Download Dealing with the Person of the King

Henricus octavus, Dei gratia Angliae
et Franciae rex, fidei defensor, et
dominus Hiberniae.
"We are, by the sufferance of God, King of England; and the Kings of England in
times past never had any superior but God." Henry VIII, 1515.
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Prince Hal.
How do we see Henry VIII today?
In your exercise book spend a few minutes jotting down words and phrases that come to
mind when you think about the historical personality of Henry VIII.
Now share these thoughts with the group.
How did people see Henry VIII when he became King?
The following sources are all written by people that were alive in the early years of
Henry’s reign. What can these sources tell us about the youthful Henry VII?
Source 1: From Thomas More’s view of Henry VIII’s coronation. More was a friend of
Henry VIII and a trusted government official.
If ever there was a day, England, if ever there was a time for you to give thanks to God,
this is that happy day. For this day consecrates a young man who is the everlasting glory
of our age, and makes him your king, a king not just to rule a single people, but single
handed to rule the entire world, a king who will wipe the tears from every eye and banish
our long distress with joy.
Source 2: Lord Mountjoy wrote this to the great scholar Erasmus a month after Henry
became king.
If you could see how everyone here rejoices in having so great a ruler, how his life is all
their desire, you could not contain yourself for sheer joy. Unjust taxation is banished,
generosity scatters riches with an open hand, yet our king does not set his heart on gold
or jewels but on virtue, glory and immortality. The other day he told me, “I wish I was
more learned.” “But learning is not what we expect of a king,” I answered, “merely that
he should encourage scholars.” “Most certainly “, he replied, “as without them we
should scarcely live at all.” Now what more splendid remark could a prince make?
Source 3: A description of Henry VIII in 1515 written in a secret message to the
Venetian government by their diplomat Pasqualigo.
He is the most handsome ruler I ever saw, being above average height, with fine calf
muscles, a fair and bright skin, and auburn hair combed straight and short in the Franch
fashion, and a round face beautiful enough to be a woman‟s, set on a long thin neck. He
speaks French, English, Latin and a little Italian, plays the lute and harpsichord well,
sight reads music, is the most powerful archer in England and is marvelous at jousting.
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Source 4: A description of Henry VIII by Simon Justinian, the Venetian ambassador,
written in 1508:
His Majesty is extremely handsome and Nature could not have done more for him. He is
the most handsome ruler in Europe (much more so than the king of France), and he is
very fair with an admirably proportioned body. Hearing that Francis I wore a beard, he
allowed his to grow; it is reddish and now looks like gold. He is a good musician
composer, a brilliant horseman, he excels in tournaments, speaks good French, Latin and
Spanish, and is very religious, hearing three masses a day when he hunts and five on
other days. Every day he attends the services of vespers and compline in the queen‟s
chamber. He loves hunting, tiring eight or ten horses in a chase, and he is extremely fond
of tennis, during which it is the finest thing in the world to see him, his fair skin glowing
through a shirt of the finest weave.
Source 5: A banquet at the Court of Henry VIII was described by an Italian visitor in
1510.
The guests remained for seven hours at the table, measured by the clock. All the dishes
placed before the king were carried by an „elephant‟ or „lions‟ or „panthers‟ or other
„animals‟ amazingly costumed. There was a continuous removal and replacing of dishes,
and in every direction the hall was full of fresh dishes on their way to the tables. Every
imaginable sort of meat known in the kingdom was served, and fish in similar manner
even down to prawn pasties. But the jellies (of some twenty sorts, perhaps) surpassed
everything, being made in the shape of castles and animals of various descriptions, as
beautiful and as amazing as can be imagined.
Imagine that you are the French Ambassador to the Court of Henry VIII. Using the
information contained in these sources, write a description of the young King Henry for
Francis I, King of France.
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Dealing with the Person of the King
Henry VIII became King of England in 1509, aged 18. He was determined to be a great
king, looked up to by everyone. He showed this in lots of ways: in his portraits for
example, in his wars and his behaviour towards other people -and other kings. He also
showed it in his control of every detail of his daily life. One measure of greatness was the
number of people around you: the more there were, the more important you must be.
When Henry stayed at Hampton Court he was attended by nearly 1,000 people.
Controlling this number of people was quite a job and in 1526, while he was staying at
another of his palaces, at Eltham, a strict and detailed set of rules was drawn up. These
documents are extracts from those rules.
Note that:
1. Three rooms are mentioned. The "pallett room" is the room where the King actually
slept (a pallett is a bed). The "privy chamber" is the private room next to the pallett room
(privy means private). The King's Chamber is the big room where he began the day's
public life.
2. Some of those mentioned are ordinary people, e.g. servants, grooms, ushers and the
barber. But the pages, esquires and gentlemen of the privy chamber were the sons of rich
and powerful lords and knights.
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TASKS
1a. Use this table to note down what each type of person did each morning:
Room and time
Pages,
esquires
or Servants, grooms, ushers
gentlemen of the privy
chamber
(a) 7 o'clock in the pallette
chamber
(b) After 7 o'clock in the
privy chamber
(c) Later, in the privy
chamber
1b. Which type of person was actually allowed to touch, or speak to, the King?
1c. In what way is the barber an exception to this?
2a. Use the information from the table below to write a storyboard for a documentary film
about how the King gets up. Use this table to record what the camera shots will show and
what the commentary will say with each shot.
