Henry VII - Dealing with the Nobility Flashcards
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What were the main sources of royal income?
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- Crown lands - Profits from feudal dues and royal prerogative - Customs revenue - Pensions from other powers - Profits of justice - Extraordinary revenue
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How did Francis Bacon’s ‘History of the Reign of Henry VII’ present Henry and his finances?
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- It presented Henry VII as a miserly king who begrudged throwing money away like many other contemporary rulers, transforming finances to leave a large amount of money to his son
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What was the revenue from Crown Lands at the start of Henry’s reign, how did this change at the end of his reign?
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- Start - £12,000 - End £42,000
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How does Christine Carpenter regard Henry’s income from Crown lands?
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- impressive - this is significant as Carpenter is very critical of many aspects of Henry’s Kingship
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Why did Crown revenue drop at the start of Henry’s reign?
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- they dropped because lands were collected and administered through the inefficient Court of Exchequer - perhaps shows that Henry was inexperienced in finance
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What did Henry decide to do in 1492 regarding finances?
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- reverted the Edward’s system of administration through the chamber
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What was Edward’s system of administration that Henry reverted to?
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- finances were dealt with through the royal household rather than through an administrative department - this allowed Henry to have effective treasurers of the Chamber, such as Sir Thomas Lovell and Sir John Heron
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What 3 problems did Henry face when taking the throne?
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- nobles had too much power - made them a threat - crown had an uneven distribution over the kingdom (limited control in the north) - the crown had poor finances after the wars of the roses
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What role did the surveyor of the King’s wards have?
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- investigate money owed to Henry VII from wardship
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What was the Court of Order?
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- this was a place to measure government spending
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Why did the nobles prove a problem for Henry and what measure did he take overall against them?
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- they had too much power and influence - instead of rewarding the nobles to ensure loyalty, Henry decided to force them to support him by showing them the unwelcome consequences of opposition
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Why was nobles having money a problem?
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- they had small private armies (mercenaries) - could generate their own income from rent and leases
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What three factors did the nobility depend on for independence?
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- land - wealth - support - Henry directly attacked all three of these through his financial policy
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What were attainders?
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- these were special laws passed by parliament that allowed someone to be declared guilty of treason without trial - these would take away finances and titles from the person in question, leaving them in no position of power or authority
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Which men did Henry first give attainders to?
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- those who opposed him at the Battle of Bosworth
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Did Henry reverse attainders?
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- yes, if he felt that it would benefit and increase loyalty of the person attained
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How many attainders did Henry pass in his time as King?
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- 138
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How many attainders did Henry reverse in his time as King?
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36
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How man attainders were passed in the final years of Henry’s reign? What does this show?
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- 51 were passed from 1504-09 - this shows how Henry became increasingly insecure and paranoid at the end of his reign
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What else did Henry sometimes require when reversing an attainder, can you give an example of this?
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- often required a sum of money to reverse an attainder - for example, Thomas Tyrell had to pay £1,738 for the reversal of his and his father’s attainders
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What were Henry’s feelings towards the distribution of lands as a reward?
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- He disliked this policy as he was concerned that he would make a new group of nobles that threatened his power.
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By how much did the 'noble' population decrease by in Henry's reign?
- fell by 1/4
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What happened to vacant lands from attainders/death?
- Henry claimed them, making him the largest landowner in the country
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How did Henry safely employ royal agents to look after local communities?
- he employed people who were lower down the social scale, as they were less dependent on him and did not have extensive lands in the area
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What was retaining?
- the act of keeping personal staff for 'household servants' - in reality these were personal armies or gangs of enforcers
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What law was passed in 1485 to reduce retaining?
- He passed a law in Parliament saying that one could not retain illegally
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What did Henry do in 1504 to reduce retaining?
- passed an act requiring all nobles to obtain a special license before they could retain larger numbers of men - there were severe penalties if this was broken
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What penalties did Henry introduce for illegal retainers?
- a fine of £5 per month per illegal retainer
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How did nobles avoid the new laws against retaining?
- they found new ways to avoid getting a license - for example, they would cover up wages they had paid to servants so that no one knew exactly how many men were being retained
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What were bonds and how did Henry use them?
- these were financial debts owed to the crown that would ensure loyalty - Henry forced nobles to agree to behave themselves or face a ruinous fine
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What percentage of the nobility were held under bonds in Henry's reign?
- two thirds
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Give an example of someone who held a bond.
- Lord Burgavenny - He was convicted in 1507 of illegally retaining 471 men, giving him a fine of £70,000 - Henry placed this debt under a bond to repay £5000 over 10 years - He also gave him the instruction that he could not step foot in his family lands until the debt was settles - This meant that Henry both raised money from someone he did not trust, and also obliged him to keep in the King's favour or risk ruin
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How did Henry enforce these financial policies?
- through the creation of the Council Learned in Law
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What was the Council Learned in Law?
- this was an offshoot from the main Royal Council which dealt initially with the King's feudal rights, but later controlled all financial matters
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What was special about members of the Council Learned in Law?
- they all had legal training and acted both as investigators and as judges in cases where there was suspicion of noble not paying their proper dues
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Who was the first leader of the Council Learned in Law?
- Reginald Bray unitl 1503
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Who led the Council Learned in Law in the final years of Henry's reign?
- Edmund Dudley and Richard Empson - They were hated and feared
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Which areas of the country were most difficult to control?
- Those most distant from London - these needed the presence of local nobility
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How did Henry control areas that were more settled?
- through JPs, who were responsible for public order, the implementation of laws and dispensing justice to criminals brought before them - 4 times a year they met at the Quarter Sessions to try those accused of more serious crimes (apart from treason which was left to the crown)
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Who ruled the North on Henry's behalf?
- after the death of Northumberland in 1489, the Earl of Suffolk - Henry placed him here because he had no support, lands or a strong base to rival Henry from
