Henry VIII

Henry VIII’s Early Decisions (Consolidation 1509-1514)

• Sir Thomas Lovell was reappointed Chancellor of the Exchequer.
• Bishop Fox was reappointed Lord Privy Seal.
• Archbishop Warham was reappointed Lord Chancellor.
• Empson and Dudley, Henry VII's chief financial enforcers, were arrested
• The Council Learned in Law was abolished.
• Henry VIII announced he would honor the marriage agreement with Catherine of Aragon.
• Henry VIII aspired to be a warrior king, emulating Henry V's victory at Agincourt in 1415.
• He cancelled 175 bonds and recognisances that were owed.
• Edmund de la Pole, Earl of Suffolk, was executed.
• JPs continued to be used to enforce the law.

Privy Council

• It became more important than during Henry VII’s reign.
• The council consisted of around 20 men from Court.
• In the early years, Wolsey and Thomas More headed meetings.
• From 1532-1540, Thomas Cromwell gained the leading role.
• In later years, Sir William Paget (Comptroller of the King’s household) took charge.

Early Foreign Policy (1509-1514)

• In 1512, the first expedition to France failed.
• In 1513, the second expedition, masterminded by Wolsey, led to victory at the Battle of the Spurs.
• Tournai and Therouanne were captured.
• The Treaty of Saint Germain-en-Laye in 1514 cemented English possession of Tournai and Therouanne.
• Henry VIII received an annual payment for relinquishing his right to the French Throne.
• In September 1513, the Battle of Flodden occurred with Scotland
• The Earl of Surrey led the English, and James IV led the Scottish.
• England lost 1,500 men, while Scotland lost 10,000, including James IV, 9 Earls, thirteen Barons, and 3 Bishops.

Wolsey's Rise

• 1514: Appointed Archbishop of York
• 1515: Appointed Lord Chancellor, made a Cardinal
• 1518: Made Papal Legate

Governmental Reforms under Wolsey

• The first Parliament (Jan-Feb 1510) abolished the Council Learned in Law.
• Relations between Wolsey and Parliament were poor, with only 2 parliaments called in 1515 and 1523.
• These parliaments dealt with the Hunne case and demanded a subsidy for the war with France.
• There was continuity in the use of Parliament between Henry VII and Henry VIII, primarily to raise revenue.
• In 1519, Wolsey secured the removal of the minions in the Privy Chamber and replaced them with his own supporters.

Legal Reforms under Wolsey

• Wolsey's goals included challenging the unfair and slow distribution of justice.
• The centerpiece of reform was a strengthened Star Chamber.
• In 1516, he began to plan reforms.
• The Court of Star Chamber increased in importance from Henry VII’s time.
• Wolsey wanted it to dispense cheap, impartial justice and root out corruption.
• The Court of Chancery was used to make decisions that created precedent to streamline the judicial process.
• A permanent judicial committee was established in the Court of Chancery due to Wolsey's other distractions, such as foreign policy.
• Wolsey encouraged the poor to speak out against nobles, increasing the number of cases heard annually in Star Chamber to around 120.
• Wolsey was considered ‘a friend to the poor’, particularly in helping them with the enclosure of sheep.
• In 1518, the Court of requests was established and was popular because of low cost and quick decisions.

Financial Reforms under Wolsey

• The Act of Resumption 1515 restored some of the lands given away by Henry VIII at the start of his reign.
• By the beginning of Henry VIII's reign, income stood at £25,000 per annum.
• The First Parliament of 1515 disputed the Hunne case, involving a heretic whose potential murder caused uproar in London.
• In 1517, JPs were ordered to buy and resell grain for cheaper, angering the racketeers who had profited largely from overcharging necessary goods.
• The 1523 Subsidy involved a national committee to assess taxpayers’ wealth, headed by Wolsey himself.
• The 1523 Parliament demanded a subsidy of £800,000 for the war with France (1522-25), but only around £150,000 was ever collected.
• The Amicable Grant of 1525 demanded funds for war with France, with the clergy expected to pay a tax of 1/3 of their goods and most other subjects expected to pay 1/6.
• It sparked a rebellion in Lavenham, Suffolk, with 4,000 people, and was ultimately abandoned.
• The Eltham Ordinances 1526 involved financial reforms of the Privy Council, reduction in the number of men in the Privy Council, and the removal of the Groom of the Stool, Sir William Compton, replaced by Henry Norris.

