TUDORS- breadth unit 1, government and administration, CHANGES TO GOVERNANCE AT THE CENTRE

Question 1

What was a Tudor monarch’s duty?

Answer 1

-It was believed that the monarchy was instituted by god (The king was believed to be chosen as the divine ruler by god and he ruled ‘by grace of god’)

-His duties were threefold: to keep the peace and defend the realm; to maintain the law and administer justice impartially; and to uphold the church, especially against heresy.

-embodiment of the cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, temperance and fortitude.

Question 2

What was the order of social hierarchy in Tudor society?

Answer 2

God, The monarch, The nobility, The gentry, Yeomen and artisans, peasants, vagrants and beggars

Question 3

Who is part of the nobility

Answer 3

Dukes, earls, viscounts, barons, lords

Question 4

who was part of the gentry

Answer 4

Knights, esquires

Question 5

Who posed the greatest threat to Tudor society?

Answer 5

Vagrants and Beggars

Question 6

What are the five aims of the government?

Answer 6

-The salvation of the souls of English men and women, ensured by the church’s teachings of the right doctrine and by bringing sacraments to the people

-To defend the rights and maintain the status of the crown

-To keep peace within the realm (including the discovery and defusing of the potential and suppression of rebellions and the maintenance of the general support of the ‘political nation’.

-To defend the realm against real or potential invasions of foreign powers

-To raise enough money to enforce these considered aims (e.g confiscating lands of monasteries under henry viii)

-‘paternal interest’ in the welfare of poorer sections of society

Question 7

In what way was the monarchy limited?

Answer 7

-Tudor monarchy was limited because it was accepted that the monarch was not only subject to God but the law. (monarch was inferior to the law)

Question 8

What factors impeded or strengthened a monarchs ability to rule?

Answer 8

-Age (Edward was impeded by this despite his intelligence and educated protestant views)

-Sex

-Personality

-Education (influences political abilities, impeded Mary I)

-Health

Question 9

Outline the physical structure of the court layout

Answer 9

-Divided into three compartments, the household, Chamber and New privy chamber (the traditional two were the Household and the Chamber).

Question 10

What is the difference between a distant and participative monarch?

Answer 10

-Distant monarchs (like Henry VII and Elizabeth I) strictly limited access to the privy chambers
-However, participative monarchs (e.g Henry VIII) allowed much freer entry.

Question 11

What is the political nation?

Answer 11

-The political nation were men who at any time took an informed interest in the government of the realm

Question 12

what was the structure and function of the privy chamber under Henry Vii.

Answer 12

*Henry VII increasingly feared betrayal from those he trusted, the chamber was used to restrict access to the monarch

*Henry created the Yeomen of the guard- who acted as his personal bodyguards and guarded the entrance of his private rooms

*Due to his distrust, he used the chamber to store and collect royal income (which he monitored personally)

Question 13

why did Henry Vii’s chamber finance system lapse?

Answer 13

Tudor monarchs didn’t have the time or inclination to follow this system

Question 14

what were the advantages and disadvantages of Henry Vii’s chamber finance system?

Answer 14

*Advantage to this system of chamber finance: Henry always had access to ready money

*Disadvantage to thus system of chamber finance: The system was reliant on the monarchs ability and interest in controlling the royal income

Question 15

what was the function of the privy chamber under Henry Viii?

Answer 15

*Under Henry VIII the privy chamber became an important political hub

*Role of staff- not just servants, they were his ADVISORS. Due to the intimate contact they had with Henry Viii they were employed in formal areas of the government

*From 1520-1525, the gentlemen of the privy chamber were sent on diplomatic missions to France and on a military expedition against the Scots

Question 16

what was the structure of the privy chamber under Henry VIII?

Answer 16

-The chamber had its own staff

*From 1518 these staff were known as The Gentlemen Of The Privy Chamber

*The most important role- The Groom Of The Stool (in charge of the royal commode or toilet)

*The staffs positions were filled by Henry VIII’s most trusted friends (OFTEN FROM NOBILITY/ GENTRY)

Question 17

How did the privy chamber grow in importance in 1540?

