In 1518, shortly after the death of his wife, Kildare was ordered to repair to London and answer the charges that he had illegally enriched himself and his followers, and that he had formed alliances with the native Irish and corresponded with them. Kildare, however, showed no hurry to obey the summons, and not until 1519 did he arrive in London, his cousin, Sir Maurice Fitzgerald, looking after his official responsibilities. While in London, Kildare followed the example of his father, and married a cousin of the king. {63} This was the Lady Elizabeth Grey, a grand-daughter of Elizabeth Woodville, Edward IV.'s wife. The marriage saved Kildare's life, for his most powerful enemy, Cardinal Wolsey, had resolved that the Irish earl should never return to his country. Acting on the advice of the Cardinal, Henry VIII., suspicious of the loyalty of the Irish nobility, appointed an Englishman, the Earl of Surrey, afterwards Duke of Norfolk, Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland. Surrey was one of Wolsey's adherents, and although the Earl of Kildare had, by reason of his valour and bearing on the famous 'Field of the Cloth of Gold,' risen high in Henry's favour, the Chancellor insisted upon his being brought to trial. To make certain of the result, Wolsey inspired the Earl of Surrey to write from Ireland charging Kildare with having attempted to make the Irish oppose the authority of the new deputy, but, owing to the influence of his wife, Kildare secured his acquittal, and returned to Ireland. The Earl of Ormonde was selected in 1523 to succeed Surrey, principally because he was Kildare's bitter enemy, but Elizabeth, Henry's cousin and Kildare's wife, wrote to the king beseeching him to reconcile the earls and bring peace to their respective families. Henry responded by sending a commission to try the charges preferred by Ormonde against Kildare, and, when it found in favour of the latter, he became deputy once more. But again his enjoyment of the office was brief, further charges being preferred against him by Ormonde, now Earl of {64} Ossory. Again Kildare went to London, and was imprisoned in the Tower, his brother, Sir James Fitzgerald, taking his post. While Kildare was in the Tower, Wolsey attempted to have him executed without the knowledge of the king, but at the last moment the Lieutenant-Governor sought confirmation from His Majesty, and discovered that the Cardinal's order lacked the king's approval.