3) Henry VIII and Wolsey domestic policy Flashcards
- Henry VIII’s personality - henry's role in government to 1529; - Wolsey’s administration of government, finances, law and social reforms - the Church and its condition under Wolsey - the divorce and Wolsey’s fall.
Why did Henry VIII attempt to break from his father?
- Henry wanted to break from his father- whose later years were seen as mean and severe
Changes
- Dudely and Empson were arrested and executed for overbearing financial duties
- Henry married Catherine of Aragon- seen as chivalrous and restored the valuable Spanish alliance
- Henry VIII sought out foreign wars and dissolved the alliance with France that Henry VII had established
- Henry VIII spent lots more money that Henry VII ever did- All the money saved by Henry VII late in his reign was spent by Henry VIII to indulge in the personal life of being king
- Henry VIII spent lots more money on his nobility and entertained them more than Henry VII had ever.
- Henry VIII created lots of new members of nobility when he came to the throne.
How did Henry VIII perceive war?
- War was seen as a chivalrous kingly activity and Henry wanted to prove himself as a warrior- inspired by King arthur and Henry V
- Desire for war and glory dominated the early years of his reign
Why did Wolsey rise?
- Son of a butcher in Ipswich
- Hard-working and talented
- recognised oppurtunities for promotion and supported Henry’s aggressive foreign policy
- was a flatterer
- Had been Henry VII’s chaplain and was sent on diplomatic missions
- Shown organisational skills in the 1513 expenditure to France
- Rose as Chief Minister from 1514-1529
What legal policies did Wolsey change, and was he a reformist or a careerist?
Access to justice for the poor:
- The Court of Star and Chamber: Increased in importance, from 1516 onwards Wolsey wanted to dispense cheap and impartial justice- corruption was to be rooted out. Wolsey also used it to challenge the power of the nobility
- The Court of Chancery: Wolsey made decisions here that created legal precedents. Cases were dealt with in property, wills, and contracts. Wolsey established a permanent judicial committee to deal with cases brought up by the poor
Control of abuses by wealthy:
- Act of Resumption 1515: Wolsey wanted to increase revenue from Crown Lands, but many had been granted away at the beginning of Henry VIII’s reign. Income had decreased to £25,000 per annum, returning some of the lands to the crowns
- The Subsidy: Wolsey wanted to replace the fifteenths and tenths tax. The subsidy was a more realistic tax because it was based on more accurate valuations of the taxpayer’s wealth
* The ‘amicable grant’: This was an additional tax that Wolsey demanded in 1525 to fund Henry’s expedition to France. It caused rebellion in East Anglia and widespread non-payment as it followed forced loans in 1522 and 1523, which had not been repaid, and the subsidy of 1923, which was still being collected.
* Balance Sheet: Wolsey raised £322,099 in subsidies, £240,000 in clerical taxation and £260,000 in forced loans. But government expenditure between 1509 and 1520 was £1.7 million.
Were Wolsey’s legal reforms a success or failure?
SUCCESS
* Wolsey’s involvement in the law led to real revival and reinvigoration of the courts
* The poor had access to justice unlike before Wolsey. Overwhelmingly he seems to have been a force for good. Specifically impressive given the numerous other roles that Wolsey had in terms of domestic
FAILURE
- The changes he put in place in court were not “institutionalised” and were reliant on him to enforce them, and as a result when he fell from power the reforms fell back with him
- He sometimes used the system to further his own interests rather than to bring justice, and some of his interventions were seen as causing more harm than good.
Did Wolsey’s legal reforms show him as a reformer or careerist overall?
REFORMER
* Appeared to go out of his way to antagonise the nobility
* Started a close monitoring of them in as soon as he was made Lord Chancellor and in 1516 publicly announced they were not above the law.
* Most notable he sent the Earl of Northumberland to prison for contempt. However, most famously he charged the Duke of Buckingham of treason (based on rumours) and had him convicted and executed.
* Interfered with the marriage arrangements of the nobility
CAREERIST
* Revisionist historians argue that Wolsey was more hostile to the nobility than the king himself
* Wolsey had a lot of power and offered rewards to those who were willing to work alongside him
what is the context for Wolsey’s social policies?
- Long-term trend in some areas of England for landowners to replace “open-field” rotation system of small, unfenced plots of common land with larger, enclosed farms focusing often on sheep-farming (less labour-intensive than arable farming)
- Enclosure popular with poorer, landless peasants, who lost rights to graze their own animals on common land
- Led to migration of poor to towns, where inhabitants already suffering from food price inflation; led to serious urban disorder
What social policies did Wolsey change, and was he a reformist or a careerist?
Enclousre:
- Wolsey was less concerned about the effects of enclosure on the poor than about acting against the landowners
* An inquiry in 1517 identified enclosed land and demolition of buildings
* Legal proceedings were begun against 263 landowners; 222 came to court with 188 clear verdicts
* Wolsey stirred more hatred up for the landowners
Food supplies:
There were significant challenges to food security throughout Henry VIII’s reign:
* Rising Prices: Food prices nearly doubled across the period, leading to urban poverty. Poorer families struggled to afford enough food due to the shortage and high costs
* Unemployment: The shift from arable farming to sheep farming by large landowners increased unemployment. The closure of monasteries in the 1530s, which had also provided food for the poor, made the problem much worse. Some unemployed people resorted to leaving their villages in search of work, but this was illegal, and they were labelled as vagabonds.
