Henry Vii's government Flashcards
Henry’s aims with his gov (5 main aims)
- Increase crown finance
- Increase the crown’s land
- Control noblity/prevent overmighty subjects
- Deal with rebellions and protect Tudor dynasty
- Improve law and order
How did Henry use gov to increase crown finace (6 factors)
- Introduced the Coucil Learned in the law in 1495 to collect fuedal dues owed to the King as the ultimate fuedal lord.
- Income from wardships rose from £350 to £6,000 by 1509
- Solvent by end of his reign
- Need a liscence to retain men (£5/man/month)
- Changed from the slow and cumbersome Exchequer to the Chamber system (like Ed IV) of finance in 1487. Henry persoanlly oversaw finance with his advisors in his private chamber.
- Still not a major power - his annual income was £113,000 whilst the King of France had £800,000/year income.
How did Henry use gov to increase crowns land (5 methods)
- 1486 Act of Resumption regained all crowns land lost since 1455.
- Wardships took land from heirs of dead nobles
- Passed 138 Acts of Attainder however 46 were reversed.
- Lost Brittany to France in 1492.
- Didn’t gain any new land in France as was not an agressive king, Peace was cheaper than war.
How did Henry use gov to control nobles and prevent overmighty subjects (11 points)
- Henry was 20x richer than richest noble in England.
- None of his 4 close advisors were great nobles
- Court of Star Chamber brought 10 nobles to justice fior illegal retaining. Improvment from past monarchs.
- From 1504 new lensure loaws vs retaining and liscense making retaining £5/man/month.
- Equity courts used and were fairer courts as they took social status and situation into account.
- Used bonds and recognisenses to ensure loyalty and almost all nobles placed under bonds at some point. Also helped him to gain money from nobles.
- Royal council filled with nobles but only met 5 times to limit their power/authority.
- Earl of Surrey placed in charge of Council of North where he had no support and no allies.
- Kildare was too powerful to deal with or remove from power.
- Prevented noble families form inter-marrying to prevent an overmighty noble alliance.
- Fined nobles harshly, e.g Lord Beaurgeuvanny who was fined £70,000 which would bankrupt him. However Henry allowed him to pay £5000/year and can not enter his land/property until it had been payed.
How did Henry use gov to deal with rebels and protect the dynasty
- Failure took 9 years to deal with Warbeck rebellion therefore gov was ineffective here.
- Caused rebellions/regional discontent via parliamentary tax, e.g. Cornish rebellion due to tax to fund Scotish invasion Raised 25,000 troops. e.g Yorkshire rebellion caused by £100,000 tax in 1489. Led to battle and 1000 rebels killed and only £27,000 of £100,000 agreed was raised.
How did Henry reard the nobility to prevent overmighty subjects
Used titles
11 Knighthoods given out (Knights of the Garter) instead of giving land or money, as this would bring them power.
By what percent did the number of noble families decrease from 1485-1509
Decreased by 1/4 or 25% by the use of wardships and attainders.
How many noble families remained by 1509
20-30 noble families due to wardships and attainders.
Changes in gov
- Introduced the Council Learned in the Law in 1495 to collect fuedal dues and wardships.
- Changed from slow and combersome exchequer to chamber system, in 1487, which he could personally oversee and document upon, with the help of his closest advisors.
- Made Court of the Star Chamber more effective, brought 10 nobles to justice for illegal retaining, effective for the time.
Changes in gov
- Introduced the Council Learned in the Law in 1495 to collect fuedal dues and wardships.
- Changed from slow and combersome exchequer to chamber system, in 1487, which he could personally oversee and document upon, with the help of his closest advisors.
- Made Court of the Star Chamber more effective, brought 10 nobles to justice for illegal retaining, effective for the time.
- Relied up on professionals, e.g lawyers as advisors in his royal coucil, as they were useful to him and relied upon him for their power and status, unlike the majority of nobles.
- Had a smaller close circle of advisors than previous monarchs due to his inherited distrust of the nobility.
How many total royal councillors were there between 1485-1509
227 royal councillors
How many total royal councillors were there between 1485-1509
227 royal councillors
Henry’s parliament
Only met when called by the King, unable to meet without his permission, giving him total authority.
Only met 7 times during Henry VII@s reign, in times of emergency, often in times of war to request extra-ordinary finance.
Parliament was the nations most important institution.
Only sat for a total of 72 weeks during his reign.
Parliamentary tax often led to rebellion/regional dicontent
3 main functions of Henry’s parliament
- Formed a point of contact between Crown and nation.