Answer 17

*The gentlemen of the privy chamber had access to control of the DRY STAMP. Control of the dry stamp gave its owner enormous power.

*Dry stamp: Henrys aversion to paperwork had lead to the introduction of the dry stamp as a method of putting the kings signature on documents quickly

Question 18

What was the negative impact of the privy chamber gaining access to the dry stamp in 1540?

Answer 18

*In 1540’s the faction led by Edmund Seymour (Earl of Hertford), and John Dudley (Viscount Lisle) gained control of the stamp using members of their faction within the privy chamber (notably Sir Antony)

*Enabled them to make alterations to the kings will in their favour in 1547- increased their power and influence in government.

Question 19

what was the structure and function of the privy chamber under Edward?

Answer 19

-same principles as Henry Viii

*As Edward was so young- access to him as a monarch AND the dry stamp was again controlled through the privy chamber

*Privy chamber was filled with supporters of the Kings protectors (first Seymour, then Dudley)

Duke of somersets brother in law, Sir Michael Stanhope, was made chief gentleman of the privy chamber and groom of the stool. He also controlled to dry stamp but stanhope was never a member of the council

Question 20

what was the structure and function of the privy chamber under Mary I?

Answer 20

-role of privy chamber began to decline under female monarchs

-*As role of the chamber involved close physical contact with ruler, roles were filled by women not men

*However this doesn’t mean that the chamber lost its political role entirely and these women undoubably had influence with the queen

*Mary’s female attendants like FRANCES WALDEGRAVE and FRANCES JERNINGHAM were her former servants who had catholic sympathies
* were married to male members of marys household: EDWARD WALDEGRAVE (the Master of the Great Wadrobe) and HENRY JERNINGHAM (The Captain of The Guard)

*Charles V, Holy roman emperor, wrote to his ambassador Simon Renard to tell him that these women took advantage of their position to gain patronage and favors.

Question 20

who were mary’s female attendants in the privy chamber and who were they married to

Answer 20

FRANCES WALDEGRAVE and FRANCES JERNINGHAM were married to male members of marys household: EDWARD WALDEGRAVE (the Master of the Great Wadrobe) and HENRY JERNINGHAM (The Captain of The Guard)

Question 21

who had control of the dry stamp under Mary I

Answer 21

*Mary took control of the dry stamp and kept it under lock and key

Question 22

what was the structure and function of the privy chamber under Elizabeth I?

Answer 22

-members of the privy chamber were all women

*she appointed wives of her key councillors to her priby chamber (wife of Earl of Leicester)

*DECLINE IN POWER: reforms carried out in 1559 meaning members of her Household were also members of her Council.

*This meant politics and major decisions were made through her Council not informally through the Privy Chamber.

Question 23

what was the role of the royal council

Answer 23

*the royal council was a more formal body which had existed since medieval times to advise the monarch

*the monarch chose who should be in their council (they did not HAVE to take its advice)

*the council helped the monarch with day to day runnings of the country

*it could act as a judicial court when there were high profile legal cases that couldn’t be solved through normal courts of law.

*The council dealt with legal cases relating to the nobility

Question 24

how important was the royal council

Answer 24

*Its political importance varied depending on the ruling style of each monarch

*The role of the royal council did NOT change during this period, but became increasingly formal and professional in its role (especially after 1540)

Question 25

what was the structure of the royal council under Henry Vii?

Answer 25

*Under henry Vii the Royal council was larger and more informal than it was under other monarchs

*Consisted of a mixture of nobility, churchmen, royal officials and lawyers

*had 227 members and people attended infrequently

*He was careful to include men who had served under his Yorkist predecessors ( 22 men who served Edward IV and 20 who had served Richard III)

*These men were crucial in establishing his position on the throne as henry had no experience of government

Question 26

what was the function of the royal council under henry vii

Answer 26

*As henry didn’t hold regular parliaments his councils played an important part in gathering information about popular opinion and the mood of the country.

*They also advised him on the best policies to persue

Question 27

what were great councills under henry VII and how many did he hold

Answer 27

*Great councils were special gatherings of members of the nobility and his councillers.

*These were used to consult nobility on important issues like WAR and TAXATION.

