Somerset Policies under Edward VI

What Foreign Policy with Scotland did Edward VI inherit from Henry VIII?

• Ongoing war with Scotland

• Treaty of Greenwich (1543) - Marriage alliance between Edward & Mary, Queen of Scots

• Determined to prevent an alliance between France & Scotland

What Foreign Policy with France did Edward VI inherit from Henry VIII?

• £2 million+ spent on the war with France - no real result

• Determined to prevent an alliance between France & Scotland

• France was Henry VIII focus

• Limited success in France with an attempt of French invasion in England

What did the global foreign policy look like when Edward VI became King?

1547 Europe was divided into two camps - Protestant & Catholic

• Catholic camps were not united - England had time to secure their allies

• minor on the throne = weakness

What did the Duke of Somerset want to do regarding foreign policy with France?

Wanted a defensive agreement with France - isolate Scotland (did not happen!)

• Henry II (France) viewed defensive alliances as a sign of national weakness

How did the Duke of Somerset defend Calais and Boulogne?

Royal navy patrolling English Channel

What did the Duke of Somerset want to do regarding foreign policy with Scotland?

10th September 1547: Battle of Pinkie - easily defeated

• army not large enough force to occupy Scotland

What did Scotland do as a response to the Battle of Pinkie?

Solidify an alliance against England

• Scottish nobles met in Stirling and decided to ask for more help from Henry II - willing to offer Mary Queen of Scots to Francis (H2’s son)

Two united enemies!

• appealed for an alliance between England and Scotland - failure: Scotland preferred France

Why did the Duke of Somerset begin to lose interest from his foreign policy? What happened?

Domestic issues!

• gambles on the fact that Charles V would not tolerate France - attacked Haddington castle

• relationships deteriorated between France and Scotland

• England had to withdraw from Scotland: rebellion (1549)

• France could not afford to keep their men in Scotland & Scotland was not in a position to attack England by itself

• RESULT - situation was left in limbo: unresolved

Was Foreign Policy under Somerset successful?

✗- nothing significant achieved

What Social Policy did Edward VI inherit from Henry VIII?

• Population increase

• More peerage titles - under monarch

• Wales (under English framework) representation in Parliament

• Council of North permanent body

What social policy did the Duke of Somerset plan to put into effect in 1547?

Vagancy Act 1547

• if people could not find work within 3 days they would be stamped and sent into slavery for 2 years

• never put into effect - but showed gov concerned with the poor

• issues with enclosure at this time aswell!

What was the Western Rebellion 1549?

“Prayer book rebellion”

• Cornwall & Devon

• Religion - scared their churches were going to be dissolved

3000 killed including leader

• used as propaganda against Catholicism

• illegally killed & state property

What was the Kent Rebellion 1549?

Against enclosure - led by Robert Kent

• offered full pardon, Kent rejected, rebels fetched cannon from coastal defences and attacked Norwhich after Harald’s depature

• Norwich and the herald herdfled back to London

• occupied Norwich, full pardon - 20 responded, Kent left with no option but to attack - Northumberland retreated in disgrace to London

• 5 days - Northumberland’s professional army brought down resistance

Kett tried for treason and hanged (26th Nov) & (only) 49 executions

Was Social Policy under Somerset successful?

✗/✓ - significant amount of social issues but handed accordingly (not always by Somerset)

What Economic Policy did Edward VI inherit from Henry VIII?

• Aggressive foreign policy led to large amounts of money being borrowed and the debasement of coinage

• Trade increases

• Bad Harvests

• Enclosure

Why was the Economic Policy significant for the Duke of Somerset’s rule?

Economic factors helped bring about discontent during Somerset’s period of rule

Who influenced the Duke of Somerset’s Economic Policy and what did it influence him to do?

Influenced by John Hales

• enclosure was the root cause of many of the country’s social and economic issues

• commission to investigate the problem and issued a proclamation against enclosure

• enclosure commissioners were duly appointed - but little was achieved - only raised expectations of the poor

→ rate of enclosure seemed to have slowed down

Why did Taxation cause discontent during the Duke of Somerset’s rule?

Money raised to pay for the Scottish war

Why was enclosure so popular under the Duke of Somerset’s rule?

• increased amounts of enclosure: perceived to be the profits that could be gained by converting land from arable to pasture in order to graze large flocks of sheep - provide wool and cloth for the export marker

• tax on sheep (March 1549): intended to deter the convocation of arable land to pasture

Was Economic Policy under Somerset successful?

✓ - enclosure decreased!

• attempts to help the poor

What Religious Policy did Edward VI inherit from Henry VIII?

• Humanist thought becoming popular and taught in education

• Church of England is protestant, but the sacraments are still there, denial of transubstantiation is heretical

What was the Religious Policy like under the Duke of Somerset?

Inconsistent religious changes

• felt restricted when making religious changes

• began losing favour - only made changes when politically necessary

What were the most relevant religious policies that the Duke of Somerset introduced? (6)

• Book of Homilies (July 1547) - collection of sermons that priests and bishops had to collectively use

• Royal Injunctions (July 1547) - Bible in English, Sermans in English, All images of saints to be removed

• Chantries Act 1547 - dissolutions of chantries, reminds Catholics of the dissolution of the monastries

• Act of 6 Articles and Treason repealed 1547 - marriages of priests, communion of both kinds, removed all heresy and treason act

• 1548: proclamation that brought in to stop unwanted preaching

• First Book of Common Prayer (1549) - gave a uniformed approach to religion, more extreme approaches to religious reforms

Was Religious Policy under Somerset successful?

✗ - inconsistent

• neither Protestants or Catholics were happy - led to rebellions