Economic and Social Changes in England under Henry VIII

Population of England in Henry VIII's reign

About 3 million.

Population of England by 1600

Over 4 million.

Increase in woolen cloth exports during Henry VIII's reign

Almost doubled.

Percentage of cloth exports transported by English merchants by the 1550s

70%.

Defendants investigated for illegal enclosure by Wolsey after Thomas More's Utopia in 1516

At least 188.

Publication year of Thomas More's Utopia

1516.

Legislation passed by Henry VIII in 1534 regarding enclosure

Legislation to limit sheep ownership and engrossing.

Areas with greatest growth in the cloth industry in the first half of the Sixteenth Century

West Riding of Yorkshire, East Anglia, and parts of the West Country.

Number of blast furnaces producing iron ore in the Weald of Sussex and Kent by the middle of the Sixteenth Century

26.

Years when Henry VIII began debasing the coinage

1544-1546.

Years when bad harvests led to a significant increase in food prices

1520-1521 and 1527-1529.

Rise in food prices during Henry VIII's reign

Almost doubled.

Number of migrants moving to London each year due to unemployment and rural changes

Over 5000.

Fraction of Coventry's population with no personal wealth during assessments for subsidies

Over half.

Fraction of Yarmouth's population with no personal wealth during assessments for subsidies

About a third.

Year when the population began to grow significantly, causing economic distress

1525.

Decade when the sale of monastic land massively increased wealth, especially for the gentry

1530s.

Period when Robert Thorne was involved in the Iceland and Newfoundland fishery

During Henry VIII's reign, though less supported by the crown.

Period when Sebastian Cabot spent most of his time in Spain apart from two short visits to England

Henry VIII's reign (early to mid-1500s).

Discovery of Newfoundland and its fishing grounds

At the end of Henry VII's reign, in the late 15th century.

Time when the Spanish and Portuguese dominated the New World discovered by Christopher Columbus

By the time Edward VI took the throne in 1547.

Year when John Guy argued that England was more economically expansive and optimistic than at any time since the Roman occupation

Late 1500s, under the Tudors.

Years when agricultural prices rose significantly, leading to increased farming incomes

From the 1520s.

Decade when real wages began to decline for many, particularly at the end of Henry VIII's reign

1540s.

Major problem in England's agriculture by 1525

Growing population, coupled with stagnating wages.

Duration of Southampton's boom in trade with Venice

Until the mid-16th century.

Period when agriculture changed significantly, contributing to wealth disparities

Early to mid-1500s.

Years when legislation was passed against enclosure

1489 and 1515.

Year when Henry VIII executed the Duke of Buckingham for treason

1521.

Year when Henry Pole (Baron Montague) and Henry Courtenay (Marquis of Exeter) were executed for treasonable conspiracy

1538.

Year when Thomas Fiennes (Baron Dacre of the South) was hanged for murder

1541.

Year of The Pilgrimage of Grace rebellion

1536.

Year when Henry VIII granted a general pardon to the Pilgrimage of Grace rebels

1536.

Year when Henry VIII executed rebel leaders like Robert Aske

1537.

Year when Wolsey investigated enclosure following Thomas More's Utopia

1515.

Year when enclosure legislation attempted to limit sheep ownership and engrossing

1534.

Population of England in 1540 according to John Guy

5000 gentry families.

Number of people in Yorkshire who resisted the Amicable Grant in 1525

1000 people.

Number of rebels who gathered in Norfolk and Suffolk to resist the Amicable Grant

4000 rebels.