Wolsey’s Servitude to the Crown

• Significant time was spent on Star Chamber to bring greater justice to the legal system.
• Great aristocrats were brought before the Star Chamber and punished.
• In 1515, the Earl of Northumberland was sent to Fleet prison, and in 1516, Lord Burgavenny was accused of illegal retaining.
• Wolsey promoted civil law through Star Chamber.
• Cases were called to Star Chamber when he heard a decision in the Common Law courts had gone against what he considered to be natural justice.
• Cases in which restitution was being sought from nobles were given an early hearing in the Court of Star Chamber.
• Wolsey ensured Star Chamber was accessible to the weak who stood little chance of maintaining their rights against the strong in the common law courts.
• He encouraged commoners to bring their complaints before the court and made lawyers plead on the behalf of paupers without charge through use of the Court of Requests.
• The Venetian ambassador, Guistiniani, reported in 1519 that Wolsey had ‘the reputation of being extremely just’.
• John Guy claims that Wolsey supported ‘impartial justice’ and wanted anyone to feel that they could take their case to the Star Chamber regardless of their wealth or status.

Wolsey Served Himself by

• Using Star Chamber to get revenge on nobles who had treated him with contempt.
• Overturning common law decisions that adversely affected him.
• Taking revenge on Sir Amyas Paulet, who had Wolsey put in the stocks many years earlier.
• He summoned him to appear before him and kept him waiting in daily attendance for more than 5 years under threat of confiscation of all his property for contempt of court if he left London without permission.
• Keith Randell claims that Wolsey’s prosecution of members of the nobility for breeches of the laws against maintenance and affrays ‘…smacked of a strong desire to get even with those who thought of themselves as being his social superiors’.

Fall of Wolsey

• Based on his inability to grant annulment of Henry VIII’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon.
• He tried to use Leviticus 20:21, which states that any man who sleeps with his brother’s wife will be childless, but failed because Pope Clement refused to acknowledge Pope Julius II was wrong (Papal infallibility).
• He claimed there was a wording error with the translation of the dispensation, therefore it was null (Clerical error), but Charles V had a translated copy which negated Henry’s claims.
• He attempted to get the case heard at Blackfriars (March 1529), so Wolsey could make the decision, but the Court was adjourned to Rome (24rd July 1529).
• Wolsey was charged with Premunire in Oct 1529.
• He was arrested on 4th Nov 1530.
• He died on 29th Nov at Leicester Abbey.

Arguments for a Political Revolution (Elton)

• Constitutional revolution: Henry VIII became head of Church and State, and Royal Authority extended over Wales and semi-independent regions.
• Political revolution: Henry was a ‘King in Parliament’, as Parliament was instrumental in passing all necessary Reformation legislation.
• Bureaucratic Revolution: The Privy Council emerged as the engine of government, with the development of specialised departments of government (such as financial courts).

Royal Council under Cromwell

• The council had no more than 20 members, a change from Henry VII’s time.
• It was composed of professionally trained lawyers and bureaucrats, as opposed to the ruling class nobility.
• Disagreement exists on when it emerged, suggested by Wolsey in 1526 as a potential reform, move towards a smaller number of members 1536-37 during the Pilgrimage of Grace.
• Whether the change was extensive and planned or simply reactionary is doubtful.