*He held 5 great councils between 1487-1502

*The use of them were tactical to make it seem like he was consulting nobility on his decisions that had already been made (e.g in 1492 when he wanted to end invasion of France he held one and made nobility sign documents)

*Made it harder for nobility to disagree with monarch

Question 28

what was the royal council like under Henry VIII from 1509-1529

Answer 28

-had 120 members until 1536

-the council was left in place by henry VII to help his son govern

-* This council was made up of experienced administrators, including experienced members of the church hierarchy (William Warham, archbishop of Canterbury and Richard Fox, Bishop of Winchester)

Question 29

which administrators did Henry replace with Thomas Wolsey in the royal council and why.

Answer 29

-William Warham, archbishop of Canterbury and Richard Fox, Bishop of Winchester

*Both these church figures supported Henry Vii’s policy of no expensive wars, This was NOT a policy supported by Henry Viii (he was a trained warrior and to prove himself against englands old enemies, France and Scotland)

*Henry replaced Fox and Warham with Thomas Wolsey (who rose to power because e could give henry what he wanted-war)

Question 30

what was Thomas Wolseys role in the government 1509-1529, what happened under his domianance and how was the royal council structured?

Answer 30

*Wolsey’s role was the first of the kings chief ministers and he was responsible for undertaking much of the day to day running of government (which henry had no interest in)

*Under wolseys dominance the council retained its traditional functions and was still a fairly large institution with 40 members (most of them would not attend on a regular basis)

Question 31

how was wolsey planning on changing the royal council and when did he fall from power?

Answer 31

*In 1526 wolsey was planning in the Eltham Ordinances to reduce the council to 20 men who would meet daily (this initially came to nothing but was introduces in 1540 after his fall from power, a council similar to the one he had planned emerged, the privy council)

*Wolsey remained a dominant political influence until 1529, when he fell from power

Question 32

when was the privy council introduced and why

Answer 32

*Privy council emerged in 1540, The role of the council changed considerably and permenantly

*Henry’s reign up until 1540 had been dominated by his two chief ministers, Thomas wolsey and Thomas Cromwell (both from humble backgrounds, their power resented by the nobility)

*After the fall of Cromwell there was a need to restructure henry viii’s government so it could function without Cromwell (Cromwell manipulated his position as secretary to wield power and influence over the king)

Question 33

what was the role of the privy council when founded in 1540 (under Henry VIII)

Answer 33

*The privy council turned itself into ‘the chief minister’- meaning the members of this new council were collectively responsible for the work that was previously preformed by wolsey and Cromwell

*Duke of York (new member of the council) insisted people should write to the privy council as a group, not to an individual

*This meant that there was no singular chief minister

Question 34

what was privy council membership like in 1540 as oppossed to royal council membership

Answer 34

*Membership considerably reduced from 1540 and fixed to include just the most trusted advisors of the monarch (direct contrast to council of Henry VII, that had 227 members and people attended infrequently)

Question 35

what was the role of the privy council under Edward

Answer 35

*the privy council collectively played the role of chief minister under edward

*number of councillors grew under Edward as he was a child (larger council needed to govern the country whilst the king was too young to govern himself)

Question 36

why was the role of the privy council undermined under Edward

Answer 36

*Councils role was undermined when Edward was under the control of his uncle, Edward Seymour (duke of somerset) as Seymour preferred making decisions with men of his own household- e.g Sir John Tyne

*These men were loyal to somerset and were given key roles in the household and chamber which allowed them to influence Edward

Question 37

who did the duke of somerset (edward seymour) make groom of the stool in the privy chamber

Answer 37

-somersets brother in law, Sir Michael Stanhope, was made chief gentleman of the privy chamber and groom of the stool. He also controlled to dry stamp but stanhope was never a member of the council

Question 38

how did the privy council change in 1549

Answer 38

*The council was able to reassert itself- increasing its importance in government in 1549 when Rebellion broke out in the west country and East Anglia led by a member of the council, the earl of Warwick (later the Duke of Northumberland). This attack was on the duke of somerset.

*The duke of Northumberland replaced the duke of somerset as Edwards protector.

