East Anglia - Economic and Political issues

Question 1

Why was there tension between Crown and Parliament?

Answer 1

Charles wasn’t as well liked as his brother and his personality did not help relations between the Crown and Parliament. They also did not agree with his approach to government finances.

Question 2

What did Parliament create in 1645?

Answer 2

The New Model Army (most of its soldiers coming from the Eastern Association)

Question 3

What did the New Model Army contribute heavily towards?

Answer 3

It took many men away from areas such as Suffolk, creating a strained existence.

Question 4

How much fighting was there in East Anglia?

Answer 4

Very little actually occurred in East Anglia

Question 5

What % of men may have left towns and villages to fight?

Answer 5

Around 20%

Question 6

What appeared to driven Margery Sparham to engage in witchcraft?

Answer 6

Her husband’s absence

Question 7

What radical belief did the witches of Wingfield hold?

Answer 7

Believed that women could be viewed socially and spiritually equal to men

Question 8

What happened to the authority of the church in Puritan areas?

Answer 8

It diminished with ‘undesirable’ ministers being replaced by Puritans

Question 9

What happened to the authority of the gentry?

Answer 9

It was undermined as many men left their estates to fight.

Question 9

What happened to the authority of the gentry?

Answer 9

It was undermined as many men left their estates to fight.

Question 10

Analysis: How did war lead to a change in society?

Answer 10

War meant society shifted as many forms of traditional authority (the CofE and the gentry) either diminished or was undermined. The gentry was not around and the religious power was held by Puritans

Question 11

What pamphlet reinforces the idea of the prevalence of societal chaos in England?

Answer 11

‘The world turn’d upside down’ was a pamphlet that depicted a number of unusual sights to highlight how drastic the changes caused by the Civil war and subsequent societal changes were

Question 12

Which aspect of the legal system failed to function effectively?

Answer 12

The assize courts

Question 13

Give specific examples of how events of the civil war impacted the functioning of the courts.

Answer 13

-As fighting was pushed East, it was thought too dangerous for the judges to make the journey from London.
-Senior parliamentarian, Earl of Warwick, was asked to oversea the Essex summer assizes but possessed little legal experience

Question 14

What did Hopkins and Stearne appear to provide in this atmosphere of chaos?

Answer 14

As they appeared to have legitimate knowledge and efficiency, they were welcomed and payed well for their services.

Question 15

What was their conviction rate?

Answer 15

42% conviction rate

Question 16

Give two reasons Burns argues that witch hunting was relatively rare in the British Isles?

Answer 16

1. The difference in law and procedures meant hunts built on chain reactions were significantly less common
2. The high degree of centralisation meant local magistrates were less able to carry out their own investigations/hunts (proved by the fact that Matthew Hopkins was able to do this during a collapse of authority)

Question 17

Why were the 1640’s so bad for farmers?

Answer 17

There were many wet summers and freezing winters

Question 18

What happened to food prices in the 1640s?

Answer 18

They rose drastically (meat and cheese)

Question 19

What happened to the price of wheat specifically in the 1640s?

Answer 19

The price of wheat rose by 20%

Question 20

What did contemporaries think of the weather in the 1640s?

Answer 20

They wrote that it was the worst weather in living memory (heavy rain causing crop failure)

Question 21

How did many puritan preachers interpret the extreme weather?

Answer 21

They saw it as a punishment from God and a sign that Charles should not be returned to the throne

Question 22

What was happening to common land that lead to more inequality and poverty?

Answer 22

It was being taken over by rich landowners - their use of this land meant they could get more rich and didn’t allow for poorer residents to make a livelihood.

Question 23

What did many Puritan’s believe that seemed to affect social harmony?

Answer 23

Many wealthy Puritans believed idleness was a sin

Question 24

What three actions did Sir Miles Sandys perform that lead to riots?

Answer 24

Sandys acquired 4000 acres of common land and enclosed it, depriving the poor of this land to live off. In the process, he evicted 30 families who had built cottages

Question 25

How where they connected to the witch trials?

Answer 25

Many of the inhabitants that Sandys had evicted were later suspected of witch craft and faced trials at Ely in 1647

Question 26

Analysis: What does this say about the motivations for witch trials?

Question 27

How did the war affect the price of livestock and grain?

Answer 27

The price of livestock had increased by 12% and grain by 15%.

Question 28

What else increased the cost of living?

Answer 28

A new tax was introduced to meet the increasing cost of war

Question 29

How where wage increases affected?

Answer 29

Wages did not increase during this period

Question 30

How did increased costs affect Magaret Moone?

Answer 30

When the rent was increased more than Moone could pay, she fell into poverty and had to turn to begging. She was later accused of witchcraft - blamed for the deaths of livestock and crop failure