1.5 New Monarchies: 1450-1648

New Monarchs: What Are They?

  • With the Renaissance, many European monarchs sough to consilidate power by reducing the influence of the Catholic Churhc nad feudal nobility. These New Monards centralized authority in several ways":

  • Limited the Power of the Feudal Aristocracy: New Monarchs weakened the traditional nobility (Nobles of the Sword) and formed alliances with towns and the emerging middle class.

    • Noles of the Robe: A new class of nobility created by NewMonarchs who granted noble titles in exchange for financial support.

    • Nobles of the Sword: The olde aristocratic class, whose status was based on hereditary land ownership and medieval military service.

⭐New Monarchs sought to fund their governments by selling noble titles to the Nobles of the Robe, thereby weakening the traditional power of the Nobles of the Sword.

  • Created Efficient, Centralized Bureaucracies and Systems of Taxiation: New Monarchs developed professional bureaucracies, councils, and committies to codify laws, oversee taxation, and administer justice, reducing reliance on feudal lords.

  • Maintained a Loyal Standing Army Funded by the State: Unlike the medieval period, which depended on feudal lords to provide troops during wartime, New Monarchs established permanent, professional armies directly controlled by the state.

    • Calvary forces were reduced in favor of artillery and infantry

    • France, under Charlies VII, exemplified this shift by creating a permanent professional army.

  • Encouraged and Developed a Sense of National Identity: Strengthened national identity by promoting vernacular languages, state-sponsored propaganda, and common legal codes.

  • Controlled and Regulated the Clergy: New Monarchs reduced the Pope’s influence by increasing royal control over religious institutions within their kingdoms.

  • These policies differentiated New Monarchs from medieval kings, who had been dependent on the Church and feudal lords. By weakening these competing sources of power, New Monarchs laid the groundwork for the modern secular state.

New Monarchs in Spain and England:

Spain: Ferdinand & Isabella

  • After centuries of Muslim rule, Spain was reunified under Iberian customs following the marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella Castile in 1469. Their rule exemplified New Monarchy through several reforms: 

    • Implemented a centralized tax system to strengthen royal finances

    • Excluded the nobility from royal councils to reduce aristocratic influence over policy.

    • Employed the Hermandades, a standing militia loval to the monarchy rather than feudal lords

    • Forced the Catholic Church under royal control through agreements with the Papacy

  • While these policies reflected New Monarchy, Ferdinand and Isabella went further, using religion as a tool of state power.

  • Under the Spanish Inquistion, they expelled Jews in 1492 and Muslims in 1502, enforcing relgious uniformity to solidify national identity under Catholicism.

England: Henry VII & Henry VIII

  • After decades of civil war in England, known as the Wars of the Roses, Henry VII of the Tudor dynasty defeated the House of York in 1485, securing the throne.

    • Eliminated rival nobles who had supported the House of York to strengthen monarchial control.

    • Established the Star Chamber, a royal court in Westminister Palace used to punish disloyal nobles.

    • Strengthened diplomatic ties by arranging the marriage of his son, Henry VIII, to Catherin of Aragon from Spain.

  • Henry VII further expanded royal authority by severing England from the Catholic Church under the Act of Supremacy (1534), which made him the head of the Church of England, marking the beginning of the Anglican Reformation.

The Rise of the Modern Secular State

  • New Monarchs laid the foundation for the modern secular state by reducing the Church’s influence in governance and increasing state control over religious institutions.

    • Treates such as the Peace of Augsburg (1555) and the Edict of Nantes (1598) acknowledged state sovereignity over religion, shifting power from the Pope to monarchs.

    • The Concordat of Bologna (1516) gave the French monarchy control over church appointments, demonstrating how New Monarchs used religion to strengthen state power rather than submitting to papal authority.

    • The decline of feudalism and the rise of centralized bureaucracies paved the way for absolute monarchies and, eventually, modern nation-states.

  • By consildating power, New Monarchs transformed Europe’s political landscape, creating stronger centralized governments that no longer relief on feudal lords or religious institutions for legitimacy.

Important Terms:

  • Spanish Inquistion: A tribunal established by Ferdinand and Isabella to enfore Catholic orthodoxy, leading to the persecution and expulsion of Jews and Muslims.

  • Concordat of Bologna (1516): An agreement between King Francias I of France and Pope Leo X allowing the French king to appoint bishops, strengthening royal control over the Church.

  • Peace of Augsburg (1555): A treaty that ended religious conflict in the Holy Roman Empire by allowing each ruler to determine their state’s religion (Catholicism or Lutheranism)

  • Edict of Nantes (1598): A decree by King Henry IV of France granting religious toleration to Huguenots, ending the French Wars of Religion.