Goverment and Administration 1485-1603 Flashcards
What was the Royal Court?
It served the monarch, wherever the Monarch was the court would be. Those who wanted power and influence would come to court under patronage. It was also there for display, as they court was used to impress with things such as tornemants and plays.
What was the Eltham Ordinancesof 1526?
Worsley issued reforms that proposed a smaller council of 20 men who would travel with the King, attempting to reduce the size and cost of the Royal household. Although it was really there to reduce the amount of people that had influence over the King. However this was unsuccessful as Worsley did not have enough power to override the wishes of the Monarch.
What was the Royal Household?
It was responsible for the Monarchs domestic needs. They were mostly menial servants but were controlled by officials known as the Board of the Green Cloth. It was often critised for being too costly and large, as Worsley attempted to to reduce in the Eltham Ordiances
What was the Privy Chamber?
Served by the household, the Monarchs living arrangements were structured so acess to them was closely controlled. The privy chamber was a series of rooms where the Royal Family actually lived.
What’s the dry stamp?
An embossed stamp which would be made of the King’s signature. This could be stamped onto documents. However possessed the dry stamp had considerable power over aspects of givermnet such as the grants of land, offices and titles.
How did the Privy Chamber change under Henry the 7th?
It grew in importance. From 1495, as Henry feared betrayl from those who knew him, it was used to restrict personal acess to the Monarch. He created the Yeoman of the Guard to restrict access to his personal Chambers. He used the Privy Chamber to collect and store royal income which he monitored closely. It meant he always had ready money however it was dependent on how much the Monarch was interested in the topic. After him this use collapsed as the Monarchs did not have the time or inclination to use it that way.
How did the Privy Chamber change under Henry the 8th?
It became an important political hub. It had its own staff which from 1518 were known as the gentleman of the privy chamber. The most important was the groom of the stool. The positions were filled by Henry’s most trusted friends, who acted as advisors and were often employed in more formal areas of goverment. For example between 1520 and 1525, the gentlemen were sent on diplomatic missions to France and military missions against the Scots. In the 1540s, 1545, Henry’s aversion to paper work had lead to the creation of the dry stamp which was kept by the Gentlemen of the Chamber.
How did the Privy Chamber change under Edward the 6th?
A faction lead by Edmund Seymour gained control of the dry stamp using members of their faction in the privy chamber. This allowed them go make alterations to the Kings will in their favour from 1547. Acess to the dry stamp was controlled by supporters of Seymour in the Privy Chamber.
How did the Privy Chamber change under Mary the first?
Because the roles of the Privy Chamber required close physical contact to the Monarch, these roles were filled by women instead of men. However it didn’t entirely lose its political role. Many members were Cathics married to members of the Royal Household. For example, Frances Waldegrave and Edward Waldegrave. They had great influence with the Queen, as Charles the 5th of the Holy Roman Empire wrote to his ambassador to tell him that some lady’s were taking advantage of their position to gain patronage and favours. She kept control over the dry stamp which was kept under lock and key and she never allowed her adminstrators to use it.
How did the Privy Chamber change under Elizabeth the First?
It continued to decrease in importance. She still appointed the wives of her councillors but reforms from 1559, meant that members of her Household were also members of her council. From then on, political descions were carried out through the more formal channels of her Council.
What was the Role of the Council?
It was a more formal body which had existed since the Medival Times to advise the Monarch. The Monarch appointed who was on the council, they did not have to listen to it but it was probably in their best interest to atleast hear its view. It helped the Monarch with the day to day running of the country and could act as a judicial court when high profile legal cases could not be solved under normal courts of law in particular ones to do with the nobility. It became increasingly more formal in 1540.
What was the role of the council under Henry the 7th?
It was a larger and more formal body then it ever was under Henry the 8th. Between 1485 and 1509, over 200 men attended the meetings although not all the same. It consisted of a mixture of nobility, churchmen, royal officials and lawyers. He was careful to include men who had served under his Yorkist predecessors. He had 22 men from under Edward and 20 from Richard. As he was a super, he needed previously experienced men to help him. He didn’t hold parliment often so the Council was crucial in gathering information about public opinion. He also held Great Councils
What were Henry the 7ths great councils?
Special gathering of all members of the nobility and his councilors. These were used when Henry needed advice on things such as war and taxation. He held 5 between 1487 and 1502, making him appear he was including the nobility in his descions when he had already made up his mind. For example, in 1492, he wanted to end his invasion of France so he consulted his nobility and made them sign a document agreeing to retreat. It also made it harder for nobility to argue with his descions.
What was the Royal Council like under Henry the 8th before the reform of 1540?
When he came to the throne in 1509 he was nearly 18. His father had left a council to help his young son govern. It was made up of experienced administrators such as the Archbishop of Canterbury. However many supported the previous Kings policy of not getting involved in expensive foreign wars, something which Henry disagreed with. This meant that it allowed Wosley to rise to power who supported Henry’s need for war. He remained as a massive influence until 1529 when he fell from power. He was incharge of much of the day to day running of the country allowing the council to maintain its traditional role. It was still fairly large with around 40 members. However due to the Ethlam Ordinances, this was planned to be reduced to 20 men which although never happened by 1540 one as he had planned had emerged in the form of the privy council.
What was the Royal Council reforms of 1540?
Cromwell attempted to reform and modernise the English government. There were changes in 1536, in response to the pilgrimage of grace where a smaller group of the Kings most trusted advisors met many enemies of Cromwell. After his fall I’m 1540, there was a need to change the council to be able to work without Cromwell. Wosley and Cromwell had both come from poor backgrounds so their power was resented by the nobility. The council aimed that one person could not get power, for example they said that anyone writing to the council should do so as a group not to one person. There was no chief minister.