Wolsey played a significant role in addressing food supplies and related issues, including:
* Grain Storage and Distribution: Wolsey established granaries to store surplus grain during times of plenty. They acted as reserves to make sure a stable food supply during shortages or famines was available. Also, he facilitated the distribution of grain to areas facing who lacked grain.
* Price Regulation: To control rising food prices, Wolsey implemented price controls on essential commodities like bread and ale. He aimed to prevent profiteering by merchants and stabilize prices for the urban population.
* Charitable Initiatives: Wolsey supported charitable institutions, including alms-houses and hospitals, providing food and shelter to the poor. Wolsey tried to alleviate urban poverty and meet the basic food needs of the poor.
* Efforts to Combat Vagrancy: Wolsey recognized the challenges posed by vagrancy and unemployment. He encouraged the establishment of workhouses and enforced laws against vagabonds. These measures aimed to address social instability and provide relief to the destitute.
Were Wolsey’s social policies reformist or careerist overall?
Enclosure:
REFORMER
* Wolsey attacked the practice of enclosure and as a result was seen as defending the poor who were being driven off common land. In 1517 Wolsey established an inquiry which identified enclosed land and buildings that had been demolished when land was converted from arable to pasture.
- This led to legal proceedings in the Court of Chancery against those who had ignored previous laws. Between 1518 and 1529 legal action was taken against 264 landowners, of which 222 were brought to court and 188 verdicts reached. Some were forced to rebuild houses they had knocked down and others to return land to arable farming- showed justice and improvement of farming conditions
CAREERIST
* However, the impact of this was small and Wolsey sacrificed the gains he had made, accepting all enclosures as part of the agreement for the subsidy.
* Wolsey had effectively sold out his social policy on enclosure to achieve his desired taxation system, showing he could have been considered more of a careerist than a reformist as all he did was done to enable what he truly wanted from his position
Overall:
Wolsey initially adopted a policy of resisting landowners approach to enclosure through the Courts as Lord Chancellor. However, when this had limited success he abandoned this approach in a pragmatic manner using enclosure as a bargaining chip to obtain his taxation model (the Subsidy) which was more progressive than the previous system.
* Wolsey also seems to have realised that the movement from the countryside to the towns was inevitable and with that issues with food supplies already under pressure were going to be more challenged. He then introduced reforms on distribution and price (among others) to aid to these issues
* Concluding, Wolsey could be described as a pragmatic reformist
Were Wolsey’s social reforms an overall success or failure?
- Wolsey made genuine attempts at social reform. However, as in many other areas, he was a realist and gave this away when it wasn’t having much impact to achieve something else or when it wasn’t achieving enough (in this case as part of a wider agreement on taxation).
- It could be argued that the Subsidy was more progressive in nature than taxation (it more accurately reflected income and wealth) this loss on enclosure had a significant impact on social structures and the migration rate to towns.
- Wolsey worked to balance agricultural productivity, price stability, and social welfare to improve food. The issue of food security wasn’t solved, but was somewhat helped
- Wolsey’s social policies initially championed the poor but when they failed to turn back the tide of enclosure he could be seen as abandoning them (and hence a failure) but at a price (and therefore still something of a success).
What is the context for Wolsey’s financial policies?
- Despite efforts of Henry VII, English monarchy still not wealthy; Parliament still thought king should “live of his own”
- Henry VIII’s more aggressive foreign policy put extra pressure on royal finances
What financial changes did Wolsey make and was he a reformist or careerist?
Taxation:
- Reformist: Introduced a new approach to parliamentary tax (called the subsidy) which became the standard parliamentary tax, and which replaced the previous fifteenths and tenths system. The subsidy required taxpayers to give details of their property and income to local officials to determine how much they should pay. The subsidy effectively meant the more you earnt the more you paid and was reminiscent of modern taxation systems. Gave a realistic valuation of people’s wealth and was the first-time taxation had been raised on accurate assessments since 1334
- Careerist: As a result, Wolsey sought a non-parliamentary tax (the Amicable Grant) in 1525. However, this was controversial and followed two forced loans in 1522-23 that were still being repaid by the Crown to the clergy and laity. This taxation instrument then led to protest and close to a minor rebellion in East Anglia.
* Henry was forced to deny he knew anything about the Amicable Grant and Wolsey was made the scapegoat and forced to apologise
Amicable grant:
- Careerist: enacted the forced loans in 1522/3 and the Amicable Loan in 1525 (also a forced loan). These instruments were forced, simple and NOT to a reforming agenda. They can be seen as Wolsey adopting a pragmatic approach to raise money
Crown lands:
- Careerist: He seems to have reversed some of Henry’s previous policies in order to raise money. This just seems a pragmatic response, and there doesn’t seem to be any desire for reform behind these actions.
What were the successes and failures of Wolsey’s financial policies?
