ESSAY PLANS
Henry VII’s financial policies were the most important reason for the successes of his
rule
Financial policies
- 1846 the Act of Resumption was passed = returned all property given away since 1455
back to the Crown.
- 1487 – Henry reverted from the inefficient exchequer system back to the chamber
system of administration under Edward IV. This saw revenue from crown lands ↑ from
£12,000 per year to £42,000 per year by the end of his reign. This made Henry the
largest landowner in England (↓the power of the nobility whose numbers fell by ¼)
- This increases in finances enabled Henry to leave an inheritance of what Bacon argue to
be £1.8 million. Despite recent historians saying it was £300,000, Henry developed
England from being financially ruined + divided after the WofR into a financially stable
country. This meant that he enriched the country against anyone who questioned his
royal authority + allowed him to ensure a smooth succession to carry on the Tudor
Dynasty = thus being extremely important in his rule but also in the continuation of the
Tudor dynasty.
- However, his financial policies were not the most important reason for his success as
they often caused discontent + opposition. For example, attempts to raise extraordinary
rev. to fund war against France provoked the Yorkshire rebellion in 1489 + taxation
against Scottish = 1497. = not the most important success as Cornish rebellion brought
the greatest threat o his rule = 15,000 rebels marching to Blackheath.
MS BOYD FINANCIAL POLICIES
- They enabled the crown to collect valuable revenue which could then be used to project
royal authority.
- Henry was able to do this through bodies such as the Council Learned in Law which
specialised in exploiting prerogative rights and feudal dues on behalf of the crown
o So successful that Henry’s revenue was an average of £104,000 per annum in
1502-3 with 1509 seeing £113,000 being collected.
o The crowns exploitation of wardships of minor nobility also netted considerable
rev. to the extent that Francis Bacon claimed that the royal treasury at Richmond
was worth £1.8million.
Henry used this money to project royal authority e.g. through paying the
Queens fiddler £1 6s 8d or purchasing Jewels for the Queen worth £31 10s
in 1497.
As monarchs in this time were expected to maintain a rich
household to show prosperity + success + reward royal subjects.
- This successful collection of rev Henry could redesign his household at Richmond
Palace to ensure there was a Privy Chamber which could only be accessed by his most
trusted + loyal servants.
- This created competition between nobility to be part of his household to take up
prestigious roles such as the Groom of the Stool.
Foreign policies
, - Ensuring national security was most important, because if Henry was overthrown by one
of the pretenders e.g. Lambert Simnel / Perkin Warbeck – this would abolish his rule
entirely.
- The Treaty of Etaples in 1492 was important – brought national security = secure Tudor
succession as it was a peace settlement which saw France withdraw support for Perkin
Warbeck. This was significant as England + France had been traditional enemies, as seen
in the Hundred Years War.
- Henry’s foreign policy = make links with strong European powers which ↑ + continued
dynasty.
o = Henry gains international recognition + secured marriage alliance between
Prince Arthur + Catherine of Aragon in 1501.
Trade
- 1485 Navigation Acts
o Encouraged English shipping by stipulating that goods to the mother country must
only be carried in ships from that country.
o E.g. forbade the transportation of Gascony wine to England in anything other than
English ships.
o = encouraging English ship building + saved expense of hiring foreign ships to
carry English goods.
o = thus customs revenue ( by 20% by the end of his reign)
- Burgundy
o = important place for good relations – Antwerp = ‘the commercial metropolis of
Europe’ (Coleman).
o 1493 Max banned English traders using Burgundy due to support for Warbeck.
o 1496 = Henry restored relationship through Intercursus Magnus = Phillip withdrew
all support for Warbeck.
This treaty ended the embargo = English merchants could trade anywhere.
o 1506 = Intercursus Malus = failed // the Magnus kept a solid basis for trading
relations throughout rest of his reign.
- Hanseatic League
o He struggled to limit their power.
o Before his reign, Hansa enjoyed near-monopolistic rights over some goods due to
treaty of Utrecht (1474).
o // he tried to limit their privileges e.g. 1489 = prohibited Hansas exportation of
bullion.
o = successful
o // 1504 = supported Act restoring all Hansa’s privileges in attempt to gain custody
of Suffolk.
