Chap 4 - Maintenance Of political Stability Flashcards
1487 - Act of maintenance
- Empowered certain members of the council
- Helped Henry VII secure his rule
- Clamped down on illegal retaining
1495 De Facto Act
- Treasonous to withhold ships / artillery within six days of being commanded to do so
1529 - Reformation of Parliament (Henry VIII)
03/11/1529 - 14/04/1536
Closure of monasteries + Abbey’s
Settles the ‘great matter’ of his divorce from Catherine of Aragon
1534 Swear of allegiance and supremacy
Office holders to swear oaths
Act of supremacy (1534)
Succession of a male heir had to be secured
1549 - Appointment of Lord Lieutenant
Trained bands of county militia
First LL of Devon was John Lord Russel (1549)
LL’s were personal representatives of Henry VIII in counties
1553 Proclamation denying Mary’s right to throne
Factional proclamation issued by Northumberland
Northumberland feared losing his power after the death of Edward
1558 Reform of the militia
Marian military didn’t provide enough horse
Militia were recruited to oblige to the national system of English military (conscription)
1563 Statute of Artificers (Elizabeth I)
State enforced labour relations
Attempt to make poor relief more effective
Plan to fix prices and impose minimum wages
1572 Council of the North reformed and Poor Law Act
Poor Law was a precursor to modern welfare state
1593 Repeal of anti enclosure legislation
Henry VII maintenance of stability - monarch (pretenders)
Won the throne from battle
Many false claimants to the throne
- e.g. Perkin Warbeck (executed in 1497, after gaining small armies but meeting strong resistance)
- e.g. Lambert Simnel 1487 (pretended to be princes in the tower, as Richard Symonds insisted, crowned in Ireland, led to battle of Stoke, defeated, then employed in royal kitchens)
Henry VII maintenance of political stability - monarch (proclamations)
1509 issued proclamation ending speculation around pretenders to the throne
Proclamations were read out in parish churches and marketplaces to make sure the word was spread
Claimed descent from King Arthur
Henry VII maintenance of political stability - church
Henry looked to bishops for advice and assistance, arch bishop of Canterbury was his Lord Chancellor (Cardinal Thomas Bourchier / Cardinal John Morton)
Henry was a devoted Catholic and the pope supported his reign against rebels, anyone who fought against Henry at Stoke and Balckheath (Cornish rebellion) was threatened with excommunication
Henry VII maintenance of political stability - parliament
Seven parliamentary sessions held during his reign
Parliament passed 138 acts
Henry not generous with restoration of land
Wanted to clamp down on illegal retaining of land (threatened the king)
Star Chambers Act / Act of Livery and Maintenance show parliamentary support
Used Bills to act against rebels
Henry VII maintenance of political stability (royal councils)
227 men overall - 20 regulars
Principal advisors very religious (Arch Bishop of Canterbury)
Earl of Surrey was his Lieutenant (1489) - develop more control in Northern Counties
Henry VII maintenance of political stability (judiciary and law)
Bills of Attainder (persecution without trial) to be used against rebels
Whipping, imprisonment and public declamation were punishments for those who spread rumours
Henry VII maintenance of political stability (royal commissions)
Oyer at Terminer against potential rebels
10 JP’s per county at beginning of reign
JP’s got more power and authority to monitor suspicious sheriff’s who undermined the king
Henry VII maintenance of political stability ( nobility )
Henry left them alone (they were loyal)
To reduce disorder he took away castles in nonstrategic areas, confiscate gunpowder and remove cannons
Retainment Laws
Nobles Surrey, Oxford and Pembroke assisted Henry against rebellions
Henry VIII maintenance of political stability (monarch)
Proclaimed monarch had power from God so treason was a sin against God
Henry used closed crowns on coins to showcase his God given authority
Heavily glamoirised the monarchy
Henry VIII maintenance of political stability ( church )
Until 20 years into his reign Henry used clerics - administrators, advisors and diplomats
Thomas Wolsey bishop appointed as Lord Chancellor
Broke away from Church - divorce C of A did not weaken Church state relations
Preachers were instructed to preach four times about obedience to the monarch
Henry VIII maintenance of political stability ( parliament )
Parliament agreed with the break from Rome
Henry VIII maintenance of political stability (royal councils)
Kings council renamed Privy Council
Added more nobles to privy council e.g. Seymour, Boleyn and Parr
