How did Henry VII build up his power?

Kept nobles under control
1. Attainders
  1. Special laws passed by parliament which meant a person could be charged for treason without trial
    1. 46/138 attainders were reversed
    2. Secured loyalty because if nobles obeyed Henry their attainders could be reversed
      1. Reversing an attainder would restore land and titles and would secure future loyalty through the gratitude of the victim.
    3. Increased paranoia in the last years of reign
      1. 51 attainders were issued from 1504-09
    4. Attainders would strip nobles' titles and their land
      1. Sir Thomas Tyrell had to pay £1738 for his and his father's attainders to be reversed
2. Patronage
  1. Largely abandoned Edward IV's policy of distributing land to loyal followers
    1. There were a few grants but not enough to create a new group of nobles that could eventually become a threat
      1. Nobility fell by 1/4 during his reign
    2. If royal agents were needed then they were usually given to men of lower standing in the community who owned less land
      1. Men were dependent on Henry for their position and status. They were not distracted by competing loyalties
  2. Special favours given by the monarch (land/position at court) in exchange for loyalty
3. Attacks on retaining
  1. Practice where a nobleman kept a large number of men as his personal staff. Whilst they were meant to be household servants, instead they were gangs of enforcers
    1. Considered to be lawless
  2. Laws passed in 1485 and 1504 against illegal retaining
    1. 1504 Act required nobles to obtain a special licence from the King before they could retain large numbers of people, or they faced huge fines.
      1. Penalty was £5 per month per illegal retainer
    2. Nobles found new ways to avoid fines
      1. Covered up records of the wages paid to servants so that no one knew exactly how many men were being retained.
4. Financial controls
  1. Demanded financial bonds from individual nobles or their families
    1. Placed them in debt to the Crown so they would remain loyal in the future
      1. If they didn't they faced hefty fines
        By the end of Henry's reign 2/3 of nobility were held under bonds
      2. Lord Burgavenny
        Convicted in 1507 of illegally retaining 471 men and fined £70,000
        Henry knew that this amount would bankrupt the Lord so he agreed to place him under a bond to repay £5000 over ten years
        Condition attached said that Burgavenny must not set foot on his family lands in the south-east until the debt was settled
        The Council Learned in the Law acted as a royal debt collector to enforce these controls
        Leading figures: Reginald Bray (until 1503) then Edmund Dudley and Richard Empson
        Universally hated and feared
Propaganda to justify taking the throne
1. Marriage to Elizabeth of York
2. Royal progress to the North in April 1486
  1. Demonstrated royal power and presence to his subjects. Granted justice and favours
3. Dated his reign from 21st of August- day before Bosworth
  1. Allowed him to treat Richard's supporters as traitors
    1. Imprisoned Yorkists with a better claim to the throne than him such as the young Earl of Warwick
4. Supporters rewarded with titles and positions of power
Improved finances
1. Reputation for having a keen financial mind
  1. By the end of his reign, Henry had ensured that the Crown had built up enough annual income to meet its commitments
2. At the beginning of his reign Henry relied on the Treasury and the Exchequer to control royal finances
  1. However, they were clumsy and inefficient.
    1. 1487 onwards, Henry dealt with the admin of finance from the Chamber and the Privy Chamber
      1. Also created the new post of Surveyor of the King's Ward to investigate cases of money owed to him from wardships and a Court of Audit to monitor government spending
3. Financial policies were cautious and realistic
  1. Understood that foreign wars were a drain on funds so avoided an aggressive foreign policy
  2. Income was 20x greater than the richest noble
4. Sources of royal income
  1. Crown Lands
  2. Feudal Dues
  3. Custom Duties
  4. Legal Dues
  5. Bonds and recognisances
  6. Loans and benevolences
  7. Clerical Taxes
  8. Parliamentary taxes
Defeated rebellions
1. Cornish rebellion 1497: second tax rebellion in Henry VII's reign. Caused by his attempts to raise money against a possible Scottish invasion to support Perkin Warbeck
2. Lovell's rebellion: Led by Yorkist supporters, Viscount Francis Lovell, Humphrey and Thomas Stafford. Taken sanctuary from Henry at Colchester but emerged from hiding in 1486 to gather troops against him. Rebellion quickly collapsed.
3. Yorkist rebellion 1489: Located in the area around Thirsk. Called by Henry's attempts to raise money for his Brittany campaign. Earl of Northumberland killed during the rebellion
Married Elizabeth of York
