Edward VI

Question 1

What were the dates/years of Edward’s reign?

Answer 1

1547-1553

Question 2

What were the official titles of the Duke of Somerset and the Duke of Northumberland in Edward’s government?

Answer 2

Lord Protector and Lord President of the Council

Question 3

Who did Somerset appoint as Chief Gentleman of the Privy Chamber and why was this unpopular?

Answer 3

Sir Michael Stanhope (brother-in-law)

Question 4

Who did Somerset charge with treason for plotting against him with the Earl of Southampton?

Answer 4

Thomas Seymour
– his brother who had not been appointed to the Regency Council by Henry VIII.

Question 5

Give three reasons why the Earl of Northumberland took over from the Earl of Somerset in 1549.

Answer 5

Somerset seen as weak & unpopular – foreign policy & rebellions; Northumberland crushed Kett’s Rebellion & behind coup;
Somerset lost king’s support in Windsor.

Question 6

how was Northumberland’s second coup against and why was it quite surprising?

Answer 6

the conservatives
(Southampton & Arundel); they’d supported him against Somerset in the first coup. Perhaps due to fear they’d
turn against him.

Question 7

Why was Somerset finally executed by Northumberland? What was the impact on Northumberland’s style of
leadership?

Answer 7

Having got back onto the Council, Somerset started a counter-coup; as a result, Northumberland moved from being conciliar to more dictatorial.

Question 8

What was the devyse and why was Lady Jane Grey chosen?

Answer 8

legal plan to change the succession; protestant, Henry VII’s great granddaughter; Northumberland’s daughter-in-law.

Question 9

Why did the devyse fail?

Answer 9

Edward died before Parliament could ratify it/Mary I refused to accept it.

Question 10

What was the name of the battle were England defeated Scotland in September 1547?

Answer 10

Pinkie

Question 11

Why did Somerset’s strategy for defeating Scotland fail thereafter?

Answer 11

garrisoning too expensive & caused further debasement; England failed to capture strategically important forts at Dunbar and Edinburgh; underestimated French support & failed to block the Firth of Forth enabling French to reinforce Edinburgh.

Question 12

What was the name of the treaty which Northumberland signed to end the war with France?

Answer 12

Boulogne; Boulogne returned to French for £133,333.

Question 13

Who were the two proposed wives for Edward VI, although neither came to fruition?

Answer 13

Mary Queen of Scots and Princess Elizabeth of France (Treaty of Bologne).

Question 14

Why specifically did Protestants criticise the First Book of Common Prayer?

Answer 14

vague about transubstantiation.

Question 15

What changes did the following religious policies passed under Somerset bring about:
• The Chantries Act?
• Repeal of the Treason Act?
• First Act of Uniformity?

Answer 15

• The Chantries Act? - dissolved the chantries
• Repeal of the Treason Act? – allowed people to talk freely about religion
• First Act of Uniformity? - made First Book of Common Prayer the official liturgy

Question 16

Who was Archbishop of Canterbury during Edward’s reign, key in bringing in these religious reforms?

Answer 16

Cramner

Question 17

Name two changes introduced by the revised/Second Book of Common Prayer in 1552.

Answer 17

Removal of remaining ‘conservative’ ceremonies; rewriting of baptism, confirmation and burial services; radical reform of
communion service; ban on use of ‘popish’ vestments; restriction on use of church music

Question 18

What were the Forty-Two Articles?

Answer 18

defined the doctrine of the Church of England – justification by faith alone.

Question 19

Who was Hooper?

Answer 19

leader of the evangelists, pushing for more extreme reform.

Question 20

How did Somerset try to tackle enclosure?

Answer 20

commission and sheep tax.

Question 21

How did Northumberland stabilise the economy?

Answer 21

ended expensive foreign policy; ended debasement.

Question 22

How did Northumberland stabilise crown finances?

Answer 22

melted down church plate; Walter Mildway’s commission into streamlining royal finances although not put into place until Mary’s reign; Boulogne.

Question 23

In what year were the two rebellions of Edward’s reign?

Answer 23

1549

Question 24

What was the name of the family which administered East-Anglia badly bringing pent-up frustration and leading to
the Kett’s rebellion?

Answer 24

Howards

Question 25

What were two other causes of the Kett’s Rebellion?

Answer 25

abuse of the Norfolk Foldcourse system; decline in Textiles industry.

Question 26

Where did the Western Rebellion occur? What is it otherwise known as?

Answer 26

Devon & Cornwall; Prayer Book Rebellion

Question 27

What evidence do some historians point to that suggests the English people disagreed with the religious changes
during Edward VI’s reign?

Answer 27

wills; church attendance; support for Mary and swift return of church plate.

Question 28

What three examples do historians use to argue that Edward VI was exercising more power than perhaps has been
previously suggested?

Answer 28

king in own right at 16, not 18; involvement in Second Book of Common Prayer and Uniformity Act; involvement in the devyse.