Shot
number
1
Camera picture
Voice-over commentary
2
3
4
5 etc
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2b. If there was a 3rd column to record the King's own words for each shot, what do you
think he would say each time?
3. What rules were there to make sure everyone behaved well?
4. The point of all this was to increase the greatness of Henry VIII. How do each of these
points increase the King's greatness?
4a. having lots of servants
4b. having upper class people serve the King
4c. doing things in the right order
4d. strict control of good behaviour
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His Majesty’s Health.
Despite having had one of the best kept medical records of the time, the cause of Henry
VIII's death is still a matter of debate.
Henry was an extremely cultured and accomplished young prince. He became a great and
glorious ruler; the true hope of his people. But he degenerated into a cruel and unstable
despot.
Henry VIII aged 22.
At the age of twenty-two, Henry contracted smallpox but was not physically scarred by it.
At thirty-three he had his first attack of malaria. This disease plagued him for the rest of
his life.
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A Miniature of Henry VIII at the age of 35.
At the age of thirty-five he suffered a serious jousting accident, after which he began
complaining of chronic migraine headaches.
Henry’s extraordinarily painful leg ulcers began at about this time. He would suffer with
them for the rest of his life. They eventually crippled him.
In his late thirties Henry underwent a major personality change. He had always been wise
and benevolent. But, slowly, he turned into an irrational and volatile individual. His
enemies could expect no mercy; neither could his friends, to say nothing of his wives.
Henry aged 44.
Henry suffered a severe jousting accident at the age of forty-four and was unconscious
for about two hours. After recovery he continued to exhibit fits of blind rage, aggravated
by acute insomnia, painful sore throats, and recurrent, severe migraine headaches.
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Henry became prematurely gray and abnormally obese. It was reported that in one four
year period his waist increased by seventeen inches. They say three of the biggest men to
be found could fit into his doublet at one time.
At the age of forty-five he developed a strange growth on the side of his nose.
By the time he was fifty, Henry probably became sterile or impotent thereby loosing the
ability to father children.
Henry at the age of 54.
By his mid-fifties, Henry could hardly walk and was carried everywhere by sedan chair.
He became increasingly absentminded, often issuing contradictory orders on succeeding
days.
He spent the last 8 days of his life in bed. He was too weak to lift a glass of water to
drink.
He died amid the horrendous stench of his bursting leg ulcers.
Modern medical experts agree that Henry’s ulcers, headaches and irrational mood swings
were caused by Syphillis. This disease was probably the ultimate cause of Henry’s death.
Lord Montague had predicted some time before, that Henry's "leg will kill him, and then
we will have jolly stirring"
Someone once prophesied that "...dogs will lick his bones as they did Ahab's." His body
was being transported to Windsor for burial, and sometime during the night the coffin
burst open. When the sentries found him, dogs were licking his remains.
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Catholic Versus Protestant.
For over a thousand years, England had been a Catholic country. The head of the
Catholic Church was the Pope. Then in the 1500s things began to change. There was a
choice! There was the Catholic way of being a Christian, or there was the Protestant way.
How were they different?
The Catholic way.
In 1500 virtually every person was a member of the Catholic Church. These are some of
the catholic beliefs:
The Bible and church services should be in Latin as they have been for one
thousand years.
The Pope and his bishops can forgive sins. People can show how sorry they are
for their sins by giving gifts to the church. These gifts would help an individual
get into heaven after death.
The altar is the focal point of the church. It should look spectacular. There should
be ornaments and candlesticks on it.
Churches should be highly decorated with painting, statues and stained glass
windows showing God’s glory, power and mystery.
People need priests to help them find God. The priest acts as a link between an
individual and God.
Priests should wear special clothes to reflect their special status as the link
between God and man. They should not get married, but should devote their lives
totally to God.
The Pope is head of the Church. God appointed him. He best knows what God
wants the church to do. The way to salvation is to follow the teachings of the
Church.
What you believe about God and the way you practise your religion is very, very
important. If you do not worship in the right way you will go to hell for eternity.
In the act of Holy Communion, when the priest blesses the bread and wine they
become the body and blood of Jesus Christ.
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Pope Julius II. He was the Pope when Henry VIII became King
The Protestant way.
In the early 1500s, a growing number of people felt deeply that the Catholic Church had
lost its way. One of the first leaders of the group was a German priest named Martin
Luther. His followers protested about the things they felt were wrong. Hence the name of
Protestants.
They said that the Catholic Church was too rich. People gave the Church lots of
money, but the bishops and monks spent it on fine clothes and palaces instead of
helping the poor.
They said that Catholic priests and monks were corrupt and lazy and did not do
their jobs properly. They said that some priests never even visited their parishes,
leaving someone else to take their services.
They said that it was wrong that Catholic services and the Bible were still in latin.
Protestants said that it was hard to feel close to God if you do not understand the
services or read the Bible yourself.
They were particularly angry that the Catholic Church allowed rich people to pay
a bishop or the Pope to have their sins forgiven. They said that only God could
forgive sins.
Martin Luther. His printed ideas on Religion spread quickly across Europe.
The movement for change that these people created is called the REFORMATION.
Martin Luther’s ideas quickly spread to other countries including England. Here are some
of the Protestant beliefs:
Churches should be simple and plain. A simple church brings people closer to
God. The altar should be replaced by a wooden table and there should not be any
ornaments, which distract people from focusing on God.
