Domestic policy - King's Great matter Flashcards
(48 cards)
What was the King’s Great matter ?
Henry’s concerns over his desire to gain an annulment to his marriage to Catherine of Aragon to leave him free to marry Anne Boleyn.
Give one reason as to why Henry wanted a divorce from Catherine of Aragon.
As he had only one child, Mary, with Catherine, and by the 1520s, she was considered to be unable to bear any further children. This left Henry without a legitimate male heir
What was the name of Henry’s illegitimate son ?
Henry Fitzroy
Why was Henry Fitzroy deemed illegitimate ?
This is because Henry had Henry Fitzroy with his mistress, Elizabeth Blount (out of wedlock).
When was was Henry Fitzroy born ?
1519
What had Henry’s fixation on requiring a male heir driven him as far as considering in relation to his illegitimate son, Henry Fitzroy ?
as far as considering the legitimising of Henry Fitzroy
What was Anne Boleyn’s relation to the Duke of Norfolk (Thomas Howard) ?
She was his niece
What did Henry need in order to achieve his goal of the annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon ?
a Papal dispensation
Give a reason as to why the annulment proceedings stalled after the fall of Wolsey.
Thomas More, who was Wolsey’s replacement as Lord Chancellor, was unwilling to attack the church and no further progress could be made until he resigned from office in 1532.
What suggestion did Thomas Cromwell give to Henry in trying to address the King’s Great matter ?
He said that Henry should remove the Pope’s powers and instead give them to someone who would do as the King wished.
Why did Cromwell make the suggestion that Henry should remove the Pope’s powers and instead give them to someone who would do as the King wished ?
He argued that the Pope would never be persuaded to rule in Henry’s favour.
What was the most obvious position that would have the religious status within the English church to help Henry gain an annulment to his marriage to Catherine of Aragon following Cromwell’s suggestion ?
Archbishop of Canterbury
What was the problem with using the Archbishop of Canterbury to help Henry gain an annulment with his marriage to Catherine of Aragon instead of using the Pope as Cromwell had suggested ?
William Warham, Archbishop of Canterbury, was not willing to support the annulment.
What was Cromwell’s reaction/ response to the fact that Archbishop Warham, seemingly the person who had the religious status to help Henry in dealing with the ‘Great matter’, was unwilling to support the annulment ?
Cromwell felt that they would not need to wait for very long before he would be replaced as he was 80 years of age.
How did Henry respond to the fact that Archbishop Warham, seemingly the person who had the religious status to help Henry in dealing with the ‘Great matter’, was unwilling to support the annulment ?
As he was impatient and so set out on using Parliament to pass laws limiting the powers of the Pope through arguing that the powers were held in the Crown of England.
Give 5 measures that Henry and Cromwell took in order to secure the annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon and ultimately lead to the Break with Rome ?
1) Clergy collectively accused of praemunire and fined
2) Act in restraint of Annates
3) House of commons supplication against the Ordinaries
4) Formal submission of the Clergy to Henry VIII
5) Act in Restraint of Appeals
What was Praemunire ?
Assertion or maintenance of papal jurisdiction against the supremacy of the monarch
When were the clergy collectively accused of Praemunire and fined ?
1531
What did the Clergy being collectively accused of praemunire and fined force them into recognising the King as ?
‘Protector and Supreme head of the English church’
How much were the clergy forced to grant the King in 1531 due to them being collectively accused of Praemunire and fined ?
£118,000
When was the Act in restraint of Annates ?
1532
What were annates ?
income paid to the Pope by all new holders of senior positions within the Church in England.
What did the Act in Restraint of Annates in 1532 do ?
Forbid the paying of Annates/ taxes to the Pope by up to 95%.
How did Henry and Cromwell think the Act in Restraint of Annates in 1532 would help address the King’s Great matter ?
It was hoped that by hitting the Pope financially, he would reconsider his stance on granting a papal dispensation to Henry for his annulment.