1. Signified the approval of the Church and God Himself
  1. Coronation required the nobility to swear an oath of loyalty to the King, which could not be broken
  2. Took place a week before Parliament met so no one could say that Parliament had helped to make him King
2. Coronation held before wedding so there could be no claim that he had gained the throne through his wife
3. Joined together the Houses of Lancaster and York
  1. Birth of Arthur marked the start of a new dynasty
Dealt with pretenders
1. Lambert Simnel (1475-1525)
  1. Resembled Edward IV and spotted by Richard Symonds (a priest) at age 10/11
    1. Taught to claim he was Richard, Duke of York until his arrival in Ireland. Then he was told to claim to be Earl of Warwick (son of Edward IV) in Ireland, where there was Yorkist support
      1. Simnel was declared to be King Edward VI with the help of Yorkist lords like the Earl of Kildare
  2. Plot was amateurish because Henry was able to produce the real Earl of Warwick from the Tower of London
    1. 2000 soldiers supported Simnel alongside John de la Pole (Earl of Lincoln)
      1. Sourced from Margaret of Burgundy
      2. Start of invasion was May 1487 when they landed at Furness in Lancashire
        Raised little support in the North and then they marched South to meet Henry's army at East Stoke.
        Lincoln and several Yorkist leaders were killed but Simnel was spared and given a job in the royal kitchens
2. Perkin Warbeck (1474-99)
  1. First as appeared as a threat in 1491 in Ireland
    1. Claimed to be Richard of York
      1. Charles VIII of France first recognised his claims and welcomed him to Court in Paris
        In 1492, Charles made peace with Henry after the attempted annexation of Brittany so Warbeck was forced to move on
        Then moved onto Burgundy where Margaret offered support but Maximilian I was too busy in Italy to offer much support
        Warbeck attempted to rouse support in Kent in July 1495 but struggled as a result of the execution of many Yorkists such as Sir William Stanley
        Moved onto Scotland where he married King James' cousin and received £1,200 as income
        King James' attempt to invade England on Warbeck's behalf failed in 1497 and Warbeck fled to Ireland with little to no support left
        Made a full confession in August 1497
        Henry exercised mercy by allowing Warbeck to remain at Court but in 1498 he ran away and was imprisoned in the Tower
        Executed in 1499 when he plotted to escape with the Earl of Warwick
  2. Real name: John Osbeck and born in Tounai and educated in Antwerp
  3. Margaret of Burgundy's support of Perkin Warbeck
Foreign alliances and treaties
1. Treaty of Medina del Campo
2. Military intervention in Brittany to prevent French annexation
  1. War in France
3. English support for anti-French coalitions in the Italian war
4. Trade embargo on goods from Flanders
5. Magnus Intercursus trade agreeement
6. Breton Crisis
7. League of Cambrai
Effective government
1. Local and Regional Government
  1. Effective government relied on having a reliable network of officials throughout the country to carry out the King's laws
    1. Royal control over the kingdom was uneven from place to place so there wasn't one system of local government. Instead, Henry relied on an appropriate solution for each regions
      1. JPs (Justices of Peace) were also appointed from local landowners. Several were picked per county. Responsible for public order, implementing laws, and dispensing justice to criminals brought before them
        Met 4 times per year at Quarter Sessions to try those accused of serious crimes (except treason)
        Powers increased significantly under Henry VII
      2. King's authority was limited in the County of Durham. Palatinate of Durham, the Prince-Bishop governed as a semi-independent ruler
      3. Restored Council of Wales and staffed it with Welsh nobles under the supervision of Jasper Tudor
      4. Earl of Suffolk represented Henry in the North because he had no lands or strong base of support there to rival Henry
2. National Government
  1. Parliament existed but had a minor role
    1. Used sparingly
      1. Mainly during his first decade as King to support him in controversial policies
        Eg. Limitations of traditional privileges of the nobility or new financial demands on his subjects
  2. Most of the time, Henry ruled directly through decrees and proclamations
    1. Belief that all power was derived from the monarch.
      1. Parliament only called to serve him and keep subjects under control.
    2. Royal Council was of more importance
      1. Trusted supporters gave him advice and took n some of the tasks of day-to-day management of the Kingdom

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How did Henry VII build up his power?

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	Created by Izzy Noone about 6 years ago