Mary I Flashcards
When did Edward get tuberculosis
January 1553
Under what terms was Mary next in line to the throne?
1544 succession act
Why did Northumberland not want Mary to inherit the throne?
- Would threaten his high position of power
- Mary was a devoted catholic - all religious polices implemented after 1550 would be repealed e.g. the common book of prayer
What was Northumberland establishing LJG as the next claimant to the throne primarily to do with?
Maintaining his position of power - he didn’t have extreme protestant beliefs and was thought to have implemented religious change for political gain rather than personal gain
How did Northumberland establish LJG as next in line to the throne?
Through using Mary’s illegitimacy after Henry’s divorce to Catherine of Aragon as well as laws established by Henry VIII used to break the country away from the Catholic faith
Who was lady jane grey
Henry VIII’s great niece
Who did Northumberland have the support of to establish Lady Jane Grey as the next heir to the throne ?
Edward VI - protestant
Initially the privy council
What did Mary do when she heard of Edward’s illness?
Started travelling towards Greenwich to see her dying brother.
However, when she learnt of Northumberland’s plans to arrest her she fled to East Anglia
What was Northumberland’s plans for when Mary was to visit Edward?
To arrest her with the goal to prevent her gaining support for her claim to the English throne
Where did Mary flee to when she heard of Northumberland’s plans to arrest her?
East Anglia
Why was Northumberland unpopular in East Anglia?
Led the royal army in 1549 and dispersed rebels involved in the Kett rebellion
Why did Mary have lots of support for her succession?
People respected her claim to the throne and believed she had the right to the throne by God’s choice
When did Edward die?
6th July 1553
Why was Edward’s sudden death a problem for Northumberland?
He hadn’t had time to prepare for Lady Jane Grey’s succession
What did Northumberland do immediately after Edward’s death
quickly acted and sent troops to East Anglia - extremely risky (he was hated here)
How did Northumberland lose support whilst in East Anglia?
- Many supported and respected Mary’s legal right to the English throne, saw her as God’s rightful choice of ruler
- Many troops Northumberland had brought to East Anglia ended up switching sides
- Whilst Northumberland had left London (the heart of government) the privy council had switched sides and expressed their respect for Mary as the rightful ruler of England
Why had the privy council initially supported Northumberland’s desire?
It had been Edward VI’s wishes
When was Mary declared queen?
19th July 1553
What was Lady Jane Grey known as?
The 9 day queen
How did Mary treat her pretenders at the start of the reign?
Executed Northumberland
Respected LJG’s lack of involvement in Northumberland’s actions so spared her life (she was later executed after her father’s involvement in Wyatt rebellion, also because Mary saw her as a slight hope for protestants)
What did Mary interpret her popularity at her succession to be to do with?
People rejoicing and welcoming the return of Catholicism
Why did Mary actually have support at her succession?
To do with opposition of LJG and Northumberland and people respected her as God’s rightful choice of ruler
What did Mary fail to understand?
The extent the Edwardian reformation had gone to.
She believed protestantism lacked the deep historic roots in English culture that Catholicism had to be permanent
2 reasons Mary was hated throughout her reign
- Failed to understand a slow, moderate religious reform was needed - protestantism successfully implemented during E’s reign
- Marriage to foreigner Phillip of Spain
What was Mary’s main aim
To reinstate the catholic doctrine as the basis for the faith of the English church
when did parliament first meet?
October 1553
What act did parliament pass in Oct 1553?
first act of repeal
What did the first act of repeal involve?
Reversed all protestant reform policies implemented during Edward’s reign.
English church had been restored to how it had been under the act of 6 articles at the end of Henry’s reign
What did Mary’s advisors recommend after the first act of repeal?
Advised for Mary not to be to ambitious in fear of protestant radicals rebelling - they recognised a slow, cautious religious reformation would be needed
Key event of 1554
November 1554 - return of Catholic exile Cardinal Pole who had lived in Catholic Europe for most of Edward’s reign.
Made Mary feel more secure and increased her confidence in putting forward a second act of repeal
When was the second act of repeal passed?
January 1555
What did the second act of repeal involve?
Reversing all religious reformation from 1529. This included the act of supremacy of 1534. The pope had been re-established as supreme head of the church.
When were Heresy laws reinstated?
February 1555
What did the heresy laws of February 1555 state?
Stated there would be serious punishments if people refused to accept Catholicism.
Used Heresy laws to burn protestant heretics at the stake
How did Mary attempt to re-establish relations between England and the Catholic faith?
Through prioritising improving the education of priests
Through distributing the new prayer book and the bible
How did Mary remove protestant influences in the church?
Through arresting Protestant leading churchmen including Archbishop Cranmer
Within a year of her reign all protestant influences had been stripped from the clergy
Where did Mary burn protestants?