Ministers should wear simple robes. They are ordinary people. They should be
free to marry like ordinary people.
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Jesus Christ is head of the Church. Christ is more important than a human leader,
like the Pope. The way to salvation is to follow the teachings of the Bible and
Jesus Christ. Only God can forgive sins.
People do not need priests to help them find God. Believing in Jesus Christ is the
way to find salvation.
The Bible and church services should be in the local language (English, French,
German) so that people can understand them.
What you believe about God and the way you practice your religion is very, very
important. If you do not worship in the right way you will go to hell for eternity.
In the act of Holy Communion, the bread and wine do not become the body and
blood of Christ, just symbols of those things.
Compare Catholic beliefs with Protestant beliefs.
1. What do Catholics and Protestants:
a) disagree about?
b) agree about?
2. a) Write down two things that a Catholic might say is wrong with Protestant beliefs.
b) Write down two things that a Protestant might say is wrong with Catholic beliefs.
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Was the Catholic Church in England still healthy in 1500?
In 1500, England was a Catholic country. If you were a Christian (and just about
everyone in England was) then you were a Catholic.
You will know how important religion was to people in the medieval period. When you
were born, your parents would have you baptised as soon as possible. This cleaned you of
sin. Within a few years you were confirmed and accepted as a member of the Church. If
you got married the wedding was carried out by the local priest. When you were dying,
the priest would give you the last rites, which released you from your sins.
Even after your death the Church had a role to play. After death, some people were
doomed to stay in Hell forever. But even those who were going to Heaven had to pass
through Purgatory first. This was half way between Heaven and Hell. As you passed
through, you were punished to clean you from your sins. But the Church provided help
for you to get out of Purgatory more quickly.
During your life you could buy “indulgences” from a bishop. This meant that in exchange
for money you were not punished for your sins. In fact, money given to the Church for
the building, decoration or repair of your parish church could help you in Purgatory.
Source 1. A Diagram of the inside of an English church in about 1500.
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Source 2. A description of the inside of a catholic church in about 1500, from a website
on the history of church music.
The parish churches of the early years of the reign of King Henry VIII would be
unrecognisable to most readers. Firstly, there would have been the riot of colour and
gilding:- pictures of biblical scenes painted on almost every surface, the rood screen with
its golden and multi-coloured depiction of the crucified Christ dividing the chancel from
the nave; next, the stained glass and the numerous altars about the building, each with its
own lamp; lastly, the smoke and smell of incense, the tinkle of small bells, the prayers for
the souls of the dead in Latin. In short, our English churches must have looked, sounded,
and smelled as foreign to us as the churches do today in Italy, Spain or Latin-America.
You could also get out of Purgatory more quickly if you had masses (church services)
said for your soul. So rich people left money in their wills to build “chantry” chapels
where priests chanted (sang) masses for their souls.
The Mass, the catholic church service, was said daily by the priest. Most people believed
that at the Mass, the bread and wine used in communion actually became the body and
blood of Christ. The priest was “sacrificing” Christ each time the Mass was said. This
made the priest special.
As Protestant ideas began to spread around Europe, how far did people in England still
believe in all this? Look at sources 3 to 7 to find out.
Source 3. Holy Trinity Church, Long Melford, Suffolk. This church was completed in
the 1490s and is known as a “wool church” because prosperous wool merchants from
that area donated money for its building and decoration.
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Source 4. A description by an Italian visitor to England in 1497.
People always hear Mass on Sunday and give generously to the Church and the poor.
There is not a parish church in the kingdom that does not have crucifixes, candlesticks
and cups of silver, as well as many other ornaments worthy of a cathedral.
Source 5. From the will of Richard Berne, London, 1525.
My body is to be buried in the place near the chapel that I caused to be made in the south
aisle of St. Magnus‟ Church.
For tithes forgotten: 3s 4d.
For masses to be said in the church for my soul, my wife‟s soul and all Christian Souls,
every month for one year after my death: £6.
Every Friday for a year after my death 3s 4d to be given to prisoners in Newgate one
Friday, those in Ludgate the next Friday.
The very best canvas for shirts and smocks for the poor people in Bedfordshire.
£100 towards the making of an alter table.
Source 6. A description of what Long Melford Church looked like in the 1520s.
At the back of the high altar a carving of Christ‟s crucifixion.
At the north end of the same altar a large golden image of the Holy Trinity.
In my chapel at the back of the altar a table with a crucifix on it, with the two thieves
hanging.
To the north of the altar from the ground to the roof a paining of Jesus, and to the south a
paining of the Blessed Lady.
A rood-loft, with the rood (a crucifix) and Mary and John. The loft going right across the
church. On its side, painted, the twelve disciples.
All the roof beautified with gilt stars.
In the vestry many rich copes and vestments.
In the choir, in a recess in the north wall, the sepulchre (the “tomb” where the leftover
bread and wine from Mass were brought).
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Source 7. From a list of church goods in Long Melford Church in 1529.
A chalice, the gift of Matthew Barker, gold, 21 ounces.
A chalice, the gift of John Hill, gold, 20 ounces.
A relic of the pillar that Christ was bound to, the gift of Sir William Clopton.
A silver pot, the gift of Mother Barrel.
Two silver candlesticks, the gift of old John Smith, 61 ounces.