Marriage alliances
- 1489 Medina del Campo
o Due to Brittany crisis – Henry attempted to restore lost English lands from Brittany
e.g. Normandy.
He enlisted the support of Spain – Isabella + Ferdinand.
// unsuccessful – their focus on the Moors.
, = he did establish his dynasty through the betrothal of his son, Prince
Arthur to Catherine of Aragon + secure his name in Spain (strong foreign
power).
o Despite Arthurs death in 1502, longer term this alliance arguably led to the
marriage of Henry VII’s second son, in 1509 = further securing his dynasty after
his death.
- 1502 Treaty of Perpetual Peace
o 1495 = James IV came of age = sought personal glory = sense of fear as
neighbouring country.
o Fear exemplified with arrival of Warbeck.
o Established the betrothal between Margaret + King James IV.
o Took place in 1503 = brought sense of security over Scottish border.
// despite being success, needs to be understood Henry had proposed this
marriage years before with Margarets birth in 1489 – and this marriage
was only in response to Spain’s input.
= perhaps an inability for him to quickly + successfully get marriage
alliances = by his inability to secure his own after Elizabeths death in
1503.
Control over nobility
- Council Learned in Law held (46/62 of the nobility)
o = job was to maintain the king’s revenue by exploiting Henry’s prerogative rights.
o = they created the system of Bonds + Recognisances.
o Bonds
Bonds ensured loyalty through requiring the nobility to pay a sum of
money if they failed to meet certain conditions e.g. through behaving well.
In 1507, Lord Burgavenny was convicted of illegally retaining 471
men + was fined £70,550. However, instead of just receiving the
gain of finances, Henry also ensured his power by placing him
under a bond of £5000 for 10 years.
// it must be considered that bonds didn’t always ensure the
continuation of loyalty – Lord Burguvenny = prosecuted in years
1503, 1507 and 1503 for this same crime.
o Recognisances
= a formal acknowledgment of debt/ obligations that already exist.
Due to abandoning Henry prior to the BofB, the Marquis of Dorset
was required to pay £1000 + was expected to find others to pay
£10,000 on his behalf.
However, despite his power, when in need of his support, Henry
used him when he needed to e.g. to put down the Cornish Rebellion
of 1489.
- Acts of Attainders
-
Ending support of pretenders
, - Henry understood the threat of pretenders at first hand: he himself had been a
pretender, invading England from France in 1485.
- Lambert Simnel (1487)
o Being passed off as Earl of Warwick – who had been imprisoned by Henry.
o He was crowned as King Edward in Ireland in May 1487.
o Put together by John de La pole, Earl of Lincoln = Yorkist claimant.
o Henry had the real Earl of Warwick exhibited in London.
o Fled to Margaret of Burgundy – she paid for a force of mercenaries to invade
England.
o Battle of Stoke Field, 1487.
Henry won = brought an end to the War of the Roses (success).
- Edmund De la Pole (1501-06)
- The measures Henry took to defeat Pretenders was great – seen by the significant
monetary cost of ensuring his return.
o Gave the Habsburg in total c. £250,000 in ‘loans’ as well as receiving a further
loss of income through suspension of trade with them in 1505.
o Hence being such a large success when Suffolk was given back to Henry in 1506.
o // It can be argued that what Henry lost in terms of train to secure him wasn’t
worth the gain from stopping him.
- Perkin Warbeck (1491-99)
o Weaker claim than him // vast support from foreign powers.
o 1495 = support from Young James IV
Sep 1496 = James IV backed Warbeck with an invasion across the border.
Scotland destroy defences e.g. Twizel // retreated when Lord Neville was
sent.
Warbeck only received support from 1400 men = thus showing threat of
pretenders = exaggerated.
Consolidation of power
- Coronation was as soon as possible in October 1485 + very grand. The nobility had to
swear an oath to the King + it signified God’s acceptance in him being king – going
against oath = ging against King.
- He met parliament in November = after = showing he became king due to God, not
because parliament made him king.
- Backdated his reign from 21st August 1485 to the day before Bosworth was won = those
who fought against him could be tried as a traitor.
- Earl of Warwick, a Yorkist with better claim was left in TofL.
- Married Eizabeth of York on Jan 1486 = uniting of the 2 houses = brought end to the wars
of the rose.
