The Political Nation and the social basis of power Flashcards
What does the term Political Nation refer to?
Those people in early modern Britain who had economic, political and social influence.
Who was the head of the Political Nation?
The monarch.
The monarch’s prerogative gave them powers over the following key areas…
- foreign diplomacy, as Head of State
- declaration of war, as commander-in-chief of the military
- legislation, through the right to call and dissolve Parliament
- religion, as supreme Governor (head) of the Church of England
The characters and personalities of each monarch did much to…
shape the period and the monarch’s relationship with the rest of the Political Nation, particularly through the institution of Parliament
1603- Elizabeth I, died childless…
James succeeded to the English throne as King James I
As a successful ruler, James I…
was pragmatic and practical enough to realise that he needed to work with Parliament. He did, however, dissolve Parliament several time in frustration during his reign
Charles I was the younger son of James. Charles became heir to the throne when he was 11 due to the death of his older brother Henry (aged 18). Charles was temperamentally…
unsuited to kingship and was unprepared for the role. He did not get along with Parliament
Finances lay at the root of the monarch’s power, and the limits on the monarchs’ income prevented them from becoming truly absolutist. A century of inflation, or a general rise in prices, meant that…
English monarchs increasingly found that their income could not meet their expenses, especially in relation to foreign policies such as warfare and international diplomacy
Substantial funds could only be raised through…
parliamentary subsidies
Parliament was normally reluctant to vote for subsidies because…
the money would have to be raised by the taxing of the Political Nation
Members of Parliament tended to only represent only the concerns of the voters who selected them e.g. the landed aristocracy and gentry, as well as wealthy lawyers and merchants. This was because…
only the wealthy had to pay a parliamentary subsidy as they had a vested interest in not granting subsidies to the monarch
The limited availability of parliamentary subsidies therefore…
forced monarchs to exploit their prerogative income, which was money received due to their position as monarch
Define Crown lands
The crown had sold much land or rented it out on long leases at a fixed rent, thus their income was reduced because they couldn’t update rents in line with inflation
Define Custom duties
Taxes from goods imported into the country. The crown could also temporarily sell the right to collect such taxes to raise funds quickly
Define Feudal dues
The crown had the right to control an estate that was inherited, by ancient right, by an heir under the age of 21
Define Parliamentary subsidy
Funds approved by Parliament for emergencies such as war
Prerogative income also raised concerns in Parliament because…
if a monarch became financially self-sufficient, then that monarch could establish themselves as absolute, meaning they did not need Parliament at all.
Parliament’s control of significant financial resources was the key limit on…
the development of an absolute monarchy in England
Another limit on the development of absolutism was that…
the monarch needed the Political Nation to help control the general population
The monarch relied on members of the Political Nation to ensure that…
both central and local government could function. E.G: the monarch relied on the Justices of the Peace, who were chosen from ranks of gentry and nobility, to enforce the Crown’s will in the localities
Holding office in the name of the Crown gave members of the Political Nation…
status and further contributed to their power
The disadvantage of the unwritten constitution was that…
it was open to interpretation, but this was also its advantage. In a society that valued consensus, the ability to interpret the constitution in different ways enabled compromise
The Political Nation covered a range of social groups:
- the aristocracy
- the lesser gentry whose status was based on land ownership
- newer groups, including lawyers and merchants, whose wealth was based on income not derived from land ownership. Some historians refer to this group as pseudo-gentry because of the non-land based nature of their wealth
The 17th Century Political Nation didn’t essentially have a real police or army however…
its dominance was generally accepted by those beneath them in the social hierarchy. This remained the case even in the face of enormous pressure resulting from a sharp increase in population.
