HVIII SOCIETY/REBELLION

Question 1

By HOW MANY did the nobility increase during Henry VIII’s reign?

Answer 1

9 more at the end compared to the beginning

Question 2

In WHICH ways did the nobility lose power/influence during Henry VIII’s reign?

Answer 2

1) Henry VIII executed many nobles (e.g. Henry Pole, for treason)
2) They were gradually being brought more under the control of the monarch

Question 3

WHAT are some examples of groups of people in the gentry?

Answer 3

• Knights
• Esquires
• Gentlemen

Question 4

In WHICH ways did the gentry gain power/wealth during Henry VIII’s reign?

Answer 4

1) Number of gentry increased
2) Many bought up monastics land after the dissolution of the monasteries 1536
3) Increase in JPs
4) The Crown’s local administrators were now more likely to be laymen than clergymen

Question 5

HOW MANY gentry families were in England and Wales by 1540?

Answer 5

The number rose to about 5000.

Question 6

HOW MUCH of the monastic estates were sold?

Answer 6

Almost 2/3 by the end of Henry’s reign. This was about 2 million acres (16% of England and Wales).

Question 7

By HOW MUCH did the population increase under Henry VIII?

Answer 7

The population of England and Wales rose from just over 2 million to just under 3 million.

Question 8

HOW MUCH did life change for the commoners during Henry VIII’s reign?

Answer 8

Not much. The social structure remained unchanged and the standard of living didn’t change too much. In the 2nd half of his reign saw a rise in the rate of inflation and drop in real incomes.

Question 9

WHEN was Cromwell’s Wales Act passed?

Answer 9

1536

Question 10

WHAT did Cromwell’s Wales Act do?

Answer 10

1) Divided Wales into 3 shire counties, all represented in the House of Commons
2) There were 24 Welsh MPs
3) Brought into same legal and government systems as England

Question 11

WHEN was the Act Resuming Liberties to the Crown passed?

Answer 11

1536

Question 12

WHAT was the Act Resuming Liberties to the Crown?

Answer 12

Reduced the level of independence for the bishop in the English palatinates (mostly just Durham at this point), but didn’t completely destroy it. For example, the Court of Chancery continued to operate.

Question 13

WHAT was the Council of Wales and the Marches and WHAT did it do?

Answer 13

A council that controlled the Anglo-Welsh border that Henry VIII kept in place. It implemented some English rule and gave locals easier access to the law.

Question 14

WHAT did Henry VIII do to try and control the Anglo-Scottish border?

Answer 14

It was split into 3 marches, under the jurisdiction of a warden

Question 15

WHAT types of people could Henry VIII appoint to control the Anglo-Scottish border? (pros/cons)

Answer 15

1) Local magnates - would have had influence over the locals, but could misuse their power at Henry VIII’s expense
2) Gentry/complete outsiders - more likely to be loyal to Henry, but less likely to have influence over the locals
Henry mostly chose from the second group of people.

Question 16

WHEN was the Council of the North re-established during Henry VIII’s reign?

Answer 16

After the 1536 Pilgrimage of Grace

Question 17

HOW successful was the re-establishment of the Council of the North during Henry VIII’s reign?

Answer 17

Quite successful - it gave power back to the northerners but not to any one specific person and still established royal authority.

Question 18

WHAT and WHERE was the Council of the North responsible for?

Answer 18

Law and order north of the River Trent (e.g. the appointing and overseeing of JPs and serious crimes like treason)

Question 19

Through WHICH region were there rebellions in response to the Amicable Grant?

Answer 19

East Anglia

Question 20

WHEN was the Pilgrimage of Grace?

Answer 20

October - November 1536

Question 21

WHAT were the causes of the Pilgrimage of Grace?

Answer 21

1) Religious: dissolution of the monasteries (and all their charitable/educational functions) and the attacking of traditional religious practices (e.g. celebration of saints, pilgrimages, etc.)
2) Economic: taxation, loss of the services provided by monasteries (education, charity, work, etc.)
3) Political: a courtly conspiracy by former supporters of Catherine of Aragon, wanting to exploit the northerner’s grievances to pressurise the king.

Question 22

HOW MANY people rebelled during the Pilgrimage of Grace?

Answer 22

Estimated 40,000, making it the largest rebellion in the history of Tudor England

Question 23

WHAT were the demands of the Pilgrimage of Grace?

Answer 23

Many things including:
- Restoration of the Catholic Church
- Restoration of the dissolved monasteries
- Princess Mary to be restored to the succession
- Stopping of enclosure

Question 24

WHAT were the consequences of the Pilgrimage of Grace?

Answer 24

At first Henry VIII promised pardons and that parliament would look at their demands, but renewed rebellion in February 1537 gave him the excuse to go back on his word and punish the rebels. The leaders were executed, but most other rebels were treated leniently.

Question 25

WHERE was the Pilgrimage of Grace during Henry VIII’s reign?

Answer 25

Lincolnshire and the north of England