*The duke of Northumberland was careful to be seen to govern through the council, reasserting the Privy councils new importance in government since the privy councils reform in 1540.

Question 39

what was the role and structure of the privy council under Mary

Answer 39

*the privy council collectively played the role of chief minister under Mary

*The council was increasingly seen as a body that served the state of England instead of private servants of the monarch

*under Mary’s rule the council’s own seal was introduced, though this did not override the dry stamp.

*under Mary a larger number of men were appointed to the council for inclusivity- but only a small core of this group were active regularly

*Council still under the control of the Monarch. Monarch still took key decisions of policy relating to religion, foreign policy and security of the realm.

Question 40

what was the role and structure of the privy council under Elizabeth

Answer 40

*by the end of Elizabeth’s reign the changes made to the council in 1540 had become more permenant

*membership of the council was narrowed further

*As the government expanded further into the localities the amount of work done by the council increased. Much of this work was day to day administration but the council had to meet increasingly to deal with this.

*The Council was still under the control of the Monarch. Monarch still took key decisions of policy relating to religion, foreign policy and security of the realm.

*William Cecil assumed the role of ‘chief minister’ under Elizabeth and was her secretary but these terms were avoided (power to an individual not the privy council)

Question 41

how often did the privy council meet under Mary in 1555 and who were meetings run by

Answer 41

*council meetings were run by experienced administrators (e.g William Pagnet) and returned to the pattern seen in the 1540’s.

*average attendance to meetings in 1555 was 12 (only 8 councillors attended 50 percent of Mary’s meetings,

Question 42

how often did the privy council meet under Elizabeth

Answer 42

*Elizabeth’s council would meet wherever the queen was staying and when Elizabeth went on her progresses the council would stay with her.

*By the 1590’s the council was meeting almost everyday (from 1520’s-1560’s they met 3-4 times a week)

Question 43

what role did William Cecil assume under Elizabeth

Answer 43

*William Cecil assumed the role of ‘chief minister’ under Elizabeth and was her secretary but these terms were avoided (power to an individual not the privy council)

Question 44

what was the role of the secretary under Henry VII

Answer 44

*originally the role of the secretary was part of the Royal house. (This meant the secretary could be very influential)

*Holding the position meant close access to the monarch and control of the monarchs personal/ privy seal (which made royal documents official)

Question 45

what was the role of the secretary under Henry VIII (PRE 1540)

Answer 45

*The role of the secretary first became politically important in the 1530’s, when Thomas Cromwell was secretary (BECAME SECRETARY IN 1534)

*In the hands of Thomas Cromwell the position grew in importance but this importance was not sustained after Cromwell’s fall.

*Cromwell used his position to control council meetings and his access to the kings private correspondence meant he had detailed knowledge of the kings day to day business

*Although Cromwell was never appointed to the most important role, Lord Chancellor, he was able to manipulate his position as Henry Viii’s secretary to make himself the most powerful man in the country, next to the king.

Question 46

what was the role of the secretary under Henry VIII (POST 1540)

Answer 46

*After Cromwell’s fall in 1540 the role of secretary declined in political importance again

*The post was split between two men for the first time, Thomas Wriothesely and Ralph Sadler, neither of whom were as powerful as Cromwell

*Appointing two secretaries was partly in response to the increased amount of work which the secretary undertook. It was ALSO an attempt to ensure that no man could exploit the position to their own advantage

Question 47

who was the role of secretary appointed to post 1540 after cromwells fall

Answer 47

Thomas Wriothesely and Ralph Sadler, neither of whom were as powerful as Cromwell

Question 48

who held the positions of secretary under Elizabeth 1?

Answer 48

*The role of secretary only became more important again when Elizabeth’s most trusted adviser, William Cecil, was appointed to the role in 1558. (William Cecil continued this role until 1576)

*Later secretaries were equally influential : Francis Walsingham (elizabeths spymaster) held office from 1573-1590.
*Walsingham was followed by Cecil’s son, Robert after his death. She refused to fill this post for 6 years

*Robert Cecil used his secretary position to build up a network of supporters. He had access to the Queens correspondence (that included info about offices and positions available and requests for them)

*Cecil was able to ensure that patronage was distributed to his own clients not his rival, the earl of essex’s clients.