Financial Reforms under Cromwell

• Generally Edward IV’s policies were continued.
• Four new financial departments were established:
  • Court of Augmentations: Controlled the land and finances formerly under the control of the Catholic Church
  • Court of General Surveyors: Initially handled some of the ex-monastic land, but was amalgamated with the Court of Augmentations
  • Court of First Fruits and Tenths: Collected money previously sent to Rome
  • Court of Wards: Established to enforce Henry’s feudal rights, to collect money from the inherited estate of a minor aged under 21
• By 1540, the Privy Chamber was still of assistance to the management of finances, but apparent specialisation was also acknowledged.

Role and Importance of Parliament under Cromwell

• Parliament was used extensively to enact the necessary legislation for the reformation.
• There was a change from Wolsey’s time, as friction between Wolsey and Parliament led to infrequent use.
• Throughout Henry VIII’s reign, Parliament was in session for 183 weeks.
• 136 weeks of this were from 1529-1547, after the fall of Wolsey.
• Wolsey only called 2 parliaments.

Parliamentary Composition

• House of Lords in the early 1530s consisted of 51 Peers, 21 Bishops, and 29 Abbots
• By 1534, it consisted of 55 Peers, and the number of Bishops slightly increased, due to the founding of four new cathedrals.
• There were no abbots after the dissolution of the monasteries.

Acts of Parliament during the Reformation

• 1532 – First Act of Annates: Banned payments of annates to Rome, threatening that bishops could be consecrated by English authorities.
• Feb 1533 – Act in Restraint of Appeals to Rome: Based on Collectanea Satis Copiosa, Rome no longer had matrimonial cases, and Cranmer declared Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon’s marriage null and void.
• Jan 1534 – Second Act of Annates: Abbots and Bishops were to be appointed by the King, not the Pope.
• March 1534 – Act to Stop Peter’s Pence: Abolished the payments of Taxation to Rome.
• March 1534 – Act of the Submission of the Clergy: Appeals in ecclesiastical matters were to be handled in the King’s court, not the Archbishop’s.
• March 1534 – First Act of Succession: Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon’s marriage was declared invalid, treasonable offense to question the marriage to Anne Boleyn, confirmed Elizabeth as heir presumptive, and declared Mary illegitimate.
• Nov 1534 – Act of Supremacy: Henry ‘justly and rightfully is… supreme Head of the Church of England’.
• Dec 1534 – Treason Act: Treason was now defined in word as well as deed.
• Dec 1534 – Act for First Fruits and Tenths: Clerical taxes would go to the King, not the Pope.
• Feb 1536 – Act for Dissolution of Lesser Monasteries: Monasteries worth under £200 were shut down.
• June 1539 – Act of Six Articles: Confirmed transubstantiation, private masses, and the hearing of confession by priests, while banning marriage of Priests, marriage of anybody who had taken a vow of chastity, and the taking of communion in both kinds (bread and wine).
• June 1539 – Act for the Dissolution of the Greater Monasteries
• May 1543 – Act for the Advancement of True Religion: Restricted access to the English Bible to upper-class men and noblewomen in private. _Dec 1545 – Chantries Act: Allowed for dissolution of Chantries, though not enforced.

Fall of Cromwell

• Cromwell orchestrated marriage to Protestant Anne of Cleves (married 6th Jan 1540), Franco-Spanish truce in 1538 led England to seek a Protestant alliance.
• Henry desired Catherine Howard, niece of Duke of Norfolk, Cromwell’s biggest rival on the Privy Council.
• He was arrested on charges relating to introducing further Protestant reforms, and failing to enforce the Act of Six Articles.
• He was executed on 28th July 1540, the day Henry VIII married Catherine Howard.
• Elton claims that Cromwell supported the ‘rule of law’.
• In the 1530s, 883 people were charged with treason, and 329 were executed, over 50% as a result of the Pilgrimage of Grace.

