Chapter 8 - Henry VIII, government and parliament Flashcards
what was Henry’s attitude to parliament like during the early years of his reign?
similar to his fathers, to grant extraordinary revenue and to pass laws.
when did Henry call Parliament before 1529?
1510, 1512, 1515 and 1523
how did wolsey view parliament?
with some distaste
how many times was parliament called during Wolsey’s period of dominance?
just once, in 1523
what did the parliament in 1510 do?
abolished the council learned in the law
what did the parliament in 1514 do?
provided extraordinary revenue for invasions of France and Scotland; Anticlerical act restricting benefit of clergy
what did the parliament in 1515 do?
act restricting benefit of clergy not renewed despite an apparently anticlerical atmosphere in the House of Commons
what did the parliament in 1523 do?
provided extraordinary revenue for invasion of France; speaker of the House of Commons, sir Thomas more, made the first known plea for freedom of speech for MPs. the level of anticlericalism seemed reduced, despite parliaments ill-temper.
what was the parliament called between 1529 and 1536 known as?
reformation parliament
what did the parliament in June and July 1536 do?
called to enact a new succession act following the fall of Anne boleyn.
what did the parliament called between 1539 and 1540 do?
called to provide extraordinary revenue with invasion threatened; produced divergent religious legislation, for example the dissolution of the greater monasteries and the six articles act.
what did the parliament called between 1542 and 1544 do?
provided extraordinary revenue for invasions of Scotland and France; dealt once more with the issue of succession.
what did the parliament called between 1545 and 1547 do?
provided extraordinary revenue
how many parliaments did Henry call during his reign?
9
why was parliament used more frequently in the second half of henry’s reign?
Cromwell exploited the legislative possibilities of parliament more thoroughly.
how long did conciliar government last at the start of Henry’s reign?
1509-1514
what factors combined to bring conciliar government to an end?
- Henry became disenchanted with the reluctance of some his father’s senior councillors to support a war with France.
- he became increasingly his own man by asserting his undoubted right to control decision making.
- Henry surrounded himself with like-minded young courtiers who reinforced his suspicions of the ‘old guard’
- he became impressed by the organisational skills of wolsey.
why was wolsey useful to Henry?
Henry didn’t like the day to day business of governance so wolsey complement his hands off approach to the details of policy making.
who were the king’s minions?
a group of young courtiers who enjoyed Henry’s personal favour.
why was the role of the privy chamber extended during the early years of Henry’s reign?
the king’s minions became gentleman of the privy chamber.
when did wolsey secure the removal of the minions from the privy chamber?
1519
what happened after wolsey removed the minions?
he replaced them with his own supporters but most of the minions managed to recover their positions.
what was the one part of government outside of Wolsey’s immediate control?
the privy chamber because of the minions
what was the court of chancery?
the main court of equity in the kingdom; in such courts justice was based on applying the principle of equity, i.e. fairness, rather than a strict reading of the common law.
why was Wolsey responsible for overseeing the legal system?
he was lord chancellor
how did wolsey use the courts?
he used the courts to deal with problems relating to enclosure, contracts and land left to others in wills.
what was the main problem with the chancery court?
it became too popular and justice was slow since it became clogged up with too many cases.
what was Wolsey’s most distinctive legal contribution?
the operation of the court of star chamber.
what did the court of star chamber become under Wolsey?
the centre of both government and justice
what was Wolsey’s motive in extending the use of the court of star chamber from 1516?
to increase cheap and fair justice
what did wolsey also encourage the court of star chamber to be used for?
for private lawsuits
what did wolsey do after the settlement of private lawsuits in the court of star chamber became too successful?
he was forced to set up a series of ‘overflow tribunals’ to deal with the pressure of business. a permanent committee which he set up in 1519 became the ancestor of the later court of requests, whose job it was to deal with cases involving the poor.
what does subsidy mean?
historically, this refers to a grant issued by parliament to the sovereign for state needs
what did the 1523 subsidy do?
imposed a tax of one shilling in the pound for land worth £50, and one shilling in the pound on personal savings and goods.
what change did wolsey make to the way subsidies were collected?
instead of using local commissioners to assess taxpayer’s wealth (with the risk they could be over generous to the nobility), Wolsey set up a national committee which he himself headed. with direct and realistic assessment of the wealth of taxpayers, the nation’s revenue base consequently became much more realistic.
how did Wolsey try and raise money for Henry’s war with France?
he attempted to raise unparliamentary taxation, through the so called ‘amicable grant’ of 1525.
what was the amicable grant?
in 1525 Wolsey ordered the implementation of the ‘amicable grant’ to raise more money for war; in theory it was to be a freely given gift from his subjects to the king, but in reality it was a heavy tax, levied without parliament’s approval.
how did John Guy describe wolsey in relation to his management of parliament?
‘arrogant and insensitive’
how was Wolsey’s insensitivity towards parliament shown?
the 1523 parliament, which had been called to finance the renewal of war against France. this parliament seems to have spent its time grumbling about Wolsey’s financial demands, so much so that he proved unable to secure all he wanted.
what shows just how charged the atmosphere was at the 1523 parliament?
the speaker of the House of Commons, sir Thomas more, felt obliged to ask the king’s forgiveness for the boisterousness of some of the members, while at the same time defending their right to express critical opinions.
who was the groom of the stool?
the most intimate of an English monarch’s courtiers, who became a man in whom much confidence was placed and royal secrets were shared as a matter of course.
when did Wolsey introduce the Eltham ordinances?
1526
what were the eltham ordinances?
in the guise of pushing forward proposals for a reduction of royal household expenditure, wolsey secured a reduction in the number of the gentleman of the privy chamber, the one area of the government he didn’t have control. he also removed Henry’s groom of the stool, Sir William Compton, replacing him with the more compliant Henry Norris.
what was the King’s great matter?
concerned the annulment of Henry VIII’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon and his desire to marry Anne Boleyn; this was a complex situation which would ultimately lead to England’s break from the catholic church.
what were the short term consequences of the King’s great matter?
the downfall of wolsey
what were the long term consequences of the King’s great matter?
the establishment of royal supremacy
what is an annulment?
declaring something, in this case a marriage, legally invalid; it was generally accepted that only the pope could authorise such a measure.
what was one of Henry’s desperate ideas to solve his issue with needing a male heir?
legitimising his illegitimate son, Henry Fitzroy
what role did Anne Boleyn have in Henry’s desire to end his marriage with Catherine?
Henry had fallen in love with her but she refused to become his mistress so he needed to get an annulment.
