Parliament Flashcards
What was Parliament not and why?
An integral part of the Tudor administration
It met infrequently and only when the monarch commanded
How many sessions were held during Henry VII’s reign and Elizabeth’s reign?
7
13
What was its main purpose?
To vote on the Crown financial grants and discuss bills that royal councillors and MPs had proposed
What did Tudors recognise?
That parliament could be a useful tool in preventing disorder and in dealing with rebels and conspirators who threatened the stability of the country
What did the House of Lords act as and give examples:
A court of law
Hussey and Darcy, Suffolk, Dacre, Northumberland, and Essex were all tried and convicted
What was Parliament also used to do?
Bills of attainder
What suggests that it didn’t serve the Crown to be overly oppressive?
Much of the resentment felt by nobles and gentry towards Henry VII may have been due to the way he treated them
What did Henry VII make clear his intention to do and what Acts confirm the king’s support?
Clamp down on illegal retaining
The Star Chamber Act, Act of Livery and Maintenance, and Subsequent Statute of Liveries
What did the De Facto Act of 1495 intend to do?
Draw a line under past indiscretions and acts of disobedience committed by Yorkists against the Crown
What did Henry VIII and Cromwell do in the 1530s?
Implemented religious and political reforms through parliament, which ensured minimal resistance and considerable support
What went a long way towards retaining the support of MPs and peers and why?
The dissolution and the disposal of monastic land
Many were beneficiaries
What did the Reformation parliament of 1529-36 mark and what happened after?
A watershed in the history of English parliaments
Changes to existing religious laws had first to be approved by parliament
What did Edward, Mary, and Elizabeth understand and why?
The political value of having MPs endorse proposed changes
These were the men who in the past might have led protests against undesirable reforms
What happened after 1536?
MPs and the gentry they represented stood behind the government and suppressed any extra-parliamentary disturbances
What did the HoC provide in the 1550s?
A forum where the grievances and concerns of the gentry and nobility could be repressed
What was evident in Elizabeth’s reign and what suggests this?
The growing support from MPs to the Crown
Every parliament called on to vote subsidies did so
In 1571 and 1581 what did MPs do?
Legislated to protect the queen and country from Catholic plots and from Jesuits
What reflected the increasing patriotic fervour among MPs?
The Act to retain the Queen Majesty; ‘s subjects in their due obedience (1581)
The Act for the Queen’s Safety (1584)
What happened during Elizabeth’s reign?
Many gentry wanted to become an MP
Pressure to create more seats grew, and the Crown established 62 between 1558 and 1603
What were MPs concerned about and what did they see parliament as?
Economic and social issues that affected their boroughs
A way of tackling these problems and preventing rebellion
What happened with the 1563 Statute of Artificers?
Privy councillors proposed the bill to establish seven-year apprenticeships but it was MPs who extended the bill to include the urban economy
What did the Elizabethan poor laws owe much to?
The initiative of MPs
What did parliament prove?
A valuable ally and sounding board for the political nation
