English Society at the end of 15th Century Flashcards
What was the hierarchy of the Church?
Pope, Archbishops, Bishops, Clergymen
What was the hierarchy of society?
Nobility, Gentry, Yeomen and Citizens, labourers, Vagrants/ beggars
Who made up the nobility?
Around 50 or 60 men.
What was the importance of the nobility?
The crown often relied on noble families for maintenance of order in the countryside.
What was Henry VII’s relationship with the nobility?
He was distrustful of of them and was reluctant to create new peerage titles.
He only allowed military commanders such as the Earl of Oxford and Lord Daubeney to have political influence over him.
How did Henry control the nobility?
Through bonds and recognisances and restriction on retaining or ‘Bastard Feudalism’
What was Bastard Feudalism or retaining?
Where wealthy magnates recruited knights and gentlemen to serve them as administrators or for military purposes.
This could be a threat to the power of the Crown.
Who were the greater Gentry?
They were often great landowners in their own right.
They had considerable social prestige and some held a local office.
What role did the greater Gentry have?
They were responsible for the administration of their localities.
What was the social status of the Churchmen?
Parish priests dealt with the spiritual needs of the public.
Bishops and abbots of larger religious houses were entitled to sit in the House of Lords and had political roles.
What power did Henry VII have over the church?
He used his power to appoint bishops, these tended to be men who had legal training and whose administrative skills were valued more than their spirituality.
What was the impact of the increasing popularity of agriculture?
People started working with lower costs to make more profit which resulted in peasants losing access to land and common rights.
What was Henry VII’s attitude towards trade?
He wanted to maximise customs but was willing to neglect trade in order to maintain his dynasty.
He often let parliament legislate in favour of economic interests.
