INTJ 9w8 Characters
Dominant Introverted Intuition—strong and specific personal plans, insights, or predictions that lead them to set their ideas in motion far in advance: Cromwell is always ten steps ahead of everyone else in the room; even as he watches Anne Boleyn maneuver her way into Henry’s good graces, he has an eye on Jane Seymour as a potential replacement for when it all goes wrong. He can easily see multiple sides of an issue and point them out to others, while ultimately hinting at a stronger subconscious truth. Even how he answers people is cautious of his response, and how they could twist it against him down the road. Cromwell warns people to watch their words, but files them away in his mind for use later. He engages people in witty remarks, but tries to expose their hidden motivations and dig into things that could give him leverage over them (“Do you think of the king’s death often?”). He manipulates someone into boasting about his relations with the Queen by playing on his vanity. Cromwell is very good at making situations play out how he wants them to, and in immediately seeing the bigger picture and what needs done. While everyone else is panicking about Henry falling in a joust, he knows he has to protect the Princess Mary, since he could “build a throne” around her, but not around a pregnant Anne or her unborn child. Reality and imagination blend together in his mind, making him uncertain at times if he is dwelling in his memories, his desires, or the real world. He embraces a new religion and has a plan about how to overthrow Catholicism, rid the monasteries and abbeys of their money, and put an end to the “abuses” and miseries of the church. Cromwell, effectively, shapes policies in the way he wants them to turn out, and changes the entire future of England by having the courage to suggest they break from the Catholic Church and make Henry the head of the Church of England.
Auxiliary Extroverted Thinking—relying on facts, drawing logical conclusions, being efficient and straightforward: When an angry Henry confronts him about once speaking against his desire to go to war in France, Cromwell gives him factual reasons—they could not afford that war, and there were no resources they had access to at the time to provide an easier time of victory. He always explains himself in rational terms; he has logical reasons for all he does, including dissolving the monasteries to use the money for the treasury. Cromwell rationally sees that he can maintain power around Mary, but not Anne; if it came down to it, and he had to choose whom to support for a Regency, he would choose Anne since her uncle would have his head. When it comes down to protecting himself, or keeping Anne in power, he sees Henry has already decided, so he might as well do his bidding and get rid of Anne with false evidence—all collected, documented, and laid out so a court of law will find her guilty. He gathers facts and information before coming to decisions that aid him in his pursuit of goals—both his own (in taking down those who betrayed Wolsey) and Henry’s (in arranging his divorce, marriage, and the death of Anne Boleyn).
Tertiary Introverted Feeling—unwilling to go against their personal values and self-contained in their feelings: His passions are intense but hidden from others; he rarely shares his true opinions and innermost feelings, and cares deeply for a few specific people (his family) but also has strong moral judgments against others who step out of line, play the fool, or show moral hypocrisy. He prioritizes defending them in his mind, but adamantly refuses to do anything he believes is wrong; Cromwell has lines he won’t cross (he refuses to torture people, even if he threatens them with it, and condemns Thomas More for being willing to “rack” poor souls). Cromwell frankly asserts his views whenever he does feel like doing so, and doesn’t much care how others respond to them (he makes jokes about Anne being small-busted to amuse her sister, but also because it’s the truth).
Inferior Extroverted Sensing—impulsive and hedonistic under stress, often miscalculates when they act rashly: He has a certain affinity for wealth and enjoyment of fine things in life, but does not prioritize it. He lives dangerously in his correspondence with Lutheran philosophers and in his possession of a Bible. He is opportunistic about sex (bedding a woman when he needs to, but not prioritizing his physical needs). When the king falls from his horse and they fear he’s dead, Cromwell acts immediately by sending people to fetch Princess Mary away from the Boleyns (“If her father dies, she’s dead”). He pivots and seizes the opportunity to frame Anne and take her down, when he knows it’s him or her, but he prefers to think ahead rather than act rashly.
Enneagram: 9w8
Enneagram 9—desires freedom from others’ influences, by going along with them and being tolerant, until it matters not to: Cromwell is even-tempered and able to keep calm amid a crisis; he doesn’t panic when the king almost dies, nor when Henry turns on him in a violent rage and accuses him of being too ambitious, nor when people act out of spite toward him. Cromwell is accepting and tolerant of others and their views and tries to convince them to go along with the easy way out rather than face the gallows. He tries to convince Thomas More to sign the document to save his own life, and points out he is gaining nothing by refusing to do so. He refuses to torture people for information, although he lets them think he will do it if necessary. Cromwell does not like conflict, and passively accepts what he cannot change and the decisions of others, without pushing back against them (such as when his affair ends, right after he has implied his affection; he intends Jane for himself, but stands aside once the king gets involved; he makes friends out of his enemies, and waits for their downfall).
8 wing brings in a tendency to assert oneself with strong but infrequent bouts of anger: But… Cromwell also has a ruthless side that isn’t afraid to speak his mind when confronted. He angrily confronts More about his hypocrisy at another man’s dinner table. He ridicules Anne Boleyn behind her back by mocking her in front of her sister. Few people intimidate or impress him. Cromwell applies force against people, to make them give him (and the king) what they want. Even though he’s smart enough not to push the wrong people’s buttons, he’s also a little too unafraid of Henry, causing him to overstep his authority. He warns people not to threaten him, or threatens them in return (“It’s my turn to make threats now,” “You should not have threatened me”). Cromwell acts against the Boleyns and others in Anne’s case as part of his revenge for how they took down his beloved master, Cardinal Wolsey. He has no compunctions about going after Anne and taking her down with lies and false testimony, because it is what the situation requires.
