Second/ Third Parliaments

Question 1

What was Gardiner’s intention for the Second Parliament?

Answer 1

• intended to be used by Gardiner to pursue a religious policy which would bring England back to Rome through parliamentary legislation

Question 2

What were the bills that Gardiner intended to pass?

Answer 2

• bill to revive statutes against Lollards and Heretics
• bill to revive the Act of Six Articles
• bill restricting the eating of meat on Holy days
• bill which prevented the Pope from reclaiming abbey lands (this was introduced as a conciliatory bill as Paget’s supporters in the House of Lords were alarmed by Gardiner’s proposal to suppress Mary’s title ‘Supreme Head’ as they feared Rome would reclaim the monastic lands)

Question 3

By 1st May - what point had all the bills reached? What else happened?

Answer 3

• had all passed their third readings in the Commons
• additional bill added to restore the Bishopric of Durham
• all passed to Upper House for approval

Question 4

To the anger of Mary, Gardiner and Renard, what was the only bill to granted approval of the House of Lords? What then happened?

Answer 4

• restoration of the bishopric of Durham

- Parliament was prorogued and Paget fell

Question 5

Although it is difficult to say for definite, what are the possible reasons for the failures?

Answer 5

• influence of Paget (he was very well regarded as having been in the PC of both previous monarchs)
• members of the House of Lords had benefited from acquisition of property and any attempt to restore property to Pope was likely to be frustrated/ be seen as the first stage of a return to Rome

Question 6

Who was pushing for the swift acceptance of a return to Papal authority? Why?

Answer 6

• Philip

- was unprepared to be the king of a schismatic country

Question 7

Pope Julius believed Cardinal Pole was the obvious person to send to England to help Mary. What was the issue?

Answer 7

• he didn’t arrive until November 1554 (meaning Mary was ruling without an AB of Canterbury for a long time)

Question 8

What did the Third Parliament do?

Answer 8

• restored the religious legislation which had been in use in 1529
• England was welcomed back into Christendom

Question 9

How did the Third Parliament restore the religious legislation which had been in use in 1529?

Answer 9

• through a Statute of Repeal (passed only after it was agreed that the monastic lands would not be restored to the Church)

Question 10

What did Mary do with the monastic lands belonging to the Crown?

Answer 10

• she returned them to the Church (which were worth £60,000 a year) to provide for the re-creation of the Abby in Westminster

Question 11

What did the Statue of Repeal do for the Royal Supremacy?

Answer 11

• it ended it and England was returned to Papal Authority

Question 12

However, in achieving the Statute of Repeal via Parliament, what did Mary accept?

Answer 12

• that Parliament had some authority over matters of religion which was established by Reformation Parliament, before the break the Pope had sole authority over religion