Tactics Flashcards
What were the Tudor government’s main weapons and why?
Their claim to be legitimate rulers and the fact that they derived their authority from God
Anyone who fought against them would be condemned as a sinner
What did the governments stress the need for?
Upholding order, using a range of tactics to persuade rebels to disperse
What did governments seek to do?
Buy time until they had enough troops to call the rebels’ bluff
What did governments want to do and why?
Avoid violent confrontations
The outcome was uncertain and they were always expensive
What was common, what was the effect, and give examples:
For pardons to be offered to rebels if they would first disperse
Weakened the morale of some rebels and reduced their numbers
Rebels at Stoke, Blackheath, Clyst St Mary, and Dussindale were offered a pardon on the eve of the battle. A royal herald in 1554 gave Wyatt’s rebels a chance to go home
Why did most governments see no mileage in negotiating with rebels?
It was a sign of weakness and would only serve to encourage rebel leaders
What did confrontations have to be?
Skilfully handled
What did Wolsey receive in April 1525 and what did he do?
A report that several people were refusing to pay the Amicable Grant
Told the Lord Mayor of London, Sir William Bailey, ‘beware and resist not’ and threatened Lord Lisle with execution if he failed to collect taxes
What did Wolsey advise when the Duke of Suffolk reported that protestors were becoming more vociferous?
Wolsey advised stiff retribution and accused the duke of being oversensitive
What happened on 25 April 1525?
Henry informed the Lord Mayor and aldermen that the Amicable Grant would be halved
None of the commissioners outside London was informed
Reports of hundreds of protestors gathering and 4000 protestors gathered at Lavenham
How did Norfolk and Suffolk deal with the rebellion in 1525?
Suffolk’s army of retainers was much smaller than the rebels’ forces and was unsure of the reliability of his men
Suffolk waited for Norfolk
Suffolk destroyed bridges
Heard a deputation of 60 rebels, warned them of the consequences, and persuaded them to submit
How did Henry VIII and Cromwell deal with POG at first?
Allowed Norfolk to negotiate with the rebels
Norfolk’s and Shrewsbury’s 8000 troops dwarfed by 30,000 rebels
Norfolk decided to arrange a truce with the gentry, promise whatever was needed to disperse their army, and pacify the disaffected rebels
What did Henry VIII favour but what happened?
A military solution but bowed to Norfolk’s more diplomatic approach
Norfolk assured Henry that ‘whatsoever promise I shall make unto the rebels for surely I shall observe no part thereof for any respect of that other might call mine honour’
What happened on 27 October 1936?
Norfolk talked only to the gentry and nobles
Darcy reflected how the commons feared they might be betrayed ‘because we tarried a while about the entreaty’
Norfolk stemmed the advancing rebels, separated the rank and file from the leaders, and escorted four of them to Windsor
What was Henry VIII’s tactic now?
Stand firm
Refused to discuss their petition, rejected pleas to reverse his policies and told them to go away and clarify their grievances
Where were the representatives kept and what did this result in?
Waiting in London for over three weeks
The commons suspecting they might not return
What happened on 6 December 1536?
A meeting between pilgrims and Norfolk took place when the duke promised that a parliament would resolve the issues behind the rebellion, there would be no monastic suppressions, and the rebels would receive a pardon
What did Henry VII spend the next month doing?
Gathering information, interviewing the gentry and nobles involved in the uprising, and deciding what to do about the north
What was the Duke of Somerset’s response to the news that Exeter was under attack?
Sent a series of letters to the camp urging them to desist, offering them a pardon if they did, and threatening dire punishment if they did not
What were the proclamations on 11 July, 12 July, and 16 July?
Threatened to forfeit their land and property to create terror and division
Pardoned any guilty of riotous assembly if they made a humble submission
Pardoned submissive rioters but future offenders were threatened with martial law
What did Somerset’s fellow councillors do?
William Paget criticised his leniency in promising to listen to the rebels’ grievances
Herbert and Wariwck favoured swift repression
Pressed him to send troops to Devon and Norfolk
How was propaganda used in response to the POG?
Richard Morrison declared that ‘obedience is the badge of a Christian man’
Henry rejected the Lincoln rebels’ petition, ordered them to disperse, said that the rebels were ‘one of the most brute and beastly of the whole realm’, and warned that Suffolk was gathering a 100,0000-strong army
Henry condemned disobedience, asking ‘when every man will rule, who shall obey’ in his Remedy for Sedition
Little impact
What did Thomas Cranmer do in 1529?
Attacked the Western rebels’ religious ignorance and brazen effontery
Said that the rebels ‘be taught to speak and yet understood not one world what they say’
What was Philip Nichols commissioned to do in 1549?
Write a lengthy criticism of the rebel articles, which he condemned on moral and religious grounds
What was one of the most skilful pieces of propaganda in 1549?
John Cheke’s The Hurt of Sedition
Commended the citizens of Exeter for holding out against the assault
Said that the people of Norwich were censured, and their behaviour ‘white livered’
Why did the writing of polemics have a limited impact?
Few could read and rebels were not interested in lessons on morality
Court propaganda did more to buttress the morale of the rebels
How was propaganda also used?
Speeches and sermons were used to persuade the rebels to disperse
How was propaganda used in 1549?
