Dissolution

Question 1

What were the 3 main reasons for the dissolution of monasteries?

Answer 1

-Economic benefit
-Reduction of papal influence
-Doctrinal influence

Question 2

What was the purpose of monasteries?

Answer 2

Men and women could devote their lives to saying prayers on behalf of living and dead souls.

Question 3

Who ran the monasteries?

Answer 3

Monks, nuns and other clergy members

Question 4

What importance did monasteries hold in every day life?

Answer 4

-Shelter
-Sanctuary
-Medicine
-Education (for the wealthy)

Question 5

What state were the monasteries in by the 16th century?

Answer 5

Their high regard had been taken, with monks living in luxury and some monasteries housing less than 12 monks

Question 6

When was the Valor Ecclesiasticus?

Answer 6

1535

Question 7

What was the Valor Ecclesiasticus?

Answer 7

Ordered by Cromwell, it was the suvey of the property and vale of smaller monasteries, with Cromwell giving instructions to find the most damning evidence, even if it meant listening to gossip or rumours.

Question 8

What was discovered in the Valor Ecclesiasticus?

Answer 8

-Monasteries were corrupt with their spending
-They were riddled with sins, including pluralism, symony, indulgences and nepotism
-The monasteries shad the potential to double the Crown’s annual income, at a time when Henry needed money to further his ambitions abroad

Question 9

What else was discovered about the lands seized during the monasteries?

Answer 9

He could give the land to his nobles and gentry during a time of change where there was bound to be strong opposition

Question 10

What doctrinal role did the monasteries hold?

Answer 10

They were a permanent reminder of the catholic churcch, and were a threat to royal supremacy as well as a centre of resistance.

Question 11

What was the primary role of the monasteries and why was it bad?

Answer 11

Praying for the salvation of souls, which protestants did not see as beneficial as it was not sola fide, and they were outdated for the reformers, such as Cromwell or Cranmer.

Question 12

When was the Act for the Dissolution of Smaller Monasteries?

Answer 12

1536

Question 13

What did the Act for the DIssolution of Smaller Monasteries do?

Answer 13

Closed all religious hoses with lands valued under 200 a year and less than 12 monks under the premise that they are wasting money.

Question 14

What happened to the monks from the smaller monasteries following their closure?

Answer 14

They were sent to the larger monasteries

Question 15

What happened in between the two acts?

Answer 15

-Rebellions, Pilgrimage of Grace
-Carthusian monks were executed for their opposition
-100s of orders surrender to Henry out of fear
-Some monasteries bribed commissioners to remain open.

Question 16

When was the Act for the Dissolution of Larger Monasteries?

Answer 16

1539

Question 17

What was a chantry?

Answer 17

Small, private chapels.

Question 18

WHen was the court of augmentations established?

Answer 18

1540

Question 19

When was the Chantries act?

Answer 19

1547, when Henry wasn’t fully in control.

Question 20

What happened to the houses?

Answer 20

They were vandalised and plundered, with valuables being confiscated and melted down, and monastic buildings becoming beyond saving.

Question 21

Who benefited the most from the dissolution?

Answer 21

The king and the nobility

Question 22

How much money did Henry gain from the dissolution?

Answer 22

About 10% of the entire kingdom, with it all coming to him in one great transfer.

Question 23

How was the money used?

Answer 23

to finance foreign policy - especially in France - although as war escalated and there was greater inflation, Henry had to sell of land to raise money.

Question 24

When was most of the land sold off?

Answer 24

Following Cromwell’s fall and in the last 4 years of Henry’s reign

Question 25

Who bought the land?

Answer 25

Nobility - to strengthen their factional power
Gentry - to promote their presence within the community

Question 26

What did the increase in gentry visibility mean for England?

Answer 26

It reflected the change from a traditional ruling class to a more widely-based ruling elite

Question 27

What is an example of the selling of land?

Answer 27

THe sale of Woburn Abbey to John Russel in 1547, and the Russel family still owns the land to this day.

Question 28

What is an example of the gentry becoming more visible?

Answer 28

Edward Seymour, who would go on to become the Duke of Somerset, increased his visibility and power partly through the acquisition of lands. Most significantly, he gained Glastonbury Abbey,which he later used to harbour French Protestants known as Huguenots.

Question 29

What was a negative of the selling of land?

Answer 29

Henry and future monarchs lost a source of tax collection

Question 30

Who were the main losers of the dissolution?

Answer 30

THe inhabitants of the monasteries and their communities, who were often told to leave.

Question 31

What is an example of the disbanding of communities?

Answer 31

At Jervaulx Abbey in Yorkshire, the community around the abbey was dispersed, leading to increased vagrancy and social detriment.

Question 32

What is an example of abbots offering bribes to remain open?

Answer 32

Abbot Hobbes in Woburn Abbey near modern-day Milton Keynes offered generous money to commissioners, as well as concealing information in the Valor Ecclesiasticus. He was eventually executed in 1537.

Question 33

Where were the gay priests?

Answer 33

Leicester Abbey

Question 34

What did the monks do following the dissolution?

Answer 34

About 1/5 managed to receive other paid positions within the church, although friars and nuns faced less generosity.

Question 35

What was the impact on education?

Answer 35

-Libraries were broken up
-Monasteries had educated wealthy young people, which now couldn’t happen

Question 36

What is a case study for the loss of education during the dissolution?

Answer 36

Glastonbury Abbey- renowned for its grandeur and educative activities.

Question 37

What happened to Glastonbury Abbey’s library?

Answer 37

The library was known for its scholarly texts, manuscripts and theological works, yet during the closure most were lost, burnt or taken, leading to a loss of valuable knowledge.

Question 38

What happened to Glastonbury Abbey’s education?

Answer 38

It was dismantled - a great shame as it had provided education to many, including those of less wealthy backgrounds.

Question 39

What are examples of schools being re-opened on monastic land?

Answer 39

The establishment of Christ Church College in Oxford in 1546 on the former St Frideswide abbey
The opening of King’s School in Canterbury from the remains of St Augustine Abbey.

Question 40

What would 3 paragraphs be on impact of dissolution?

Answer 40

Social
Doctrinal
Economic

Question 41

What 5 points can be made in the doctrinal paragraph?

Answer 41

-Reduction in papal supremacy
-Boost of papal supremacy
-Desrtuction of relics and shrines
-Spread of protestant ideas
-Impact on religious practice

Question 42

What is an example of the destruction of shrines?

Answer 42

Sir Thomas Beckett’s shrine was destroyed in 1538 which had been a major site of pilgrimage. Shows the iconoclastic protestant beliefs.

Question 43

How was papal authority undermined?

Answer 43

The monasteries had been integral in teaching catholicism to the masses as well as acting on the orders of the pope, so when bastions of the catholic movement such as Glastonbury Abbey were destroyed, there was a loss in the influence the pope could have over the people of England.

Question 44

What would the three paragraphs be for an essay on the causes of the dissolution?

Answer 44

Religious - assertion of protestant belief
Economic - gaining of money
Political - shutting down centres of opposition and reinforcing royal supremacy