Henry VIII maintenance of political stability ( judiciary and law)
Bills of Attainder were used against rebels
Martial law introduced in times of crisis e.g. Pilgrimage of Grace
1542 rumour mongering became a felony
1530’s treason laws extended to questioning the Act of Succession and Henry’s marriages
By 1540 400 people caheged with treason, 50 killed
Henry VIII maintenance of political stability ( royal commissions )
Wolsey appointed non-Northerners to northern counties as JP’s
Outbreak of rebellions ( e.g. P of G) showed sheriff’s were unable to do their jobs
Henry VIII maintenance of political stability ( nobility )
Take away castles in nonstrategic areas confiscate gunpowder and remove cannons to reduce any potential disorder
Relied on nobles retainers to quash rebellions - 700 Norfolk, 1000 Lord Ferrer’s (P of G)
Henry responsible for creating over half of peerage by the end of his reign
Henry relied upon Nobles Norfolk, Suffolk and Shrewsbury to suppress rebellions
Edward VI maintenance of political stability (monarchy)
Minor, not ideal monarch,little propaganda
Edward VI maintenance of political stability ( church )
Political offices held by non-clergy men
Homily of obedience, reminded people that by following the king they were following God
Edward VI maintenance of political stability (judiciary and law)
Martial Law introduced during the Ketts rebellion of 1549
Edward VI maintenance of political stability ( royal commissions)
LL’s on the rise after the Ketts rebellion
LL’s appointed to county’s with previous rebellions / talks of ones
Northumberland saw benefit to LL’s having more powers so appointed more
Edward VI maintenance of political stability (nobility)
Relied on nobles Russel, Warwick, and Grey to suppress Western, Kett and Oxford rebels
Mary I maintenance of political stability (monarch)
Did NOT glamoirise the monarchy
Mary I maintenance of political stability (church)
Tyrannical rule led to religious disobedience, as they believed if the monarch had sinned against God then the rebellion was justifiable
Mary I maintenance of political stability (judiciary and law)
Mary useeld martial law against people who would carry seditious / heretical books
Mary I maintenance of political stability (royal commissions)
Mary tried to improve county militia by passing two acts (1558)
- required everyone to contribute to their men, equipment and horses to the ‘army’
-call for regular attendance
‘Improvements’ didn’t make much of a difference
Mary I maintenance of political stability (nobility)
Pembroke, Clinton and Norfolk assisted Mary against the Wyatt rebellion
Elizabeth I maintenance of political stability (monarch)
Kept good relationship with nobility and gentry, would interact with them on royal progresses
Built up strong rapport with the South, Central and Eastern England
Elizabeth I maintenance of political stability (church)
Political offices held by non-clergy man
Elizabeth expected her bishops to stay and not interfere in high politics
Elizabeth I maintenance of political stability (parliament)
Only 13 parliamentary meetings occured in Elizabeth’s reign
Growing support for the crown in MP’s (e.g. Legislation to protect the queen from Catholic plots (1571), Act to retain the Queen majesties subjecting their due obedience (1581), Act for the Queen’s safety (1584) showed how respected she was
62 new parliamentary seats during her reign
Elizabeth I maintenance of political stability (royal councils)
Little attendance of Privy Council in first half of reign - 5/6 men doing most of the work
Francis Walsingham held particular responsibilitie (marriage negotiations, spymaster)
From 1563 onwards Southern nobles and gentry appointed to wardenship to maintain Northern stability
Elizabeth I maintenance of political stability (judiciary and law)
Martial Law used in 1569 Northern Rebellion
1570 Elizabeth excommunicated, she extended treason law to involve discussion or documentation claiming the Queen was heretic
1581 Elizabeth made sedition a capitol offence
1589 allowed her marshals to retain vagrants
Elizabeth I maintenance of political stability (royal commissions)
Saw no need to appoint permanent lieutenants, only in times of crisis (e.g. Northern Earls Rebellion (1569) / War with Spain (1585)
1572 men aged 16-60 required to have arms training
By 1580’s 26000 relatively trained men ready for active service
Elizabeth I maintenance of political stability (nobility)
Elizabeth needed nobles to help with Northern rebellion (1569)
Depended on Sussex, Clinton and Hunsdon to combat Northern Earls
Sent Lords Grey, Essex and Mountjoy to suppress Irish rebellions