Factionalism

• Conservative Faction: Accepted the break with Rome but opposed doctrinal change, was led by the Duke of Norfolk and Stephen Gardiner, and was responsible for the passing of the Act of Six Articles, the fall of Cromwell, Catherine Howard, the plot against Cranmer (1543), and the plot against Catherine Parr (1546).
• They broke apart after the arrest of Norfolk and his son the Earl of Surrey, with Surrey executed in 1547.
• Reform Faction: Accepted the break with Rome, seeing it as an opportunity to introduce Protestant doctrines into the Church, was led by Edward Seymour (Earl of Hertford, later Duke of Somerset and Lord Protector), and Archbishop Cranmer, and was responsible for the fall of Catherine Howard, Catherine Parr, the plot against Gardiner (1544), and the arrest of Norfolk (1546).
• In Oct 1546, Sir Anthony Denny was made Chief Gentleman of the King’s Privy Chamber, giving access to the dry stamp, and the reformists used it to alter Henry VIII’s will, giving increase powers to the Regency Council.

Henry’s Aims regarding Early Foreign Policy (1509-1529)

• Emulate Henry V – 1415 – Henry V wins Battle of Agincourt, winning the north of France.
• Henry VIII wants to claim French throne and conquer French lands.
• He wants to make England an international power.

Wolsey’s Aims regarding Early Foreign Policy (1509-1529)

• Maintain balance of power – prevent conflict, Wolsey was in charge of financial matters and wars would be massively expensive.
• Please the Pope – Aim of becoming Pope.
• Place England at the centre of diplomacy.
• Limit power of nobility.

Early Foreign Policy Events (1510-1529)

• 1510: Conflict of interest between Henry VIII and some of his councillors. Councillors successfully negotiated the renewal of the Treaty of Etaples.
• 1511: Anglo-Spanish agreement to attack France – Joint plan with Ferdinand to attack France and regain lost lands in Aquitaine.
• 1512: Start of 1st Anglo-French war – April, Henry sends 12,000 troops under the Marquis of Dorset to Bayonne in Aquitaine.
• Ferdinand used England as a diversion to attack Navarre.
• Military disaster in Gascony. Failure for England, no land captured.
• 1513: Battle of the Spurs – June, Henry personally leads 30,000 men to Calais.
• Captures Tournai and Therouanne with little resistance.
• Therouanne given to Maximillian.
• Tournai was garrisoned until 1518, expensive to do so.
• Although two towns were captured, one was given away, the other was too expensive, no financial gain.
• Battle of Flodden – Catherine and Surrey stop Scottish invasion.
• James IV took advantage of Henry being in France.
• 9th September, battle fought, England win and James IV was killed.
• Henry’s sister, Margaret, became regent for the child James V.
• 1514: Treaty of Saint Germain-en-Laye (Anglo-French Treaty) – Henry spent £960,000 1511-13 on wars, ordinary income was £110,000 per annum.
• Financially pressured into making peace.
• 1515: Death of Louis XII of France – 21 year old Francis I succeeded, immediately invaded northern Italy.
• 1516: Death of Ferdinand of Aragon – Charles V succeeded to the throne of Spain, not yet full Holy Roman Empire (would inherit in 1519).
• 1517: Peace of Cambrai – Francis sends Scottish claimant, Duke of Albany, to overthrow Scottish regency of Margaret.
• France won decisive victories at Margiano, Italy, shifting balance in ongoing war between France and the Holy Roman Empire.
• Peace agreement signed by Ferdinand, Maximillian and Francis.
• England not included, Wolsey’s mission England being at the centre of European diplomacy was failing.
• 1518: Treaty of London – 20 countries agree on peace.
• Pope Leo X was calling for a crusade on the Ottoman Turks.
• Organised by Wolsey, placed England at the centre of European affairs.
• Non-aggression pact with all countries involved.
• England returned Tournai to France for a pension.
• Mary betrothed to French Dauphin.
• Duke of Albany excluded from Scotland.
• Wolsey received the title of Papal legate.
• 1519: Death of Maximillian I – Charles V inherits title of Holy Roman Emperor, wielded massive influence in Europe.
• 1520: Field of the Cloth of Gold – England and France.
• 3,000 notables from each country.
• Lasted a fortnight.
• Little achieved, secret meeting at Gravelines with HRE.
• Charles V wanted England to remain neutral.
• England likely to stay neutral, as traditionally France was seen as the enemy and had trade links with Burgundy.
• 1521: Wolsey arranged a meeting with HRE. England agreed to invade France.
• 1522: Mary I promised to Charles V.
• Surrey led a failed invasion of Calais, received no support from Charles V.
• 1523: In response to French rebellions, three pronged attack planned with Imperial (HRE), English and Bourbon troops.
• 400,000 troops sent under Suffolk – lack of supplies and weather caused issues.
• Wolsey could see failure so made peace at the Treaty of Burges.
• 1525: Charles’ victory at Pavia, Francis I captured.
• Charles called off the marriage with Mary.
• Anglo-Imperial alliance was on the rocks. Treaty of More – Gave up all rights of English Kings to the French throne, diplomatic solution masterminded by Wolsey.
• 1526: Treaty of Cognac – Allied with France and several Italian states – Wolsey helped establish and finance it but England never joined.
• 1527: Sack of Rome – Charles V sacked Rome and captured it.
• 1529: Charles defeated the French at the Battle of Landriano, Treaty of Cambrai signed.
• Due to diplomatic efforts of Wolsey, England was just about included in said treaty.

