Health of the Church c1529

Question 1

Henry Belief

Answer 1

• Humanist (thinks and debates)
• Pious (Mass 3 times and creeps to cross)
• 1521 ‘In Defence of the Seven Sacraments’ against 1517 95 theses (Defender of the Faith)
• 1511 pilgrimage to Walsingham (rare)

Question 2

Donations and Resistance to payments

Answer 2

• Morebath imagine of Mary 1531
• St James’ spire in Louth (£305) in 1515
• Poor donated (Alice Obleye 10d in 1526)
• 1500 to 1550 found 70% gave something to Church
• Opposition to tithe and payments rare (Hunne 1514)
• Archdeacon of Chester only dealt with 8 cases of mortuary fee dispute in 20 years up to 1529

Question 3

Church vices

Answer 3

• Group in Hayes refused 1530 tithe
• ArchB Warham removed Rector of Kent after attempt to raise tithe
• Stokesley 1530 visitation found 25% suitable
• Bishop of Ely (3 children, vast profits from beneficiaries but 1515 replaced)
• Wolsey’s bastard (attempt for Winchester in 1528 blocked by H)
• Wolsey in York once in 14 years of ArchB
• Fisher (Rochester) and Nykke (Norwich) were ideal
• 1512 Kent visitations founded only 4/260 priests poor quality
• 1499 Suffolk visitations found 48 absenteeism (only 2 poor deputies)

Question 4

Doctrine and Popular Belief

Answer 4

• Latin Mass (transubstantiation)
• Prayers for dead souls said by Chantry priests (3 in Long Melford in 1535)
• Superstition of Rogationtide and cover Lent images
• Pilgrimage to Tomb of Becket (Wycliffe attacked the profits these gained)
• 1516 vision of Mary attracted 4,000 (inc Catherine and Wolsey)

Question 5

Literature

Answer 5

• Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales” on church vices (popular)
• Whitford’s “A Work for Householders” on lay religious education (1530, 8 editions by 1537)
• Tyndale’s “Pride of Prelates” on corrupt clergy like Wolsey (3,000 by 1530)
• Primers sold rise (37 editions from 1501-1520, 41 from 1521-1530)
• Fish’s “Supplication for the Beggars” mocked Church wealth and called clerics ‘wolves’

Question 6

Monasteries (Role, Power and Popularity)

Answer 6

• Alms, medicine and education
• 850 by 1509 and 10,000 monks
• Peterborough Abbey got £1,600 p.a. in 1535 (£200 average)
• Abbots in Lords
• 1526 Orford riot against priory enclosing
• 16% of land

Question 7

Local Priest

Answer 7

• Degrees rose from 8% to 42% by 1532

Question 8

Wolsey (Why was he unpopular and what did he achieve)

Answer 8

• Efficient and smart (rose up ranks)
• Pluralist (Bath, Durham and York)
• Great wealth and unpopular for this
• Organised 1521 Luther book burning
• 1519 reforms to improve clergy

Question 9

Pope

Answer 9

• Distant and mainly symbolic (gave Kings legitimacy, important for Tudor usurpers)
• Of £12.5k Church rev Rome got £4.5k

Question 10

Lollards and Heretics

Answer 10

• Lollards denounced Church wealth and clergy privilege
• Opposed Pope, transubstantiation and Latin Bible
• Small group
• 5 burnt by Warham in 1511-12 (9 burnt 1513)
• Signing of adjuration often let people off (renunciation) like 74 in 1511-12
• Servant named King had a vernacular Bible (Worcester)
• Bilney burnt in 1531 for preaching against Saints and images (locals in Norwich cried)
• Bennet burnt in 1532 (locals insulted him)

Question 11

Humanists
Church jurisdiction

Answer 11

• Henry
• Colet criticised Church corruption in 1510 sermons
• More burnt Hutton at Maidstone in 1530 for vernacular
• Henry gave judgement on clerical cases (Pope claimed no laymen could)