Cromwell's Rise and Fall Flashcards
What was Cromwell’s background before 1516?
He was born around 1485 in Putney, London, although little is known about his early life other than that he had humble origins. In his teenage years he was trouble and moved to the Netherlands. He then moved to Italy where he served as a soldier and probably came into contact with radical political ideas here. After a period of service to a Venetian merchant, he returned to England in 1516 where he married and found employment in the household of Wolsey
How did Cromwell rise from being a member of Wolsey’s household?
By 1519 he had an important position in Henry’s household, and by 1524 he attended the Inns of Court as he had learned enough about law to attend, and here he developed a successful legal practice. In 1529 he was elected as an MP, and had an active role attacking abuses within the church, and soon found himself in royal service
How did Cromwell rise within the royal service?
in 1531 he became a member of the royal council, and defended Wolsey in parliament, remaining loyal until his death. By 1532 he had effectively taken over the management of the king’s divorce and like Wolsey had realised that the key to success was to anticipate what the king wanted and meet his needs
What did Cromwell do between 1532 and 1536?
He devised a strategy for the divorce and drafted a series of acts to destroy the power of Rome, create the Church of England and give Henry unprecedented power and stars as a monarch
What title was awarded to Cromwell in 1532?
He was made the Master of the King’s jewels, giving him access to the king’s private room in the palace
What title was awarded to Cromwell in 1533?
Chancellor of the Exchequer and master of the Roles, which was a leading role within the legal system
What position was Cromwell given in 1535?
He was made Vice Durance for spirituals, which was a post created by Henry to give Cromwell the poser to institute church reform
What position was Cromwell given in 1536?
He was made the Lord Privy Seal and principle secretary on the royal council
What titles were given to Cromwell shortly before his fall?
He was awarded with the title of Baron Cromwell and in 1540 he was made the Lord Great Chamberlain and the Earl of Essex
What bureaucratic reform did Cromwell introduce?
A more professional privy council emerged, although there’s debate as to whether this happened under Cromwell or after his fall. This print council contained around 20 members and was composed of professionally trained lawyers and bureaucrats rather than notables from the wider ruling class
What financial management changes did Cromwell introduce?
Cromwell created new institutions to manage new income generated from the break with Rome. Four new departments were created: the Court of Augmentations, the Court of First Fruits and Tenths, the Court of Wards and Liveries and the Court of General Surveyors, and by 1540 increasing specialist was introduced into the management of royal finances although Cromwell recognised that the privy chamber remained an important part of the system. There were professional administrators rather than members of the untrained nobility and clergy
What constitutional change did Cromwell implement?
In the Act in Restraint in Appeals in 1533 Cromwell wrote that ‘this realm of England is now an Empire’, which was saying that Englishmen should not have the automatic right to appeal to Rome to give judgements in religious cases because the king was supreme in his own lands
What evidence disputes Cromwell’s apparent claim that England was an independent political body?
1533 England was subject to the Pope’s views in matters of religious doctrine and was supposed to seek a bishop’s permission when choosing bishops and other high-ranking religious officials, and parts of England held liberties which gave them semi-independent states, so royal authority was spread unevenly across the country
What did Cromwell do in 1536 with Wales?
He used the break with Rome to extend royal power more firmly across the kingdom. In 1536 an Act of Union with Wales reorganised local government in the principality and the borderlands and the marshes
What did Cromwell introduce in 1536 to restrict the powers of regional nobles in more remote parts of the kingdom?
He introduced an Act against Liberties and Franchises, which would restrict powers such as those held by the Bishops in the Palatinates of Durham - Cromwell’s aim was to not only limit power but to provide consistent application of the law