*In this period there were still two secretaries, but one was more dominant.

Question 49

when was Francis Walsingham secretary

Answer 49

1573-1590.

Question 50

when was william Cecil secretary

Answer 50

appointed to the role in 1558.
continued this role until 1576

Question 51

what was the function of secretary under Elizabeth I?

Answer 51

*During Elizabeth’s reign, the post of secretary became permanently important as the men appointed conducted day to day running of the government on the queens behalf (enhancement of power)

*The secretaries needed to deal with the queen, organise meetings and go through enormous amounts of info that was sent to them

*In this period there were still two secretaries, but one was more dominant.

Question 52

how was the role of secretary dangerous under Elizabeth

Answer 52

William Davidson, who became one of the secretaries in 1586, had the responsibility of keeping the death warrant which had been issued for Mary Queen Of Scots, Elizabeth’s catholic rival for the throne.

Davidson had to get the queens signature but she didn’t want it to be sent off. When she found out the council sent it off she blamed Davidson.

He was imprisoned and forced to pay a fine of 10,000 marks.

Question 52

how was local government carried out pre mid 16th Century

Answer 52

*Before mid 16th century, local government was carried out by the nobility and gentry (and increasingly the yeomen and aritisans)

*The roles carried out by these groups included presiding over legal cases as Justices of Peace (JP’S) and collecting taxation.

*In the absence of the army or police force, members of the local gentry and nobility were responsible for maintaining law and order and raising armies to fight for the king in communities

Question 53

what were the negatives of the local government system pre mid 16th century

Answer 53

-role gave power to land owners so the monarch had to trust them (it was possible for those in power locally to abuse their position; during the Wars of the Roses local nobility had raised armies against their own king. They could also manipulate the legal system to protect their own families and friends)

*The system was reliant upon local officials, who were unpaid and not necessarily suited to their job.

*In response- the system of Lord Lieutenants developed over the period. This role especially involved recruitment for royal armies and aimed to increase royal control over regions.

Question 54

how did the role of Lord Lieutenant develop under Henry VIII

Answer 54

*First extension of royal power in localities and military recruitment began under Henry VIII as a response to the demands of foreign war and threat of domestic rebellion

*In 1512 and 1545 he gave commissions to nobility to organise defence against threat from France and Scotland, who were at war with England.

*In 1536 he issued commissions to deal with the threat of the Pilgrimage of Grace rebellion

Question 55

what was the role of lord lieutenant under Edward IV

Answer 55

*In 1549, The duke of Northumberland, Edwards protector at the time, appointed members of the nobility as Lieutenants to deal with trouble caused by serious rebellions in that year.

*Northumberland’s Lieutenants were expected to have both a policing and military role at a local level

Question 56

what was the role of Lord Lieutenant under Mary i?

Answer 56

*Under Mary, there was a further attempt to formalise Northumberland’s Lieutenant system, in response to demands of war with France.

*In 1557-58, Mary’s nobility and gentry found it difficult to to recruit troops

*In response- Mary divided the country into 10 Lieutenancies, with each lieutenant responsible for the defence of their region and military recruitment (this was temporary and didn’t survive once the threat of French invasion diminished in 1558)

Question 57

what was the role of Lord Lieutenant under Elizabeth I

Answer 57

*Under Elizabeth 1st the post of lord lieutenant became a PERMENANT one (this was a response to the war with Spain from 1585-1604)

*With the beginnings of the war, Lord Lieutenants were appointed to each county, with a deputy (Many of these appointments were for life due to the length of the war)
*Initially their work was organisation of the war effort and they were responsible for organising the army (with training and getting the army together)

*All local officials were expected to obey the Lieutenants
*This system was effective- it harnessed the most powerful men in the country, the nobility, in the service of the Crown. The lieutenants were directly answerable to the monarch (they organised armies for the crown, not their own private armies like before 1585)

*It was common for members of the council to act as lord lieutenants, enhancing links between the government and localities

*Lord lieutenants were able to gather info about localities, making military organisation smoother.