Total of 80 ornaments, rings and crucifixes.
An altar cloth of silk with blue birds, bordered with blue velvet.
Total of 20 copes and vestments.
A Mass book, the gift of John Hill.
It is the year 1500. You are a government official sent out to report
on whether people are still supporting the Catholic Church and
accepting its beliefs. Using the evidence about church buildings and
people’s wills in this section, write a report on your findings so far.
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Changes to Religion in England: The English Reformation.
Reformation (noun): 1) a change for the better, 2) the Reformation the religious
movement in the Christian Church in the 16th century from which the Protestant Church
arose. (Chambers School Dictionary)
The English Reformation started in the reign of Henry VIII. The English Reformation
was to have far reaching consequences in Tudor England. Henry VIII decided to rid
himself of his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, after she had failed to produce a male heir
to the throne. He had already decided who his next wife would be - Anne Boleyn. By
1527, Catherine was considered too old to have anymore children.
However, a divorce was not a simple issue. In fact, it was a very complicated one. Henry
VIII was a Roman Catholic and the head of this church was the Pope based in Rome.
The Roman Catholic faith believed in marriage for life. It did not recognise, let alone
support, divorce. Those who were widowed were free to re-marry; this was an entirely
different issue. But husbands could not simply decide that their marriage was not
working, divorce their wife and re-marry. The Roman Catholic Church simply did not
allow it.
This put Henry VIII in a difficult position. If he went ahead and announced that as king
of England he was allowing himself a divorce, the pope could excommunicate him. This
meant that under Catholic Church law, your soul could never get to Heaven. To someone
living at the time of Henry, this was a very real fear, and a threat which the Catholic
Church used to keep people under its control.
Another approach Henry used was to make a special appeal to the pope so that he might
get a special "Papal Dispensation". This meant that the Pope would agree to Henry’s
request for a divorce purely because Henry was king of England but that it would not
affect the way the Catholic Church banned divorce for others. Henry’s pursuit of a
divorce from Catherine of Aragon became known as “The King’s Great Matter”.
Henry sent a message to the Pope arguing that his marriage to Catherine had been invalid
as she had previously been married to his brother Arthur. When Catherine discovered
Henry's plans she informed her nephew, King Charles (Carlos) of Spain and Emperor
Charles (Karl) V of the Holy Roman Empire. Unwilling to have his aunt lose her
position, Charles warned the Pope that he would be very angry if he granted Henry a
divorce. The Pope knew that once he made a decision, he would upset one of these two
powerful monarchs. In an attempt to keep the peace, the Pope put off making a decision
about Henry's marriage.
In January 1533 Henry discovered that Anne Boleyn was pregnant. As it was important
that the child should not be classed as illegitimate, arrangements were made for Henry
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and Anne to get married. King Charles V of Spain threatened to invade England if the
marriage took place, but Henry ignored his threats and the marriage went ahead.
The pope refused to grant Henry a divorce and Henry’s anger was such that he ordered
the Archbishop of Canterbury to grant him a divorce so that he could marry Anne
Boleyn.
The Archbishop granted Henry his divorce - against the wishes of the pope. But what else
could the archbishop do if he wanted to remain on good terms with Henry?
This event effectively lead to England breaking away from the Roman Catholic Church
based in Rome. Henry placed himself as head of the church and in that sense, in his eyes,
his divorce was perfectly legal. In 1533, few were brave enough to tell him otherwise!
How did the people of England react to this? In fact, the vast bulk of the population were
very angry at the way the Roman Catholic Church had used them as a source of money.
To get married you had to pay; to get a child baptised (which you needed to be if you
were to go to Heaven - so the Catholic Church preached) you had to pay; you even had to
pay the Church to bury someone on their land (which you had to do as your soul could
only go to Heaven if you were buried on Holy Ground). Therefore, the Catholic Church
was very wealthy while many poor remained just that….poor. Their money was going to
the Catholic Church. Therefore, there were no great protests throughout the land as many
felt that Henry would ease up on taking money from them. Henry knew of the Catholic
Church’s unpopularity and, therefore, used this to his advantage.
Thomas More, Henry's Lord Chancellor, was opposed to the king's plans to divorce
Catherine of Aragon and resigned from office. When he refused to accept Henry as head
of the church he was convicted of high treason and executed at the Tower of London.
In September Anne Boleyn gave birth to a daughter called Elizabeth. While Henry was
furious about having another daughter, the supporters of Catherine were delighted and
claimed that it proved God was punishing Henry for his illegal marriage to Anne.
In March 1534 the Pope eventually made his decision. He announced that Henry's
marriage to Anne Boleyn was invalid. Henry reacted by declaring that the Pope no longer
had authority in England. In November 1534, Parliament passed an act that stated that
Henry VIII was now the Head of the Church of England.
Henry was delighted when Anne became pregnant again. In January 1536 Anne had a
son. Unfortunately the child was born dead. Later that year Henry accused Anne of
committing adultery with five different men. Anne and the men were all executed. Ten
days later Henry married Jane Seymour. The following year, Jane died giving birth to
Edward. Henry now at last had a male heir.
Although Henry continued to persecute English Protestants, he was now also hostile to
those who remained loyal to the Pope. Henry was particularly worried that he did not
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have the full support of the monks and nuns in England. In 1535 Henry began arresting
monks for high treason. As a warning to others, five monks were publicly tortured, before
being beheaded. Later that year others were executed, together with several nuns.
