a8) law & order Flashcards
what were JPs?
justices of the peace
- maintained l & o in the countryside
- appointed on a county by county basis and met 4x pa to administer jsutice in quater sessio s
- most local gentry- fulfilled unpaid tasks out of sense of duty OR they thouhgt it may open path to local prestige/ advancement
- various acts passed to increase responsibilities- resp for ROUTINE ADMINISTRATION such as TAX ASSESSMENTS, ALEHOUSE REGULATION, INVESTIGATING COMPLAINTS AGAINST LOCAL OFFICIALSM & maintainance of l & o
why were JPs useful to h7?
- can control WHOLE country- ppl around the country in every county- should consistently uphold law & order
key l & o maintanance tool
- meeting 4x pa can help them compare notes, make sure all ruling counties in the same way
what probs might JPs cause h7?
- not supervised- 4x a year- can plot easily
- unpaid- could end up taking bribes
- some inconsistencies in how l & o was maintained
- dif sized counties
what were acts of attainder?
- act of parliament passed to declare someone guilty of a particular crime against the crown, usually treason, wothout putting them on trial
- allowed crown to seize the person’s title & possessions
- favoured method of h7 & h8 in dipsoing their enemies
how did acts of attainder help?
- quick fix- a trial would cost money and hassle + a public one may encourage rebellion
- h gets wealthier- money for crown- needs less taxes
how might acts of attainder cause probs?
- ppl will feel its unjustified & unfair- may spur rebellion
what were bonds & recognizances?
BOND= a legal document which bound an individual to another to perform an action or forfeit a sum of money if they failed to do so, h7 made many leading men sign these
RECOGNIZANCES= a formal acknowledgment of a debt or other obligation which could be enforced by means of financial penalty, often a hevay fine- would come after bond
how did bonds & recognnizances help h7?
- makes ppl do what he wants as they don’t want t lose money
- could giv ehim money
how might bonds & recognizances cause probs for h7?
- all v powerful ppl- if they don’t want to forfeit money, can rebel
- opening himself up to resentment for holding nobles in legal traps
what was a livery?
badge from a gentleman or noblemans coat of arms worn by his servants as a sign they were ‘in service’- good way to raise or retain men & for a noble to control his locality or provide men for the king’s army in times of rebellion
how might liveries cause probs?
- the nobles’ men not K’s men- if fell out of favour
- in theory loyalty should pass up but they’re loyal first to their noblemen
how were liveries useful?
- created a hierarchial system of loyalty & power
- has an unofficial army he can call upon
what was retaining/ maintaining?
- bringing unlawful pressure down on others during court cases ( infl juries etc)
- WoR- lords had manipulated law into their followers’ own favour
- became a man actively abusing the law to promote his own interests at any price rather than protecting lawful interest of his men
- H7 made clear from beginning of his reign h intended to control retaining: Pa 1487 & 1504 passed laws against it
- tightened the interpretation of retaining further in 1504 Act
how might restriction on maintaining/ retaining be useful?
- can’t rebel
- shows fairness of his own Pa
- est fairness across all localities & consistency in how things are dealt with
how might restrictions on retaining/ maintaining be useful?
- ppl are usually rich & powersul bc of corruption- reduces some power that some nobles have, which will enrage them
what was reducing the no of nobles?
- alr less due to upheavals of his predecessors leaving many dead & their property in the Crown’s hands
- eg R3 death & imprisonment of Earl of Warwick= all the great Warwick inheritance fell into H’s hands
- H sparing in creation of new nobility
- ^only one Earl during his reign- step-dad Lord Stanly- became Eral of Derby
- meant he avoided having to give any of his Crwn lands to his peergae/ nobility
how was reducing no of nobles useful?
- less nobles= more tax for him
- fewer powerufl ppl to reb against him
- ppl will think if they keep in favour of King, they will eventually get one of these titles
how might reducing no of nobles cause probs?
- got less ppl to help w governance of country/ counties- got less infl across country
what as patronage?
- the dispersal of jobs & offices eg being Lord Chamberlain= gifts of K ir his leading ministers
- way in which men * women bound to the royal service & remain loyal to the King
- H’s chamber= centre of patronage
how was patronage useful?
- he controlls jobs etc
- can give loyalty w/o much of a cost to him- jobs need to be done anyway, w/o having to pay out/ lose power
- keeps loyal
how could patronage cause probs?
causes probs in court- tension bc jealousy etc
what was the order of the knighthood?
- an impressive knighthood
- means of rewarding his sibjects for loyal service rather than giving crown lands
- intro by Edward 3rd
- had become eng’s highest order of chivalry by 1400s- gave PRESTIGE to its holders, but not involve Crown in much expenditure or giving away Crown lands
how was order of the garter useful?
- doesn’t cost him anything
- inspires ppl to be loyal to him
how could the order of the garter cause probs?
- make ppl greedy- ppl might want land/ money/ infl- it’s just a title