Late Foreign Policy (1529-1547)

• 1529: Ottomans besiege Vienna, Protestant ally.
• 1530’s: Threatened to expand further into the Mediterranean, attacking South-East Europe and the North African coast, thus threatening Southern Spain.
• 1531: Schamlkaldic League formed – Charles V looking for possible Protestant allies such as the German states.
• Cromwell made overtures to the League but never agreed on an anti-Habsburg/France alliance.
• 1536: Thomas Fitzgerald (10th Earl of Kildare) led a rebellion due to Henry VIII being declared Supreme Head of the Church.
• Announced support for the Pope and Charles V.
• Rebellion brutally put down, Fitzgerald’s were removed from being Lord Deputies.
• 1538: Pope excommunicated Henry.
• Truce of Nice between Charles V and Francis I, England feared an invasion by the two Catholic nations.
• James V marries Mary of Guise (relative of French King).
• 1539: Act of Six Articles – restored some key Catholic doctrines, affirmed transubstantiation.
• Cromwell attempted to orchestrate a marriage alliance with Henry and Anne of Cleves, sister of the German Duke of Cleves, who arrived in England in 1539.
• 1540: Jan – Henry and Anne marry, divorce in July.
• Throughout the 1540’s, Scotland pursue a pro-French policy.
• Henry declared a new Kingdom of Ireland.
• Anthony St. Leger was sent as its first English governor.
• All lands of Ireland were to be surrendered to the crown.
• Some Irish Lords were included in the English Parliament.
• Policy of Plantations began, process of breaking down feudal lands to extend English common law across the whole of Ireland, took until early 17th century to complete.
• 1541: Charles V and Francis I begin fighting again, threat of an English invasion recedes.
• Henry declares himself King of Ireland.
• 1542: French alliance with the Turks.
• Battle of Solway Moss – Duke of Norfolk led campaign, 1,000 Scottish prisoners were taken.
• James V was ill during the battle and dies a week later, crown left to week-old Mary, Queen of Scots.
• 1543: Treaty of Greenwich – signed on 1st July, rejected by Scottish Parliament on 11th December.
• Included a plan to unite the Kingdoms.
• Renewed the conflict, 1543-1551 known as the ‘rough wooing’.
• 1544: Earl of Hertford (would become Duke of Somerset), led a series of raids across the Scottish border 1544-45, especially in Edinburgh and Dunbar.
• Henry set sail to Calais with 48,000 men, captured Boulogne.
• Meanwhile, Charles V and Francis signed a peace treaty at Crépy.
• 1545: Failed French invasion of England, caused by French incompetence, bad weather and no base to land troops (such as Calais for England).
• 1546: Treaty of Ardres – Renewal of pension money, agreement from 1475 when Louis XI promised an annual £10,000 to Edward IV.
• Boulogne would be returned to France in 1554.
• War in France had cost Henry £2,000,000.