- Agreed to legislation put forward by the King and Council.
- Granted extra-ordinary finance, these taxes had to be agreed by parliament, almost always agreed with King.
Regional government
Local regions were ran by JPs and Sherrifs, as well as councills.
18 JPs per county. They were lesser magnates used to maintain the King’s peace (law and order) on a local level.
Sherrifs were appointed annually and had the power to detain criminals. Voluntary position.
Council of the North, ran by Earl of Surrey
Council of Wales, ran by Prince Arthur Tudor
Council of Ireland, ran by
Many rebellions due to regional dicontent
Courts
see courts revision sheet in foalder
How many Jps were there in England and what did they do
18 per county
Controlled regions, maintaining law and order and helping in the running of regional governments
How long did it take for gov to effectively deal with Warbeck
9 years
What was Henry VII’s role in government
The king ruled the country and made all decisions relating to itssecurity, when to go to war, who should advice him and when parliament should meet (could only meet when called by the king).
What was the job of the Royal Household
The people who looked after the domestic needs of the king. They were people like servants, who travelled with the King wherever he went and all of them were members of the Court
What were the JPs responsible for
Responsible for keeping law and order in localities.
What was the most common reason for the King to call parliament
To gain extra-ordinary finance via tax and benevolence, especially in times of war
What position was very sought-after in Henry VII’s government
A place in the king’s court
What was the function of the King’s court
To entertain the King and offer whatever company he wished, and to be a good advertisment for him, especially when foreign guests were visiting.
What did the people in Henry VII’s court attempt to do
Have influence over the King and when this coincided with the views of other like-minded courtiers they formed factions or small interest groups.
Who chose/elected the advisors in the Privy Council
The King
Which classes/social groups usually made up the advisors in the Privy Council
The advisors in the Privy Council were usually from the nobility and the church, as well as lawyers and royal household officers.
What was the job/function of the Privy Council
To advise the King, as they were the central administative body and they acted as a court,dealing with grievances from individuals that required the direct judgement of the King
How many people did the Privy Council consist of and how did this compare to the number that attended meetings
The Privy Council could have as many as 40 or 50 councillors, but attendance at meeting was often much lower.
When was the Privy Chamber set up
During the 1490s
Who chose/elected the gentlemen of the Privy Chamber
The King
What relation did the members of the Privy Chamber have with Henry VII
The had the closest access to the King and therefore had the greatest opportunity to influence him, although the majority of Henry’s Privy Chamber servants were of a low status and therefore had very little political influence.
What was the Groom of the Stool and why was it an important role
A member of the Privy chamber, who accompanied the King to the toilet and so clearly was the most intimate member of the Privy Council with the King, giving him influence as he could spend time with the King behind closed doors.
How many member did the Royal Council contain and how many of these were regular attendees
227 councillors
7-24 regular attendees creating an inner circle
Who made up the inner circle of regular attendees of the Royal Council
7-24 regular attendees, made up of the Chancellor, treasurer, keeper of the privy seal, bishops and magnates, knights and lawyers.
How many times did the Great Council meet under Henry VII
Met 5 times in times of emergency
What did the royal council not contain
The royal council did not contain any committees or sub-committees
How many times did Parliament meet under Henry VII
7 times (called by the King)
For how many weeks did parliament sit for during Henry VII’s reign
Sat for a total of 72 weeks
How many times was parliament held between 1497-1509
Parliamnet only held 2 times 1497-1509
In what year did Henry attempt to introduce subsidy reform and what did it lead to
1489
Provoked the Yorkshire rebellion, when parliament granted a subsidy of £100,000 (only £27,000 collected after the rebellion).
What were the 2 main uses of parliament under Henry VII
- To gain extra-ordinary finance
2. To pass acts of attainders (increase finance and control the nobility).
In what year was the Court of the Star Chamber introduced and what was its main function
The court of the Star Chamber was introduced in 1487 and was a tribunal court developed to deal with lawlessness, and was overseen by VKing’s councillors.
What who had previ a key change in the way Henry dealt with gov finance and who had previously used this method
In 1487 Henry moved away from the slow and cumbersome Exchequer, opting for a more personal approach with the Chamber system of handling royal finance. Overseen by Henry VII himself and his councillors
What types of things did the Court of the Star Chamber deal with
Dealt with riots, illegal retaining, pervesion of justice.
What was Henry VII’s annual income estimated at
£113,000 per year
How was Henry’s court descibed and what evidence can be given to corroberate this view
Henry allegedly had a lavish court, which can be backed up by the fact he payed £30 for a Damsel that danced