Tudor- Local government Flashcards
1513 subsidy
tax was based on wealth to make the system more fair and to raise taxation to therefore enhance royal control- in place by wolsey- local officials and JPs had to assess everyones wealth, whilst there was a seperate assessment for the nobility- people were popular with this new tax system. It was a much more flexible system than the fithteenths and tenths, showing its sucess by raising money that could go towards military and war effort. people were less likely to rebel as they saw it as a much fairer system. However this deveopment did not fully continue being successful in liz’s reign- due to the increased request for subsidies. This system allowed the local government to have control over knowing the wealth of every individual + ensuring they were contributing in balance to how much they were earning. They would gain more military investments and can prepare for any potential rebellions- even tho this system altogether would decrease chance of rebellion, especially from those in lower classes,
the re-establishment of the north
cromwell wanted to ensure all local order in the north, especially as it was bordering with scotland. Therefore, the north became a developed body which could oversee the administrations of the north, control border raids and manage local order of hearing court cases. This meant the north became much more stable and was less likely to pose a threat to the government however this wasnt the case in 1569(revolt of the northern earls) They attempted to re-establish the north by putting southenors into key positions which therefore made it more fair, as they had no interest into trying to change things for personal authority- no biase.
role of the JPS
maintained all local order and control in society- having more fulfilling role and became a main part of local gov- arresting and fining people in society- henry vii used them carefully- because of him being a usurper- he needed a lot of control and maintenance in society in case and chance of any rebellions, eg by maintaining order of bridges and roads, royal control in edwards era- able to issue alehouses through the JPS+ they had to issue the second prayer book. they would issue all new developments in the local gov like new acts for the poor or the 1513 subsidy. By 1603 there was 309 acts of parliments introduced for JPS- as well as increased number of them emphasising their importance. during henry viii reign, wolsey was keen to improve local justice of the JPS.- for example he asked them to fill out a questionaire about the local order of their region. cromwell and wolsey became more careful of who was appointed as a JP- expecting them to follow the issues at current time with supremacy and reform. mary- during her reign a lot of the catholic JPS were replaced with protestant ones in order to reduce the chance of them going against her
Laws in Wales Acts
able to introduce a more english style government into wales, especially due to the increased amount of crime taking place there- local order was needed, they done this through court by banning the welsh language, and introducing english titles like sheriifs, and they had 12 english style counties replace the principliity of wales, another law was made for wales, to continue after the fall in cromwell in 1542 making the council a more formal body
increased borough representation in the commons
boroughs were allowed to send two MPs to sit in parliament but during the tudor period the number of these boroughs increased considerably which then meant there was an increase in the house of commons, people were encouraged by the towns to become members because it meant that the interests of their community could be expressed, eg by enforcing new laws or petitions, for example in edwards reign- acts were passed to reduce the woodland areas from being chopped down. However, most MPS were not proper townsmen and instead were mainly members of the gentry and didnt live in the town they were meant to represent, it was often financially sensible to have a member of the gentry as a MP-
poverty in tudor period
an increasing issue was poverty as the population was increasing as well meaning there was associated issues with unemployment and vagabondage. As a result, this meant that there was more pressure on resources like food to be produced. Farmers and merchants would use this to their advantage by increasing their prices for their goods. Sometimes there was issues with bad harvests meaning there was less crop yield and therefore even less grain leaving people without food. It also led to vagrancy and begging, which became an issue in the period. It just became assumed that these people were too lazy to work and so punishments were used as a result. These punishments would include whipping and the most severe of having a V labelled on your chest or being forced to work as a slave, however this act became too serious to enforce.
statute of artificers 1563
elizabeth had inherited a country that was in a social and economic crisis. The government made an attempt through the statue of artificers to produce a legislation that would tackle unemployment, trying to have a hollistic approach that would deal with all the problems together. This put even more roles on the JPS due to how they had to enforce it with different aims. These included a 7 year apprenticeship for skilled workmen, all unmarried people being compelled to work if they were able and ensuring that at harvest time all people were available to grow as much crops as possible with fixed hours. However, the government assumed that people would easily be able to find work which wasnt the case. This new legislation did succeed in replacing many of the earlier attempts at reducing social and economic problems.
act for the relief of the poor (1598)
This act was emphasised by the JPS in order to make payments towards the poor compulsory, which was changing the nature of the poor so that people contributed to help them, instead of seeing them as lazy. If their compulsory payment is not paid, they will receive a punishment. Significantly, this act was passed through private bill, which meant only one individual would have put it forward, showing how much support was given towards it as normally these are not recognised. This law was also combined with other laws like Vagabonds Act where vagrants were to be rid of. The Act enhanced royal control because it was the first for contributions to be compulsory, meaning there was an increase of payments coming in. The government received these payments and then were able to gain royal control over the poor parts of society, who would be less likely to rebel as they felt more appreciated. However, other members of society may have felt differently about those who were poor, believing they work for their money and may start hate against the local government and their actions, perhaps targeting the JPS who collected these payments- there would have been a lot of reluctancy.
patronage and royal progress
Patronage was a reward that the monarch gave out, whilst royal progress was a journey that the monarch took to enhance their own control around England. People usually gained more support if they saw their monarch in person, as they would have not seen their face before. With patronage, henry vii compared a lot to Henry viii as he was very careful with his money and who to reward or trust, especially after events earlier into his reign. Meanwhile, Henry viii was very generous with his grants, rewarding a lot of his friends who worked very closely with him- eg groom of the stool, with this patronage they would be able to grow their income and power. Patronage meant they could be rewarded money, lands and titles ( use of three), For example, charles Brandon was a close friend of his and he gave him the title of Duke or Suffolk as well as granting him estates in east anglia. This would extend control in localities, as Hnery knew people he trusted were owning different areas of england and would be loyal to him. This was a massive risk though, as it could have easily weakened royal control of localities if people used their position to rise up to higher areas of government. When handled badly, patronage could lead to political instability and jealousy. This would have been the case for Edward, as he was too young and therefore people could have easily used their positions to become wealthier and grow their control. Elizabeth went on to use a complex system of patronage and networks to grow the localities closer together. - eg close relationship of william cecil with liz meant that he grew patronage- was a liked individual( usually those that flirted with her). another example is robert dudley who became the Master of the Horse( riding beside her when travelling). This gain of patronage started to breakdown in the 1590s as her most trusted councillors had died with Cecil ageing. Royal progresses would also be used to enhance respect which would create my local control. The physical presence of their leader would remind them of their obdience to the monarch. They were able to have personal contact with the local communities- henry moved around constantly( going to the north where he faced most resistance from yorkist symapthisers), Henry viii wouldnt usually move as much but did visit his royal palaces. The reigns of edward and mary saw even fewer patronages as of their youth and was then brought back to its height for Elizabeth. She would do this as a tactic to save money, as when on these trips other people would serve for her, as people loved the honour of paying for her privilege of being there,
literacy of the yeomen
literacy rates increased in tudor period with more opportunities to attend education. For example, public grammer schools were free and therefore open to all boys from different backgrounds. The yeomen class in particular benefited from this. This was measured by how much people could sign their own names in church. in 1550 the rates were at 80% and by 1600 they were at 72% for illiteracy of women. This can enhance local control as there was a changing role of this social group, with less members of the yeomen class rebelling. For example, after the revolt of the northern earls there was no more serious rebellions due to this social stability, as most economic rebellions would be led by the poorest in society.