Securing the Succession

• 1516 – Princess Mary born, heir presumptive.
• 1532 – Pregnancy of Anne Boleyn.
• 1533 – Annulment of marriage between Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, Princess Elizabeth born (7th Sept).
• 1534 – 1st Succession Act confirms Elizabeth as heir presumptive, declares Mary illegitimate.
• 1536: Death of Catherine of Aragon, execution of Anne Boleyn.
• Marriage of Henry and Jane Seymour.
• 2nd Succession Act – repeals 1534 Act.
• Declares Elizabeth illegitimate, declares Henry can determine the succession by will in the absence of an heir apparent.
• 1537 – Birth of Prince Edward, becomes heir.
• 1544 – 3rd Succession Act receives royal assent, repeals the 1536 Act, reinstated Mary and Elizabeth into the succession, reaffirms Henry could determine the succession by will.
• 1546 – Henry’s will confirms the 1544 Act.

Societal Hierarchy

• Nobility: nine more peers by the end of Henry VIII's reign than at the beginning, most new peers achieved their ranks through loyal service.
• Some ranks were enhanced by close family relationships, e.g. Thomas Seymour was elevated to Earl of Hertford (later Duke of Somerset).
• In 1509, England had only one Duke, the Duke of Buckingham.
• Property was bestowed upon Nobles to ensure he could exert royal authority in particular areas, e.g. the Duke of Suffolk was given land in Lincoln after the Pilgrimage of Grace (1536-37).
• Baron John Russell was given land in the South West after the execution of the Marquess of Exeter.
• Nobles remained critical for maintenance of local influence and to raise the recruitment of the Royal Army (Earl of Shrewsbury raised over 4,000 men for invasion of France, 1513).
• More power was brought to the crown.
• In 1541, Thomas Fiennes, Baron Dacre of the South, was tried and executed like a common criminal.

Gentry

• There were around 5,000 gentry families in England in 1540.
• There were 200 knightly families in 1524.
• The number of Gentry and JP’s increased within Henry VIII’s reign, which increased the number of people who participated in local administration.

Commoners

• There was little change in the first half of Henry VIII’s reign.
• Inflation led to a drop in real wages, which contributed towards the ill feelings towards the Amicable Grant (1525).

Regional Issues: Wales

• Laws in Wales Act of 1536:
  • Divided Wales into shire counties, operated on the same basis as English counterparts.
  • Gave the Welsh direct representation in the House of Commons for the first time ever.
  • Brought Wales under the same legal framework as England.
  • Wales was increasingly controlled by an increasingly anglicised Welsh aristocracy and gentry.

English Palatinates

• Three English counties – Lancashire, Cheshire and Durham, were technically under separate jurisdictions from the rest of the kingdom.
• Lancashire and Cheshire had fallen back into royal control, and Durham was still run by the Bishop.
• The Act of Resuming Liberties to the Crown 1536 reduced the level of influence the Bishop of Durham wielded.
• Highlights Henry VIII’s attempts to establish control over all echelons and parts of society.

Council in the North

• The danger of the North was highlighted by the huge number of supporters for the Pilgrimage of Grace in 1536 (around 40,000).
• The Council was re-established as a permanent body based in York.
• It showed its worth in keeping the North quiet during the Western and Kett’s rebellions of summer of 1549.

Rebellions

Amicable Grant

• The largest resistance was in North Essex and South Suffolk.
• 1,000 people gathered on the Essex-Suffolk border.
• 4,000 people gathered in Lavenham, Suffolk.

