, the king immediately divorced Catherine and married Anne Boleyn. The Act of Succession then concluded that the children of King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn were to be the heirs to the throne. King Henry VIII also concluded that anyone that did not agree to the terms of the Oath of Supremacy or Act of Succession were to be sent to prison on charges of high treason. This situation then caused Sir Thomas More's second major dilemma.
Sir Thomas More declined to swear to the Oath of Supremacy and the Act of Succession. He could not bring himself to swear on the bible that King Henry VIII was to be held as the utmost position of the church. Sir Thomas More was a devoted catholic and believed strongly that the Pope was the Supreme Head of the Church. He adamantly respected and followed the Pope's beliefs. Sir Thomas More was sent to prison on charges of treason then sent to the Tower of London. Throughout his trial, Sir Thomas More denied any wrongdoing but the jury sentenced him to be beheaded on Tower Hill.
Sir Thomas More's decision not to grant the king a divorce was the correct decision. Sir Thomas More was a well-educated man who had strong beliefs. The primary concerns in his life were virtue and religion (Rabenstein 8).