Henry vii - government

how many people attended the council overall?

227

how small was the real council?

6/7 people

functions of the council ?

• advise the king

• administer the real on kings behalf

• make legal judgements

name two important people in the royal council ?

• John morton

• Richard Fox

• Reginald Bray

what was reginald bray’s role?

duchy of Lancaster

who was henry’s most influential advisor?

Lady Margaret Beaufort

how many times did the council meet in henrys reign?

5 - about war/rebellion

aims of the council learned

• exploit forgotten prerogative rights

• maintain kings revenue

when did the council learned develop?

second half of henry’s reign

who made the system of bonds and recognisances?

council learned

what were bonds?

a legal document that bound an individual to another to perform an action or forfeit a sum of money if failed to do so.

what were recognisances ?

formal acknowledgment of a debt/obligation which could be enforced by means of financial penalty.

how did the council learned make people feel?

angry, fearful, frustrated, unliked

who ran the council learned?

Bray and Dudley (then Empson in 1503)

where did Henry have a strong/weak hold in England

strong - south and east

weak - north

what was unique about Henry’s court?

it was based off those of France and burgundy

what was the medieval monarchy?

a personal monarchy

what were the privy chambers

private rooms where staff saw to the king’s personal needs, manned by lower staff (not nobels)

when did Henry rely on the privy chamber more?

after Stanleys betrayal in 1495

functions of parliament

• pass laws

• grant taxation to the crown

who made up the House of Lords

lords spiritual and lords temporal

who made up the House of Commons

two MPs from each county and borough

representatives from both universities

how many parliaments did Henry call overall?

7 - five in the first 10 years // and then two in the last 14 years

what did parliament help pass?

Acts of Attainders, which declared people guilty without trial if alive, and property to the crown if dead

when and what was the act of resumption?

1486

returned all the land the crown had given out since 1455

when did parliament grant extra taxation?

1489 - Brittany

1491/2 - France

when did Henry make the star chamber ?

1487

when were the acts of attainder passed?

1. 1487 - after battle of stoke

2. 1489 - northern rebellion

3. 1495 - betrayal of William Stanley

why had the number of magnates reduced?

war of the roses, whose land had then fallen to the crown

who had power in the north?

stanleys (NW)

earl of northumberland (NE and Yorkshire)

what happened with the earl of northumberland

killed in 1489

Henry decided to bring the earl of Surrey out of the tower, who proved to be loyal for 10 years.

what did JPs do?

maintained law and order out in the countryside

how many times a year did JPs meet?

4 to administer justice through quarter sessions

why were JPs appointed

• sense of duty

• hoped this role would open and path to greater advancement and local prestige

what acts of attainder passed that helped JPs?

gave more power to JPs in 1495

what was the purpose of the star chamber?

prosecute rioting, rebellion, retaining and corruption of peace

also heard petitions against other court rulings

how much of the county did JPs contribute?

18%

flaw of the star court?

undermined Henry’s reputation for justice

what was the court of chancery

heard cases about feudal disputes and complaints about crown rulings

could the king be sued

no, but the court of chancery could offer compensation for some cases

what was the court of equity

monarch could dispense justice if a court couldn’t deal with a crime adequately

name crown income sources

• crown lands

• profits from feudal dues

• custom revenue

• pensions from other powers

• profits of justice

• extraordinary revenue

example of extraordinary revenue

bonds and recognisances

benevolences and loans

how did Henry promote trade?

• passed navigation acts in 1485/1489

=no English merchants could use foreign ships to transport goods if an English ship was free (boosted trade)

• in 1489 = export of English wool was limited

• 1496 = signed intercursus Magnus, which was an important trade deal with Burgundy

how much did Henry receive from extraordinary revenue ?

£400,000

how much did Henry leave when he died?

plate and jewels = £300,000

cash = £10,000