Pilgrimage of Grace

• Causes:
  • The Dissolution of the Lesser Monasteries 1536
  • Loss of Parish churches
  • The 1536 injunctions were seen as attacking traditional religious practices.
  • The celebration of local Saints such as St. Wilfrid in Yorkshire was discouraged.
  • Ordinary rebels also resented taxation.
• Elton claims the rebellion was brought about by a conspiracy prompted by the councillors of Catherine of Aragon, who wanted the restoration of Mary as heir.
• Events:
  • It began in Oct 1536, in Louth, Lincolnshire.
  • It was led by Robert Aske and 18 gentry.
  • It grew to a 40,000 strong rebellion.
  • Henry VIII gave a pardon to all rebels if they dispersed.
  • Fresh rebellions in Jan 1537, were an excuse to arrest and execute rebel leaders, including Robert Aske, who was hanged in York.

Economic Developments: Exploration

• Failed to continue Henry VII’s interests in exploration, building on achievements of Cabot and Bristol merchants.
• Sebastien Cabot did not return from Spain until Edward’s reign began.
• Robert Thorne, a Bristol trader, continued his involvement in an Iceland and Newfoundland fishery. Other merchants that showed interest in further exploration found themselves unable to win royal support for any venture.

Tudor Prosperity

• John Guy – ‘England was healthier, more expansive and more optimistic under the Tudors at any time since the Roman occupation’.
• Significant population growth occurred after 1525.
• In the 1520’s, agricultural prices increased, partly due to engrossing (joining multiple farms into a single agricultural unit for efficiency).
• Debasement gave short term economic benefits, with an artificial boom from 1544 to 1546.
• Government sponsored efforts to increase cloth exports, with a 25% increase in exports from 1533-34.

Tudor Economic Depression

• There were bad harvests from 1520-21 and 1527-29, and food prices almost doubled throughout Henry VIII’s reign.
• Real wages declined, especially at the end of the reign.
• Debasement began in 1526 and harmed the economy in the long term, continuing into Edward VI’s reign until 1552.
• Enclosure: Wolsey found 188 defendants had enclosed illegally, although bulk of the damage caused by enclosure was inflicted pre-1485, so had little effect.
• Rural unemployment saw a sharp rise in migration to cities, with over 5,000 migrating to London per year.
• Wars with Scotland (began 1542) and France (began 1544), cost over £3 million.
• Assessment for subsidies indicated considerable urban poverty, for example, over half the population of Coventry were recorded as having no personal wealth.
• The same was true for a third of the population of Yarmouth.

Criticism of the Church Pre-1529

• Corruption was common, including pluralism, simony (the purchase of ecclesiastical privileges), and non-residence.
• The most high-profile example of a corrupt clergyman was Wolsey.
• Anticlericalism: cited as a weakness of the Church.
• There were instances of clerical misconduct which fuelled anticlericalism, the worst example being the death of Richard Hunne, 1514.
• In 1529, there was an attack on the Clergy, Simon Fish’s ‘Supplication of the Beggars’.

Humanism and Education

• John Colet founded St. Paul’s School, London.
• Teaching methods were derived from humanist principles.
• William Lily, a Humanist, was appointed as head.
• By the end of Henry VIII’s reign, humanist influences had a lasting hold on university curricula
• Because the influence was not particularly widespread it should not be exaggerated.