Henry VII’s financial policies were the most important reason for the successes of his
rule
Financial policies
- 1846 the Act of Resumption was passed = returned all property given away since 1455
back to the Crown.
- 1487 – Henry reverted from the inefficient exchequer system back to the chamber
system of administration under Edward IV. This saw revenue from crown lands ↑ from
£12,000 per year to £42,000 per year by the end of his reign. This made Henry the
largest landowner in England (↓the power of the nobility whose numbers fell by ¼)
- This increases in finances enabled Henry to leave an inheritance of what Bacon argue to
be £1.8 million. Despite recent historians saying it was £300,000, Henry developed
England from being financially ruined + divided after the WofR into a financially stable
country. This meant that he enriched the country against anyone who questioned his
royal authority + allowed him to ensure a smooth succession to carry on the Tudor
Dynasty = thus being extremely important in his rule but also in the continuation of the
Tudor dynasty.
- However, his financial policies were not the most important reason for his success as
they often caused discontent + opposition. For example, attempts to raise extraordinary
rev. to fund war against France provoked the Yorkshire rebellion in 1489 + taxation
against Scottish = 1497. = not the most important success as Cornish rebellion brought
the greatest threat o his rule = 15,000 rebels marching to Blackheath.
MS BOYD FINANCIAL POLICIES
- They enabled the crown to collect valuable revenue which could then be used to project
royal authority.
- Henry was able to do this through bodies such as the Council Learned in Law which
specialised in exploiting prerogative rights and feudal dues on behalf of the crown
o So successful that Henry’s revenue was an average of £104,000 per annum in
1502-3 with 1509 seeing £113,000 being collected.
o The crowns exploitation of wardships of minor nobility also netted considerable
rev. to the extent that Francis Bacon claimed that the royal treasury at Richmond
was worth £1.8million.
Henry used this money to project royal authority e.g. through paying the
Queens fiddler £1 6s 8d or purchasing Jewels for the Queen worth £31 10s
in 1497.
As monarchs in this time were expected to maintain a rich
household to show prosperity + success + reward royal subjects.
- This successful collection of rev Henry could redesign his household at Richmond
Palace to ensure there was a Privy Chamber which could only be accessed by his most
trusted + loyal servants.
- This created competition between nobility to be part of his household to take up
prestigious roles such as the Groom of the Stool.
Foreign policies
, - Ensuring national security was most important, because if Henry was overthrown by one
of the pretenders e.g. Lambert Simnel / Perkin Warbeck – this would abolish his rule
entirely.
- The Treaty of Etaples in 1492 was important – brought national security = secure Tudor
succession as it was a peace settlement which saw France withdraw support for Perkin
Warbeck. This was significant as England + France had been traditional enemies, as seen
in the Hundred Years War.
- Henry’s foreign policy = make links with strong European powers which ↑ + continued
dynasty.
o = Henry gains international recognition + secured marriage alliance between
Prince Arthur + Catherine of Aragon in 1501.
Trade
- 1485 Navigation Acts
o Encouraged English shipping by stipulating that goods to the mother country must
only be carried in ships from that country.
o E.g. forbade the transportation of Gascony wine to England in anything other than
English ships.
o = encouraging English ship building + saved expense of hiring foreign ships to
carry English goods.
o = thus customs revenue ( by 20% by the end of his reign)
- Burgundy
o = important place for good relations – Antwerp = ‘the commercial metropolis of
Europe’ (Coleman).
o 1493 Max banned English traders using Burgundy due to support for Warbeck.
o 1496 = Henry restored relationship through Intercursus Magnus = Phillip withdrew
all support for Warbeck.
This treaty ended the embargo = English merchants could trade anywhere.
o 1506 = Intercursus Malus = failed // the Magnus kept a solid basis for trading
relations throughout rest of his reign.
- Hanseatic League
o He struggled to limit their power.
o Before his reign, Hansa enjoyed near-monopolistic rights over some goods due to
treaty of Utrecht (1474).
o // he tried to limit their privileges e.g. 1489 = prohibited Hansas exportation of
bullion.
o = successful
o // 1504 = supported Act restoring all Hansa’s privileges in attempt to gain custody
of Suffolk.
