Henry VIII Wolsey

important dates & info yah

(Domestic) Justice

PRO: Increased use of star chamber (12—>120 cases yearly), allowed poorer people to bring cases.

CON: ANGERED NOBILITY, Big backlog, made Sir Amyas Paulet come to court every day as revenge for a personal issue (which showed Wolsey wasn’t so impartial).

(Domestic) Finance

PRO: introduced means based tax called subsidy alongside usual 15ths and 10ths, raised £322,000 as opposed to £118,000 from older system, it was fairer to the less wealthy.

CON: ANGERED NOBILITY, still could not keep pace with spending (around £1.4 million on wars between 1511-1525), slower to calculate and collect.

(Domestic) Enclosures

PRO: 1517, set up inquiry which led to over 260 cases against landowners, seen to stand up for rural poor.

CON: ANGERED NOBILITY, 1523 parliament forced to end Wolsey’s actions

(Domestic) Eltham Ordinances

PRO: Cut Privy Chamber, 12→6, cut no. people who can claim expenses, introduced set meal time at court.

CON: ANGERED NOBILITY, most of the 79 chapters weren’t enacted

(Domestic) Amicable Grant

1525, demanded one off payment in order to pay for the invasion of France post-Battle of Pavia, preceded by forced loans in 1522 & 1523, didn’t gain approval from Parliament, everyone was given 10 weeks to pay with priests having to give 1/3 of their income and 1/6 for everyone else.

May 1525, full scale revolt broke out in Suffolk, 10,000 men met, dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk negotiated surrender, Henry claimed he was unaware which caused a rift between Henry and Wolsey arguably for the first time. The Plan to invade France was abandoned.

(Foreign) Treaty of London

PRO: Non-aggressive pact with “universal peace” signed in London - led to prestige and influence for both Wolsey and England in general, Wolsey was made Papal Legate, signed by 20 leaders, including the Pope.

CON: No war or prospect of land in France, by 1521 the war between France/Hapsburgs had restarted due to the death of Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian in 1519.

(Foreign) Field of Cloth of Gold

PRO: 2 weeks of feasting and jousting, fountain of wine, gold tent, 6000 English attended, both leaders showed off wealth — prestige and influence

CON: No decisions or relations came out of it, Henry and Francis demonstrated a cold relationship — including an unplanned wrestling match (in where Henry loses, demands a rematch and loses again).

(Foreign) War with France

PRO: Nothing really

CON: 1523, Suffolk & 11,000, troops were let down by the Duke of Bourbon.

1522 and 1523, Charles V had promised to join the English attacks with his soldiers but did not do so.

1525, Battle of Pavia, Charles defeats Francis without England’s involvement

Cost £430,000

(Foreign) Treaty of More

1525, makes peace between England and France — entails Henry giving up his claims in France and it angers some members of English nobility

(Foreign) Battle of Pavia negatives

1525, Charles refuses to share his spoils with England, Henry attempts to raise money to invade France (which fails) with the Amicable Grant

(Foreign) League of Cognac

1526, Wolsey helps build it to defeat Charles but England doesn’t join

(Foreign) Treaty of Westminster

1527, Wolsey signs it which strengthens English-French relations against Charles, the treaty itself; threatened to fight Charles if he didn’t improve relations with neighbouring countries

(Foreign) Henry begins to seek a divorce from Catherine

1527, Henry begins pressing for an annulment from Catherine of Aragon

(Foreign) France and England declare war on Charles over Italy

1528, English troops don’t fight

(Foreign) Battle of Landriano

1529, Charles defeats Francis decisively again

(Foreign) Treaty of Cambrai

August 1529, England not invited by France and Habsburgs.

(Annulment, reason) Believed marriage was illegal

Catherine was married to his brother Arthur, Pope given dispensation for her to remarry Henry as initial marriage not consummated, Leviticus states that “they shall be childless” - Henry made the link to lack of male children.

(Annulment, reason) “Needed” male heir

Sources suggest Catherine had 5 miscarriages/stillbirths, by 1524 Henry did not sleep with Catherine, he believed a lack of a male heir would cause instability after his death, he had an illegitimate son (Henry Fitzroy) so the problem “couldn’t be him”.

(Annulment, reason) Anne Boleyn

Refused to sleep with Henry as his mistress, the two exchanged love letters, was much younger than Catherine of Aragon, was related to Norfolk - one of Henry’s closest advisors and friends

(Annulment, failure) Catherine’s opposition

She insisted she didn’t consummate the marriage with Arthur, she refused to become a nun, she wrote to her nephew - Charles V - through the imperial ambassador, she made an impassioned speech at the Blackfriars court.

(Annulment, failure) Power of Charles V

1525-29, Charles V dominated Italy and intimidated the Pope.

1527 he sacked Rome, the Pope was an effective prisoner of Charles

(Annulment, failure) Weakness of Leviticus line

Didn’t work as long as Catherine insisted she did not consummate marriage to Arthur, could be counter argued with passage from Deuteronomy - saying the opposite to Leviticus, Church unlikely to condemn the decision of a previous Pope

(Annulment, failure) Support for Catherine in England

Bishop John Fisher and Thomas More, the large majority of the English public were sympathetic to her especially with her speech at the Blackfriars court

(Annulment, failure) Wolsey’s personal failures

Couldn’t make use of his role as Papal Legate to influence the Pope’s decision, tried and failed to get cardinals to agree annulment against Pope’s will whilst he was imprisoned in 1527, failed in attempt to gain annulment on technicality of the original wording of the papal dispensation, led Henry to believe that getting case heard in Engalnd would work - but it didn’t.

(Annulment, failure) Pope/Campeggio

Pope Clement had received love letters between Herny and Anne so he knew the full story of the annulment, didn’t want to upset Henry OR Charles, ordered Campeggio to stall for time, Campeggio opened case in Oct 1528 with him suspending it again in Jul 1529

(Wolsey’s Fall) Henry lost faith in him

“Mistake” over switching sides in 1525 from Charles to Francis, the Amicable Grant, failure to deliver annulment + persuaded by Anne/Boleyn Faction that Wolsey was not trying

(Wolsey’s Fall) Enemies in nobility

Disliked due to birth status, attitude and behaviour as chief minister, and foreign and domestic policies

(Wolsey’s Fall) Boleyn Faction

Anne’s father (Thomas) and brother (George) were key members of the nobility - her uncle (Norfolk) was also involved, convinced Henry that Wolsey was deliberately disrupting annulment proceedings

(Wolsey’s Fall) Anne Boleyn

Personally disliked Wolsey over his role in breaking up her previous engagement (on Henry’s orders!), disliked Wolsey’s religious status (she was Protestant), blamed Wolsey specifically for her inability to marry Henry