In 1536 Henry gave permission for an English translation of the Bible to be published in
England. He also ordered that a copy of this Bible should be placed in every church in his
kingdom. Henry still considered himself to be a Catholic, but by taking this action, he
began to move the Church in the direction of Protestantism.
The King’s Great Matter.
In your exercise book, make bullet points to show the most important pieces of historical
detail of Henry’s “Great Matter”.
Produce a comic strip of no more than EIGHT pictures that tells the story of events up
until the birth of Princess Elizabeth in September 1533.
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Why did Henry VIII make himself Head of the
Church in England?
When Henry VIII fist heard about Luther’s Protestant ideas he wrote a book defending
the Catholic faith. The Pope thought that Henry was such a supporter of the Catholic faith
that he gave him the title of “Defender of the Faith”. Twenty years later, Henry did a
massive U-turn. He replaced the Pope as head of the Church in England.
Let us explore how and why he did this.
HENRY’S PROBLEMS:
Henry wanted a son.
Henry’s wife, Catherine of
Aragon had given him a
daughter, Mary, but no
surviving sons. Catherine had
had several miscarriages and it
was clear that the chances of
her giving birth to a healthy
son were small. Henry
believed that to make sure that
the Tudor dynasty survived he
had to have a son. But to have
a son he needed a new wife.
To get a new wife he needed a
divorce. Only the Pope, the
head of the Church, could give
him a divorce.
Henry needed money.
Henry was bankrupt. He
wanted to be powerful in
Europe. He had already fought
some very expensive wars in
Europe and desperately needed
more money to continue his
campaigns. His personal life
was also very expensive. Yet
the Church had lots of money.
If only he could get hold of
some of it.
Henry wanted power.
Henry wanted to control the Church. Since medieval times there had been
struggles over whether priests should obey the Pope or the King
(remember the arguments between Henry II and Archbishop Thomas
Becket resulting in Becket’s murder?). The powerful monasteries were
loyal to the Pope. Henry VIII resented this. He wanted to control the
Church in his own country.
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HENRY’S SOLUTIONS:
He made himself Head of the Church in England.
In 1533, Henry said that the Pope no longer had any authority in England. From now on
all priests and monks had to obey the will of the King, not the will of the Pope. Henry did
this with an Act of Parliament:
The Act of Supremacy in 1534 stated that Henry was to become Head of the Church in
England. The Pope responded by threatening to excommunicate Henry. Henry responded
by making priests and important government officials and noblemen swear an oath that
accepted Henry as the new Head of the Church in England.
He gave himself a divorce.
Thomas Cranmer became the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1532. As soon as the Pope
had confirmed his appointment to the post in 1533, Cranmer declared that Henry’s
marriage to Catherine of Aragon was now dissolved and that the King was now divorced
on Henry’s orders as Head of the Church in England. Cranmer then married Henry and
the pregnant Anne Boleyn.
An Act of Parliament, the Act of Succession of 1534 stated that the succession to the
throne would now go through any children that resulted from the King’s marriage to
Anne Boleyn
He bullied any opposition.
In 1534, Parliament passed the Act of Submission of the Clergy. This forced the Church
in England to give up its right to make Church laws without the approval of the king. It
also meant that Henry would decide the judgements in Church courts in England instead
of the Pope. Once Henry had control of the Church, he persecuted those that opposed
him. He even executed his close friend Thomas More because More would not accept
Henry as the Head of the Church. More refused to swear the Oath of Supremacy.
Henry took over the monasteries.
From 1536 to 1539, Henry closed all the monasteries in England taking all their gold,
silver, land and wealth. This brought him an enormous amount of money. Many of the
monasteries fell into ruins or were bought from Henry and turned into private houses.
Monks were forced either to find a new way of making a living or to leave the country.
Anyone who opposed what became known as the “Dissolution of the Monasteries” was
dealt with severely.
Henry sat on the fence.
Henry commissioned a Bible in the English language to be used in every English church.
This might make him sound like a Protestant but he also passed the Act of Six Articles in
1539 which stated that the Church in England would continue to believe in catholic
beliefs. He also refused to make changes to the inside of English churches even though
some people wanted him to do so. Henry made himself the Head of the Church in
England but that did not make him a Protestant.
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The Dissolution of the Monasteries.
Dissolution: the act or process of dissolving : as a : separation into component parts b
(1) : DECAY, DISINTEGRATION (2) : DEATH c : termination or destruction by
breaking down, disrupting, or dispersing <the dissolution of the republic> d : the
dissolving of an assembly or organization e : LIQUEFACTION (Websters online
dictionary)
At the beginning of the 16th century monasteries in England owned well over a quarter
ofall the cultivated land. Farmers who rented land from the monks often criticised them
for being greedy and uncaring landlords. It was also claimed that the monks had been
corrupted by the wealth obtained from renting their land.
In August 1535, Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII’s Lord Chancellor was appointed Vicar
General of the Church in England and he sent a team of officials to find out what was
going on in the monasteries. Cromwell sent out Commissioners to visit every monastery
and convent in England. This was called a Visitation. Having visited a monastery, the
Commissioner had to write a report on what he had found. The report would give an
indication of how well the monks or nuns in that place were carrying out their duties as
well as failures to do so.