Marriage alliances
- 1489 Medina del Campo
o Due to Brittany crisis – Henry attempted to restore lost English lands from Brittany
e.g. Normandy.
He enlisted the support of Spain – Isabella + Ferdinand.
// unsuccessful – their focus on the Moors.
, = he did establish his dynasty through the betrothal of his son, Prince
Arthur to Catherine of Aragon + secure his name in Spain (strong foreign
power).
o Despite Arthurs death in 1502, longer term this alliance arguably led to the
marriage of Henry VII’s second son, in 1509 = further securing his dynasty after
his death.
- 1502 Treaty of Perpetual Peace
o 1495 = James IV came of age = sought personal glory = sense of fear as
neighbouring country.
o Fear exemplified with arrival of Warbeck.
o Established the betrothal between Margaret + King James IV.
o Took place in 1503 = brought sense of security over Scottish border.
// despite being success, needs to be understood Henry had proposed this
marriage years before with Margarets birth in 1489 – and this marriage
was only in response to Spain’s input.
= perhaps an inability for him to quickly + successfully get marriage
alliances = by his inability to secure his own after Elizabeths death in
1503.
Control over nobility
- Council Learned in Law held (46/62 of the nobility)
o = job was to maintain the king’s revenue by exploiting Henry’s prerogative rights.
o = they created the system of Bonds + Recognisances.
o Bonds
Bonds ensured loyalty through requiring the nobility to pay a sum of
money if they failed to meet certain conditions e.g. through behaving well.
In 1507, Lord Burgavenny was convicted of illegally retaining 471
men + was fined £70,550. However, instead of just receiving the
gain of finances, Henry also ensured his power by placing him
under a bond of £5000 for 10 years.
// it must be considered that bonds didn’t always ensure the
continuation of loyalty – Lord Burguvenny = prosecuted in years
1503, 1507 and 1503 for this same crime.
o Recognisances
= a formal acknowledgment of debt/ obligations that already exist.
Due to abandoning Henry prior to the BofB, the Marquis of Dorset
was required to pay £1000 + was expected to find others to pay
£10,000 on his behalf.
However, despite his power, when in need of his support, Henry
used him when he needed to e.g. to put down the Cornish Rebellion
of 1489.
- Acts of Attainders
-
Ending support of pretenders
, - Henry understood the threat of pretenders at first hand: he himself had been a
pretender, invading England from France in 1485.
- Lambert Simnel (1487)
o Being passed off as Earl of Warwick – who had been imprisoned by Henry.
o He was crowned as King Edward in Ireland in May 1487.
o Put together by John de La pole, Earl of Lincoln = Yorkist claimant.
o Henry had the real Earl of Warwick exhibited in London.
o Fled to Margaret of Burgundy – she paid for a force of mercenaries to invade
England.
o Battle of Stoke Field, 1487.
Henry won = brought an end to the War of the Roses (success).
- Edmund De la Pole (1501-06)
- The measures Henry took to defeat Pretenders was great – seen by the significant
monetary cost of ensuring his return.
o Gave the Habsburg in total c. £250,000 in ‘loans’ as well as receiving a further
loss of income through suspension of trade with them in 1505.
o Hence being such a large success when Suffolk was given back to Henry in 1506.
o // It can be argued that what Henry lost in terms of train to secure him wasn’t
worth the gain from stopping him.
- Perkin Warbeck (1491-99)
o Weaker claim than him // vast support from foreign powers.
o 1495 = support from Young James IV
Sep 1496 = James IV backed Warbeck with an invasion across the border.
Scotland destroy defences e.g. Twizel // retreated when Lord Neville was
sent.
Warbeck only received support from 1400 men = thus showing threat of
pretenders = exaggerated.
Consolidation of power
- Coronation was as soon as possible in October 1485 + very grand. The nobility had to
swear an oath to the King + it signified God’s acceptance in him being king – going
against oath = ging against King.
- He met parliament in November = after = showing he became king due to God, not
because parliament made him king.
- Backdated his reign from 21st August 1485 to the day before Bosworth was won = those
who fought against him could be tried as a traitor.
- Earl of Warwick, a Yorkist with better claim was left in TofL.
- Married Eizabeth of York on Jan 1486 = uniting of the 2 houses = brought end to the wars
of the rose.