Russell took with him a handful of preachers whom Somerset advised should proclaim the Gospel
Preachers were sent to Mousehold Heath and Matthew Parker narrowly escaped being captured
What pre-emptive measure was taken by Henry VII in 1487 and 1497 and what was the response?
He produced a papal condemnation on the eve of the Battle of Stoke and at Blackheath
Many rebels surrendered rather than risk eternal damnation
What happened at Easter 1487?
The real Earl of Warwick was paraded to convince people that Simnel was an impostor
A proclamation ordered all rumour-mongers to be pillorised
Elizabeth Woodville was confined to a nunnery
What foreign measures were taken by Henry VII to combat the threat of Warbeck?
Pressure was put on diplomats to deny Warbeck political support
What domestic measures were taken by Henry VII to combat the threat of Warbeck?
In 1493 he informed troublemakers that there was no future in supporting Warbeck
15 counties were under suspicion and investigated
Henry deprived Desmond of his office of Constable of Limerick Castle in 1494
14 nobles and gentry were attainted and four executed
What happened in 1495?
Henry VII’s men were waiting when Warbeck tried to land in England
51 were caught and hanged, and 150 put on trial
What did Mary I’s council do when they heard whispers that there was a conspiracy in 1553?
The council interrogated Sir Edward Courtenay and identified Carew, Suffolk, Croft, and Wyatt as the main leaders
Circular letters were sent to counties
What did local authorities do in January 1554?
The sheriff of Devon garrisoned Exeter, which led to Carew fleeing to France
The Earl of Huntingdon searched for Suffolk in the midlands, which discouraged others from joining him; and Croft lost his nerve and disappeared into north Wales
What did Elizabeth I do when she heard of the northern earls’ conspiracy?
Norfolk was denied permission to marry and nobles such as Arundel, Pembroke, Lumley, and Leicester all disassociated themselves from the plot
What happened in November 1569?
Norfolk sent a letter to the Earl of Westmorland, forbidding him from starting a revolt in his name
What happened when Elizabeth I was made aware of the revolt?
Mary was moved 30 miles south to a new location near Coventry
The President of the Council of the North, Sussex was ordered to suppress the rising
What tactics were used in Ireland?
Rebels were offered pardons and promises
Rival clan chiefs were encouraged to assist the Crown through offers of reward
Steps were taken to raise a sufficiently large loyalist army
What contributed to the government’s difficulties in dealing with rebellions in Ireland?
Marshy terrain
Poor communications
Problems in recruiting troops
The increasing hostility of native Irish towards the English
What did rebellions in Ireland have to be treated like?
Wars of attrition that could last for several years and end without a satisfactory outcome
Why were orders to raise troops delayed and give an example:
Paying troops were expensive and if the men were not paid they could become threats
Somerset in 1549 faced the prospect of having to suppress rebellions in England as well as waging war against Scotland
What did Somerset have to do, what did this explain, and why?
Deploy his troops prudently
Why major rebellions took so long to suppress and why he employed foreign
The treasury was short of money, Somerset was short of soldiers, and he was more concerned about disturbances closer to London
What did the government rely on and what was the problem?
The nobility and gentry provided retainers for their army
If any noble put his men in armour and prepared to fight without receiving a royal commission, he knew he was committing treason
What dilemma did Henry VIII’s commanders face in 1536?
The Earl of Shrewsbury mustered troops in anticipation
The Earl of Huntingdon preferred to wait for official authorisation
What mistake did Henry VIII make during the POG?
Underestimated the size of the rebel host in comparison with the small number of loyalist troops available to his commanders
Bragged that 40,000 would soon arrive when in practice Suffolk had half this number
Why was Henry VI fortunate during the Simnel rebellion?
He set up command in Warwickshire and could deal with an invasion or quickly return to London
Raised money to pay for retainers, urged nobles to muster as many men as possible, and sifted intelligence reports
Had a number of nobles and their retainers numbering 15,000
Why was Henry VIII caught by surprise by the POG?
Had told Suffolk to scale down his military operations
Had cancelled plans for royal troops to assemble in Bedfordshire
Why was Henry VI less fortunate during the Cornish rebellion?
Daubeny was unable to prevent the Cornish rebels from reaching Blackheath because he had insufficient men, and held back until he was joined by other men
What was Henry VIII made aware of?
That further results had broken out in Richmond and Lancashire
That many gentry had defected to the rebels or gone into biding
What happened after 13 October 1936?
Letters were issued commissioning nobles to raise armies
The Duke of Norfolk was told to take as many man as he could, join the Earl of Shrewsbury, and hold a line of the River Trent
What problems did Henry VIII have during the POG?
Didn’t know who to trust
Had his doubts about the Earl of Derby
More than two weeks passed before Norfolk and Shrewsbury had enough troops to advance
In 1549 what problems did Lord Russell have?
Had 300 men and the rebels had 6000
Managed to raise 2000 soldiers but since most of the gentry were unwilling to volunteer their services, all he could do was wait for reinforcements and hope that Exeter could hold out
How long did Russell have to wait and what happened at the end of July 1549?
5 weeks
Wilton appeared with 400 English troops and some mercenaries
Only then was Russell prepared to risk a battle
