Henry VIII, 1485–1509: Government - Ministers, Cromwell

Question 1

What were Cromwell’s main policies (excluding religious ones)?

Answer 1

• Succession Acts
• Act of Union with Wales
• Jurisdiction in Liberties Act
• Council of the North
• Royal Council
• Finances

Question 2

Main timeline of Cromwell’s main policies

Answer 2

• 1484
- Council of the North established

• 1534
- First Succession Act

• 1535
- Jurisdiction in Liberties Act

• 1536
- Second Succession Act
- Act of Union with Wales
- Pilgrimage of Grace
- Council of the North and Royal Council are changed

• 1540
- Cromwell executed

• 1543
- Third Succession Act

Question 3

How did Cromwell rise to power?

Answer 3

• Secured annulment of marriage to Catherine of Aragon

Question 4

Succession Acts

Answer 4

• First Succession Act, 1534
- Henry’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon made invalid; marriage to Anne Boleyn now valid
- Elizabeth made legitimate; Mary bastardised

• Second Succession Act, 1536
- Follows Cromwell’s fall out with Anne Boleyn and her execution
- Removes Mary and Elizabeth from line of succession

• Third Succession Act, 1543 (after Cromwell)
- Names Edward, Mary and Elizabeth as heirs to the throne

Question 5

When was the First Succession Act passed?

Answer 5

• 1534

Question 6

When was the Second Succession Act passed?

Answer 6

• 1536

Question 7

When was the Third Succession Act passed?

Answer 7

• 1543
• After Cromwell’s execution in 1540

Question 8

Act of Union with Wales

Answer 8

• 1536
• Divided Wales into Shires like England
• English laws placed upon Wales
• Wales received 2 MPs in House of Commons for first time

Question 9

When was the Act of Union with Wales passed?

Answer 9

• 1536

Question 10

What were Palatinates? Which areas were Palatinates at the time?

Answer 10

• Areas previously ruled by Catholic bishops with separate jurisdictions from rest of England
• Lancashire, Cheshire and Durham

Question 11

Jurisdiction in Liberties Act

Answer 11

• 1535
• Reduced the powers of Palatinates

Question 12

When was the Jurisdiction in Liberties Act passed?

Answer 12

• 1535

Question 13

How did Cromwell change the Royal Council?

Answer 13

• More professional Royal Council
• Maximum of 20 members
• Made up of trained lawyers and bureaucrats, rather than untrained nobility and clergy
• Smaller grouping of Royal Council after 1536 due to Pilgrimage of Grace and need for expertise for Reformation

Question 14

Council of the North

Answer 14

• Established in 1484 to improve access to conciliar justice in the north
• 1536, Pilgrimage of Grace showed need for more control in north
• Cromwell gives more power to Council of the North and they could deal with cases such as rape, murder and treason

Question 15

When was the Council of the North established?

Answer 15

• 1484

Question 16

What event led to the development of the Council of the North? When was this event?

Answer 16

• Pilgrimage of Grace
• 1536

Question 17

What financial institutions did Cromwell create?

Answer 17

• Court of Augmentations
• Court of General Surveyors
• Court of the First Fruit and Tenths
• Court of Wards

Question 18

What were the purposes of the financial institutions Cromwell created?

Answer 18

• To manage new incomes after Break with Rome but still used alongside Privy Chamber

• The Court of Augmentations
- Controlled the land and finances formerly under the control of the Catholic Church

• The Court of General Surveyors
- Initially handled some of the ex-monastic land, but was soon amalgamated with the Court of Augmentations

• The Court of First Fruits and Tenths
- Collected money previously sent to Rome.

• The Court of Wards
- The King had the ancient feudal right to collect money from the estate of a minor, under the age of 21, who had inherited land

Question 19

When was Cromwell executed?

Answer 19

• 1540