In their local communities - she did this as a warning to others
What did Mary claim the purpose of burning protestants was?
To ‘cleanse’ the country of protestantism
How many protestant heretics did Mary burn through her reign?
At least 300
When was Thomas Cranmer burnt at the stake?
1554
Why shouldn’t Thomas Cranmer have been killed?
He had agreed to recant his protestant beliefs
Real reasons Mary probably killed Cranmer
He had been the man to grant Henry VIII the divorce from her mother, Catherine of Aragon.
He had been involved in claiming Mary’s illegitimacy.
He was also a centre influence for the protestant reformation during Edward’s reign
Where was Thomas Cranmer burnt?
centre of Oxford
Alternative cause of the burnings?
Rather than scaring people into being catholic, could be argued popularity of Protestantism increased - people started question what was so special about protestantism that people were willing to die for it
At what age did Mary inherit the throne? and why was this a concern?
37
She would have a short reign - needed an heir so Catholicism survived beyond her reign and her protestant half-sister Elizabeth didn’t inherit the throne
Why was marrying a priority for Mary?
Needed to produce an heir for the survival of the catholic religion so her protestant sister Elizabeth didn’t inherit the throne
How did Mary go about planning a marriage?
Her mother was Catherine of Aragon - she had many close, Spanish relatives. Without consulting the privy council, she organised with Simon Renard an imperial ambassador that she would marry the Spanish heir to the throne, Phillip of Spain
Who was Simon Renard?
An imperial ambassador
Opposition to Mary’s marriage?
Privy council - feared the reaction of France
Phillip was Catholic, protestants feared Phillip would aid Mary in her complete protestant reformation of England
Many feared a Spanish government, as well as this because Phillip was the heir to the Spanish throne many feared the needs of the Spanish would now be prioritised over English needs
When did Mary marry Phillip?
July 1554
How did Mary limit Phillip’s power in England?
Gave Phillip the title of King but not the powers associated with being King
Phillip also did not have any claim to the English throne in the event of Mary’s death
How was Mary more committed to the marriage than Phillip?
More for political benefit of Spain - English army aided the war against France in 1547
Once Phillip inherited the title of King of Spain in 1546 he visited Mary just once over the year
When was the Wyatt rebellion?
February 1554 - when stirrings of Mary’s marriage to Phillip first arised
who was the leader of the Wyatt rebellion?
Thomas Wyatt a member of the gentry in Kent
Main causes of the Wyatt rebellion?
Anti-Catholic
Anti-Spanish
Subsidiary causes of the rebellion
Economic reasons - rebellion started in Kent, Kent had experienced a huge decline in the cloth industry resulting in economic hardships
Goals of the rebels in the Wyatt rebellion
To overthrow Mary and replace her with Edward Courtenay. Edward Courtenay would marry princess to strengthen his claim to the throne
Why did the Wyatt rebellion fail?
Government spies were aware of the stirrings of the rebellion extremely early on
Edward Courtenay ended up confessing resulting in the rebellion having to take place earlier than planned
Only 1 of the 4 planned uprisings actually happened as they had all failed to gain support.
Which of the 4 uprisings actually happened -
The uprising led by Wyatt in Kent he had managed to raise an army of 3000 - they marched to London
Why did Wyatt have to surrender?
He marched to London with an army of 3000 however when he reached London he failed to gain support and the rebellion collapsed within a week
How long did it take for the rebellion to collapse?
a week
Where were the 4 rebellions planned?
Kent, Devon, Leicestershire, Welsh border
How thicc was the army that Wyatt raised?
3000
Evidence Wyatt rebellion was threatening
Rebels reached London
Goal to overthrow Mary with Edward Courtenay, who would marry Elizabeth
International involvement - French would protect the English border so the hapsburgs could not help Mary
How did the Wyatt rebellion have international involvement?
French would blockade the English border and prevent the Hapsburgs from helping Mary
Evidence the Wyatt rebellion wasn’t a serious threat
Lasted a week - Western had lasted 6
Only 1 out of 4 uprisings actually happened
Government spies aware of uprisings
Only involved 3000 rebels - Kett had involved 16,000
Mary’s foreign policy
Pressure from Phillip to declare war on France
Spain and England invaded France in 1547 and were victorious at the battle of Saint Quentin
France had recovered within a year and seized Calais from English possession. Spain were too financially drained to assist England
When did England declare war on France?
1547
What battle were Spain and England victorious at?
The battle of Saint Quentin
Why was the loss of Calais humiliating for England?
The last English possession of land that belonged to the medieval empire involving England and half of France
When were the bad harvests ?
1555-57
When was the plague?
1556