Religious Events 1530-1534 (Break with Rome)

• May 1530: William Tyndale’s vernacular Bible was burnt, an attack on Heresy against Catholicism.
• Dec 1530: Clergy were accused of praemunire, an attack on the power of the Catholic Church to exercise power through ecclesiastical courts in England.
• Feb 1531: Clergy were pardoned of praemunire charge, in return Henry VIII paid a fine of £119,000.
• Feb 1531: The Convocation of Canterbury recognised Henry as Head of the Church ‘so far as the law of Christ allows’.
• Henry had wanted to be known as ‘protector and only supreme head of the English Church’.
• 1532 – First Act of Annates: Banned payments of annates to Rome, threatening that bishops could be consecrated by English authorities.
• March 1532: Supplication of the Ordinaries:
  • Clergy were to enact no Church law without royal permission.
  • Existing Church law was to be examined by a royal commission.
  • Henry complained that the clergy only gave him 50 per cent loyalty, since they also owned allegiance to the Pope.
• May 1532: Submission of the Clergy, clergy accepted Henry, not the Pope, as their lawmaker.
• Thomas More resigned the next day.
• Feb 1533 – Act in Restraint of Appeals to Rome: Based on Collectanea Satis Copiosa, Rome no longer had matrimonial cases, and Cranmer declared Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon’s marriage null and void.
• Jan 1534 – Second Act of Annates: Abbots and Bishops were to be appointed by the King, not the Pope.
• March 1534 – Act to Stop Peter’s Pence: Abolished the payments of Taxation to Rome.
• March 1534 – Act of the Submission of the Clergy: Appeals in ecclesiastical matters were to be handled in the King’s court, not the Archbishop’s.
• March 1534 – First Act of Succession: Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon’s marriage was declared invalid, treasonable offense to question the marriage to Anne Boleyn, confirmed Elizabeth as heir presumptive, and declared Mary illegitimate.
• Nov 1534 – Act of Supremacy: Henry ‘justly and rightfully is… supreme Head of the Church of England.
• Dec 1534 – Treason Act: Treason was now defined in word as well as deed.
• Dec 1534 – Act for First Fruits and Tenths: Clerical taxes would go to the King, not the Pope.

Religious Events 1535-1538 (Further swing to Protestantism)

• Jan 1535 – Cromwell was made Vice-Gerent in Spirituals, evidence of an increase in reformist influence.
• 1535 – Valor Ecclesiasticus – Survey into the wealth and condition of the Church.
• 1535 – Execution of the Carthusian monks, Bishop Fisher (June) and Sir Thomas More (July).
• Much opposition to the break with Rome was quashed.
• Feb 1536 – Act for Dissolution of Lesser Monasteries: Monasteries worth under £200 were shut down.
• July 1536 – Act of Ten Articles: The ‘Seven Sacraments’ of Catholic doctrine were rejected, leaving a belief in only three (baptism, the Eucharist and penance).
• There was a clear move towards Protestantism.
• August 1536 – Royal Injunctions were issues by Cromwell, ordering the Clergy to:
  • Defend the Royal Supremacy in sermons.
  • Abandon pilgrimages.
  • Give money for educational purposes to teach children the Lord’s Prayer, the Ten Commandments and other scripture.
• 1537 – Publication of the distinctly Protestant ‘Matthew’s Bible’, written by Thomas Matthew.
• July 1538: Truce of Nice signed by Charles V and Francis I: The threat of joint invasion prompted a return to Catholicism through the Act of Six Articles.
• Sept 1538 – More injunctions issued from Cromwell to the clergy:
  • The English Bible was to be placed in all parishes within two years.
  • All births, marriages and deaths were to be registered in every parish.
  • People were to be actively discouraged from pilgrimages (e.g. Thomas Becket’s shrine at Canterbury Cathedral was destroyed).
  • Relics were to be removed from church (confirming a rejection of purgatory).

Religious Events 1539-1546 (Swing back to Catholicism, Religious balancing)

• April 1539 – Publication of ‘The Great Bible’.
  • It was the first authorised edition of the Bible in English.
  • The Cromwell Bible directed its publication.
  • It includes much of the Tyndale Bible and other parts of the Old Testament.
• June

Explore Henry VIII's initial actions to undo unpopular policies, his foreign policy focus, and the Battle of Flodden. Examine Wolsey's legal reforms and relationship with Parliament during this period of English history.