Monks and Nuns were meant to live according to strict rules laid down by St. Benedict in
500AD. These rules made sure that they devoted their lives to God and to helping other
people. The rules said they should:
Live as poor people
Not marry or have sexual relationships
Look after the poor, the sick and the old
Give food and shelter to travellers
Eat simply and wear simple and rough clothes
Study scripture and copy out precious manuscripts
In some cases to act as teachers
In some cases to run hospitals
Cromwell’s Commissioners were given clear instructions on what to examine. They were
encouraged to report on instances where monks and nuns were breaking these rules, the
names of monks and nuns who were discontented and left their monasteries and, very
importantly, the income and assets (things of value) of each monastery and their debts.
Once reports were written they were passed to Cromwell. There were instances of
favourable reports being ordered to be re-written. Monasteries with a good report were
often visited a second time by Commissioners with strict instructions to find out things
that were wrong. One monastery received a glowing report and Cromwell ordered a
second visitation. Even this second visit could find nothing wrong, but the author of the
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report wrote that he believed that the monks were especially good at hiding the truth and
were guilty of attempting to deceive the King’s Commissioners.
Some inspectors did not visit the monasteries they reported upon. Instead of a personal
visit they often just asked people living close by to tell them what the monastery was like
All the reports were bound together in a book that became known as the “Valor
Ecclesiasticus” (“The Wealth of the Church”). The reports gave Henry what he needed.
The Act of Suppression was passed through Parliament in 1536. This gave the King the
power to close all smaller monasteries, convents and friaries with an income of less than
£200 a year. The Act began: “Since great sin and abominable living is daily
committed…the possessions of such houses should be converted to better uses and the
unthrifty religious persons in them be forced to reform their lives…”
Monastery land was seized and sold off cheaply to nobles and merchants. They in turn
sold some of the lands to smaller farmers. This process meant that a large number of
people had good reason to support the monasteries being closed.
When Commissioners arrived to close monasteries they met almost no resistance. At
Hexam in Northumberland, the monks barred the gate and prepared to resist the
Commissioners by force. At Norton Priory in Cheshire, the abbot trapped the
Commissioners inside the buildings and then raised a band of local people to lay siege to
his own monastery. But these were notable exceptions. Almost everywhere things went
without a hitch. The monks accepted the inevitable and in many places the local people
hardly protested at all. The rich fell over themselves to buy the valuable monastery land .
However, many people disagreed with the way Henry had stolen the property of the
monks and nuns. This was especially true of people who lived in the north of England. A
large army was formed in Yorkshire, and their attempt to win back monastic property
was called the Pilgrimage of Grace.
After a meeting with the Duke of Norfolk, the leader of Henry's army, the rebels agreed
to go back home in exchange for a meeting of Parliament to discuss their complaints.
Henry had no intention of keeping his side of the bargain. He gave orders that "a good
number" from every village and town that had taken part in the pilgrimage should be
publicly hanged, drawn and quartered.
In 1538 Thomas Cromwell turned his attention to religious shrines in England. For
hundreds of years pilgrims had visited shrines that contained important religious relics.
Wealthy pilgrims often gave expensive jewels and ornaments to the monks that looked
after these shrines. Henry VIII decided that the shrines should be closed down and the
wealth that they had created given to the crown.
The Pope and the Catholic Church in Rome were horrified when they heard the news that
Henry had destroyed the shrine of St. Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral. On 17
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December 1538, the Pope announced to the Christian world that Henry VIII had been
excommunicated from the Catholic Church.
Henry now had nothing to lose and he closed down the rest of the monasteries and
nunneries in England, Wales and Ireland. All told. Henry closed down over 850 monastic
houses between 1536 and 1540. Those monks and nuns who did not oppose Henry's
policies were granted pensions. However, these pensions did not allow for the rapid
inflation that was taking place in England at that time and within a few years most monks
and nuns were in a state of extreme poverty.
By 1540, not one functioning monastery or convent was left in England. Henry’s normal
income was about £100,000 per year. Between 1536 and 1547, Henry received an extra
£140,000 per year from the dissolution of the monasteries. Land had been sold, the
buildings either sold and converted into private houses or else sold a quarries for building
material. The contents of the monasteries were also sold. Gold and silver ornaments were
melted down into coinage. Today, only ruins remain.
Source 1: A picture from a modern school, textbook that shows what a typical monastery
would have looked like before the dissolution.
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Source 2: A modern photograph of Fountains Abbey in Yorkshire. When Henry closed
this monastery, all the land that the abbey owned was sold off as well as the contents of
the abbey, the lead from the roof and the glass from the windows. The stone from the
buildings was sold and many nearby buildings were built with stone from demolished
abbey buildings. Today, Fountains Abbey is a world heritage site and a popular tourist
destination.
Source 3. This is a photograph of Buckland Abbey in Devon. It was once a monastery.
After it was closed down, Henry VIII sold the building and much of the farmland the
abbey owned to Sir Richard Grenville. Sir Richard turned the abbey into a fine country
house.
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Excuses, Excuses, Excuses!
These are extracts from some of the reports that Cromwell received on the monasteries:
a) About Crossed Friars monastery, London.
Found the prior (the man in charge) at that time in bed with a woman, both naked, about
11 o‟clock in the morning.
b) About the monastery in Bath.
