Chapter 1 - Causes of Tudor rebellions Flashcards
1
Q
What were the political causes of rebellion?
A
- Dynastic issues and succession
- ‘Evil advisers’
- Factions
- Reaction to government centralisation/ intervention.
2
Q
What were the dynastic issues under Henry VII?
A
Dynastic issues under Henry VII due to questionable succession:
- After Battle of Bosworth tenure on the throne far from secure
- Lovel and Staffords raised troops 1486 to kill the King (Yorkist claim)
- 1487 Simnel ‘pretended’ to be Earl of Warwick.
- Yorkist supporters believed they would gain more from killing Henry than from serving him.
- Warbeck ‘pretended’ to be Duke of York.
- Early 1490s Warbeck was backed by France, Burgundy and Scotland, each intent on weakening if not actively wishing to remove Henry – when came to a head all foreign support evaporated.
3
Q
What were the dynastic issues under Henry VIII?
A
Aragonese faction:
- Faced none until 1530s, PoG (greatest rebellion of 16th century)
- Recent divorce from Catherine of Aragon, wanted Mary legitimised and restored to the line of succession.
4
Q
What were the dynastic issues under Edward VI and Mary I?
A
Succession issues:
- Edward VI’s ‘Devise’ of May 1553 also aimed to exclude Mary from the succession and was largely responsible for the Duke of Northumberland’s rebellion.
- LJG and Wyatt both sought to influence the succession.
- LJG not really about succession,Northumberland holding on to power.
- Wyatt feared consequences of Mary’s planned marriage to Philip II of Spain and the probable exclusion of Princess Elizabeth from the throne.
- Little trust in Spanish prince. Rebels never admitted they wanted to overthrow Mary.
5
Q
What were the dynastic issues under Elizabeth I?
A
With no children her succession was doubtful, rebellions exploited this:
- Northern Earls’ rebellion – wanted Queen of Scots as Elizabeth’s heir
- Denied treason as whether they wanted to bring about an early succession is less clear.
- The Earl of Essex was trying to endear himself to likely heir James VI.
- Wanted queen to dismiss advisers and replace with those sympathetic to a Scottish monarch, he would be rewarded as a ‘kingmaker’.
6
Q
How did ‘Evil councillors’ cause rebellion?
A
Anger over preference to consult ‘new’ ministers rather than long-established families of England:
- 1497 Bray and Morton dubbed ‘evil advisers’ by Cornish rebels.
- 1525 Suffolk protesters complaining about Wolsey
- 1536 Cromwell, Cranmer, Audley and rich the targets in PoG (self-made men from politically obscure backgrounds)
- 1554 Wyatt claimed seeking ‘no harm to the Queen but better counsel and councillors’
- 1569 Northern earls held William Cecil responsible for their revolt.
- 1601 Earl of Essex aimed to remove Cecil, Elizabeth I’s principal adviser.
- Each rebel leader appeared to believe that once royal advisers were removed, wiser and more effective polities would follow.
7
Q
How did factions cause rebellion?
A
- Lincolnshire rising and PoG were arguably inspired by disaffected pro-Aragonese supporters at court.
- Catherine of Aragon’s supporters had links with several leading rebels caught up in the rebellion.
- Lincoln – Dymoke, Willoughby, Hussey
- Yorkshire – Darcy, Constable
- Northern Earls held William Cecil responsible for ill-advised policies.
- Essex rebellion, he had been suspended from the Privy Council.
8
Q
How did Government intervention cause rebellion?
A
- As centralisation took hold & Crown became more omniscient, political and legal privileges were swept away and traditional practices eroded.
- Those most affected lived in the more distant parts of the country and were prepared to revolt.
- Cornish rebellions 1497 and 1549 partly due to a feeling that they ought to be treated differently from the rest of the country.
- Similarly, northern counties complained that they were being ruled by ‘strangers’.
- The traditional nobility had less of a say in how the north was governed, as manors were forcibly given to others by the Crown
- PoG & Northern Earls both petitioned that a parliament should meet in the north to redress local issues.
9
Q
What were the religious causes of rebellion?
A
- Closing of the monasteries
- Fear of reform
- Government intervention
10
Q
How did closing the monasteries cause religious rebellion?
A
- Closure of the monasteries in northern England
- POG: Over 100 monasteries and abbeys were scheduled to be closed and opposition to the dissolution was a dominant factor. Argued social and economic services would be affected, education would decline.
- Western: They wanted the return of papal relics and images, the restoration of chantries and at least two monasteries in every country
11
Q
How did fear of religious reform cause rebellion?
A
- Kett’s and Western, both a reaction to the introduction of protestant reforms, but underlying social tensions especially in Western Rebellion
- Kett’s rebellion: protest at the slow rate of progress Protestantism was making in eastern England. Wanted better educated clergy, competent teaching of catechism, good-quality sermons.
- Wyatt: Some people joined due to concern at Mary’s attachment to Roman Catholicism and her intention to marry Philip of Spain. (Fear of Catholic reformation)
- Northern Earls: leading protagonists Catholic. Rebel proclamations suggest widespread Catholic sentiment. Religion cloak for political motives? Reaction to Protestant reforms.
12
Q
How did Government intervention cause religious rebellion?
A
- Government intervention: Government assault on saints, pilgrimages and holy days, which meant a great deal to the people. Wanted restoration of the power of the Pope. Claimed recent Act of Supremacy was contrary to God’s law. Parish churches threatened.
- 1549, largely the result of religious reforms introduces in June 1549. 13/14 articles showed wanted restoration not reformation. Marched under 5 wounds of Christ.
- Rejected English prayer book, Bible, liturgy no longer in Latin.
13
Q
What were the main economic and social causes of rebellion?
A
- Taxation
- Enclosures
- Famine and disease
- Inflation
- Social issues.
14
Q
How did taxation cause rebellion?
A
- 1489 Yorkshire, 1497 Cornwall and 1525 Amicable Grant, taxation was the main cause of rebellion and a contributing factors, albeit minor, in bringing about PoG and the Western Rebellion.
- Yorkshire 1489, traditionally south had funded wars against France and northern counties defended the Scottish border. Bad harvest 1488.
- Cornish 1497, asked to fund war against the Scots. Recalled outcome of Yorkshire.
- Amicable Grant 1525. Non-parliamentary taxes. Shortage of coinage, unemployment following fall in wool prices.
- PoG 1536, did not want to pay taxes due from 1534 Subsidy Act.
- Western 1549, sheep and wool tax.
15
Q
How did enclosures cause rebellion?
A
- PoG 1536, item 13 called for ‘statute for enclosures and intakes to put in execution, and that all intakes (and) enclosures since 1489 to be pulled down except (in) mountains, forest and parks’
- Kett’s 1549, wanted end of enclosure except for certain circumstances such as growing saffron.
- Oxfordshire 1596