I have visited Bath, and found the prior a very virtuous man, but his monks more corrupt
than any others in vices with both sexes. The house is well prepared but £400 in debt. I
am sending to you some of their relics – Mary Magdalene‟s comb and St. Dorothy‟s and
St. Margaret‟s combs. They cannot say how they got them.
c) About the monastery in Langdon in Kent.
A spent a good time knocking at the abbot‟s door, neither sound nor sign of life
appearing. I found a pole-axe standing behind the door, and with it I dashed the door to
pieces. About the house I go, and find his woman.
d) About Woolsthorpe in Lincolnshire.
The abbot is well beloved, having eight religious persons, being priests of right good
conversation and living religiously, having such qualities of virtue as we have not found
the like in any place.
e) About St. Edmund’s monastery, in Suffolk.
The Abbot delighted much in playing at dice and in that spent much money. For his own
pleasure he has had lots of beautiful buildings built.
f) About St. Edmund’s convent.
I could not find anything bad about the convent, no matter how hard I tried. I believe I
couldn‟t find anything because everybody had got together and agreed to keep the
convent‟s secrets. Among the relics we found were the coals that St. Lawrence was burnt
upon, the clippings of St. Edmund‟s nails, St. Thomas of Canterbury‟s penknife and his
boots, and enough pieces of the Holy Cross to make a whole cross.
g) About the monastery at Battle.
The Abbot is the veriest hayne, beetle and buserde, and the arentest chorle that ever I
see. The House is so beggary a house I never see, nor so filthy stuff. The stuff is like the
persons.
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1. What evidence is there from these extracts of monks and nuns breaking the
monastic rules?
2. Which of these reports would Cromwell be pleased with? Which would he have
sent back for a critical re-write?
3. Extracts a) to f) have been simplified so that they are easier to understand, g) has
not. What do you think g) means? Try and rewrite it into modern English.
4. In your study of history you will come across many biased sources. Some of these
extracts are some of the most obvious and extreme examples. If you wanted to find
out what monastic life was like at this time you would have to be very suspicious
about these reports.
a) Write a list of all the reasons why we should be mistrustful of these sources?
b) Explain whether these reports can still be useful to a historian. Think carefully
before you answer.
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The Pilgrimage of Grace, 1536.
The Pilgrimage of Grace was the worst uprising of Henry VIII's reign. It was a direct
result of the dissolution of the monasteries, a policy which confused and angered most
Englishmen. The original rebellion began at Louth in Lincolnshire in early October
1536. The presence of a royal commission was the spark; the local clergy encouraged it
to flame. The Lincolnshire rebellion lasted but a fortnight, but Yorkshire - led by the
lawyer Robert Aske - was next. With the charismatic Aske as their leader, the rebellion
spread quickly. Dissatisfaction with the king's religious and financial policies was deep
and widespread. The King had recently placed a tax on baptisms and a tax on bread. An
army of perhaps 30,000 men gathered in the north. The king ordered the dukes of
Norfolk and Suffolk and the earl of Shrewsbury to respond. But there was no standing
army in England; also, popular sympathy lay with the rebels.
The king's forces were hopelessly outnumbered. Worse, their soldiers lacked equipment
and the desire to fight their countrymen. And the rebel forces were far more experienced
in battle, having fought the Scots near-continuously during Henry's reign.
Faced with such odds, the king turned to diplomacy. The rebels, after all, did not seek to
overthrow him. Their primary desire was for the dissolved monasteries to be restored.
They also criticized the king's 'low-born' advisers, particularly Thomas Cromwell. His
policies of high taxation and forced enclosures of land had worsened poverty throughout
northern England; it was already, as Norfolk told the king, 'the most barren country of the
realm'.
The Pilgrims demanded the following;
(1) That a general pardon should be granted, without any exceptions;
(2) That a parliament should be held at York or Nottingham, or some other
convenient place;
(3) That no man residing north of the Trent should be compelled, by subpœna, to
attend any court except York, unless in matters of allegiance;
(4) That some Acts of the late Parliament, which were too grievous to the people,
should be repealed;
(6) That the Princess Mary should be declared legitimate;
(6) That the suppressed monasteries should be restored to their former state;
(7) That the Papal Authority should be re-established;
(8) That heretical books should be suppressed, and heretics punished according to
law;
(9) That Lord Cromwell, the vicar-general, Lord Audley, the chancellor, and Rich,
the attorney-general, should be removed from the Council; and
(10) That Leigh and Layton, Cromwell’s commissioners of the northern monasteries,
should be prosecuted for their briberies and extortions.
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The king negotiated peace through Norfolk, conceding their demands and promising a
free pardon to all rebels who dispersed. Monastic lands would be restored and a new
parliament called to address their concerns. The rebels accordingly dispersed. And then,
on the slightest pretext, Henry broke his word; martial law was declared, rebel leaders
were indicted and put on trial (many faced a jury of their peers.) Several hundred rebels,
including Aske, were executed. The monasteries were not restored.
This is an account of the rebellion by Edward Hall, a Tudor chronicler.
[T]he king was truly informed that there was a new insurrection made by the northern
men, who had assembled themselves into a huge and great army of warlike men, well
appointed with captains, horse, armour and artillery, to the number of 40,000 men, who
had encamped themselves in Yorkshire. And these men had bound themselves to each
other by their oath to be faithful and obedient to their captain.
The also declared, by their proclamation solemnly made, that their insurrection should
extend no further than to the maintenance and defence of the faith of Christ and the
deliverance of holy church, sore decayed and oppressed, and to the furtherance also of
private and public matters in the realm concerning the wealth of all the king's poor
subjects. They called this, their seditious and traitorous voyage, a holy and blessed
pilgrimage; they also had certain banners in the field whereon was painted Christ
hanging on the cross on one side, and a chalice with a painted cake in it on the other
side, with various other banners of similar hypocrisy and feigned sanctity. The soldiers
also had a certain cognizance or badge embroidered or set upon the sleeves of their
coats which was a representation of the five wounds of Christ, and in the midst thereof
was written the name of Our Lord, and thus the rebellious garrison of Satan set forth and
decked themselves with his false and counterfeited signs of holiness, only to delude and
deceive the simple and ignorant people.
After the king's highness was informed of this newly arisen insurrection he, making no
delay in so weighty a matter, caused with all speed the dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk, the
marquis of Exeter, the earl of Shrewsbury and others, accompanied by his mighty and
royal army which was of great power and strength, immediately to set upon the rebels.
But when these noble captains and counsellors approached the rebels and saw their
number and how they were determined on battle, they worked with great prudence to
pacify all without shedding blood.
But the northern men were so stiff-necked that they would in no way stoop, but stoutly
stood and maintained their wicked enterprise. Therefore the abovesaid nobles, perceiving
and seeing no other was to pacify these wretched rebels, agreed upon a battle;… but the
night before the day appointed for the battle a little rain fell, nothing to speak of, yet as if
by a great miracle of God the water, which was a very small ford which the day before
men might have gone over dry shod, suddenly rose to such a depth and breadth that no
man who lived there had ever seen before, so that on the day, even when the hour of
battle should have some, it was impossible for one army to get at the other.
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After this appointment made between both the armies, disappointed, as it is to be thought,
only by God who extended his great mercy and had compassion on the great number of
innocent persons who in that deadly slaughter would have been likely to have been
murdered, could not take place. Then... a consultation was held and a pardon obtained
from the king's majesty for all the captains and chief movers of this insurrection, and they
promised that such things as they found themselves aggrieved by, all would be gently
heard and their reasonable petitions granted, and that their articles should be presented
to the king, so that by his highness' authority and the wisdom of his council all things
should be brought to good order and conclusion. And with this order every man quietly
departed, and those who before were bent as hot as fire on fighting, being presented by
God, went now peaceably to their houses, and were as cold as water.
Ultimately Henry went against his promises and executed 200 members of the rebellion.
Henry was particulary harsh in his treatment of monks and clergy that joined the
Pilgrimage of Grace. But some of the demands made by the rebels were achieved…albeit
some years after the Pilgrimage was crushed:
Princess Mary eventually was declared legitimate and given her place in the line
of succession in 1544.
Henry, although seemingly a protestant, made sure that the Church in England
remained Catholic in its beliefs when the Act of Six Articles was passed by
Parliament in 1539.
Thomas Cromwell was eventually removed from office in 1540.
A “Council of the North” was set up, similar to the northern parliament demanded
by the rebels.
But the power of the Pope in England was not restored and the monasteries that had been
closed were never re-opened.
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TUDOR REBELLION FACT SHEET.
WHAT is the rebellion known as:
The Pilgrimage of Grace.
WHEN did it happen?
WHERE did it happen?
WHO was the leader of the rebellion:
WHO was monarch at this time?
WHY did the rebellion take place and what did the rebels want to achieve?
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WHAT were the main events:
WAS the rebellion a success or a failure?
WHY did it succeed or fail?
WHAT were the consequences of the rebellion?
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Henry VIII: Catholic or Protestant?
Consider the question above
.
Make a list of all Henry’s actions that would suggest that he was a Protestant.
Now make a list of all his actions that would suggest that he was a Catholic.
What were Henry’s reasons for his changes to the Church?
Now write a piece that tells me what you think. Remember to explain your thoughts
carefully.
Before you write, here are a few bits and pieces that may make you think!
Source 1. The execution of William Tyndale in 1536. Tyndale translated parts of the
Bible into English in the 1520s. As a result he was forced to leave England and live
abroad when Henry attempted to have him arrested. While living in Antwerp he wrote an
English translation of the bible which found its way into England. Henry had all copies of
this bible seized and burned. In 1535 he wrote a pamphlet attacking Henry VIII. Henry
persuaded the Holy Roman Emperor to have him arrested and executed. He was
strangled and then his dead body was burned. His last words were “O Lord, open the
King of England‟s eyes.”
Source 2. A modern historian writes:
Henry‟s normal income before 1536 was £100,000 a year. Between 1536 and 1547 he
received an extra £140,000 a year from the dissolution of the monasteries.
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Source 3. The Act of Six Articles in 1539 laid down the beliefs of the English Church:
That in communion, the bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ
when the priest blesses them.
Priests were not allowed to marry.
Priests could forgive sins.
The mass should still be carried out.
Source 4. Henry agreed that a translation of the Bible into English should be carried out.
In 1539, Myles Coverdale and John “Thomas Matthew” Rogers published the “Great
Bible” by order of the King. Coverdale and Rogers were students under Tyndale. This is
the front cover of the fifth edition printed in 1541. The arrow indicates a blank space
where Thomas Cromwell’s coat of arms has been removed.
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