HENRY VII

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HENRY VII AND CONSOLIDATION OF POWER

Becoming King:

Weak claim to the throne:

Mother direct descendant of John of Gaunt, EIII

Weakened by fact that children were illegitimate

Grandmother the widowed Queen of England = married to HV before marrying into Tudor family

Became main Lancastrian heir during WotR

Exile:

Moved to Brittany to avoid war

EIV saw him as a threat and tried to secure his return, but failed

1483 = EIV dies, leaving RIII as regent to EV, who mysteriously died with his brother, allowing RIII to proclaim himself as king

RIII seizure caused further disunity, and several failed rebellions (Duke of Buckingham) undermined his authority

HVII initially supported Buckingham but decided to become king himself after Buckingham failed

HVII built up support in Fr, especially Yorkists who resented his reign = HVII bargained to marry Elizabeth of York

HVII gained financial support from CVIII (Fr)

Battle of Bosworth:

Aug 1985 = HVII's army met RIII's

RIII held the better position, but didn't have the loyalty of all his soldiers

Lord Stanley and brother Sir Stanley were reluctant supporters = personal connections to HVIII, as Lord was his stepfather

Stood on the sidelines for most of the battle

Northumberland also waited for outcome to become clear

Stanley took action just before HVII was attacked, attacking RIII, catching him by surprise

RIII was thrown from horse and killed not soon after

The Accession of HVII:

Several claims to challenge his weak ahold of the throne

John and Edmund de la Pole = EIV's nephews

Margaret of Burgundy = EIV's sister, influential in Burgundy, had supported Yorkists

HVII had clear objectives for his reign

Establish and secure throne

Strengthen royal government

Strengthen monarchy and kingdom

Establishment of the Throne:

Officially crowned as king and married to EoY

Coronation = show of authority, show approval of church, ensure loyalty of nobility, true heir not just a battle victor

Marriage = after coronation to show accession was his, not through wife, symbolise the unification of the two houses

Parliament (1485) and Royal Progress (1486)

Handling of the nobility

Supporters well rewarded = placed new titled men in key areas of country, promoted other to high office

Dated his reign from day before BoB = able to treat any opposition as treason, allowing him to imprison Yorkists and strip titles and land

Henry's Character:

Moulded by upbringing

Astute and clear-thinking

Respected, but no popular

Strengthening Royal Government:

Problems facing HVII in England:

Questionable control over the people and nobility

Wealthy nobles were rivals to the crown

Uneven control over the land

Poor finances due to war depletion

Keen to control himself instead of delegating power

Poor reputation due to anxieties and paranoia = 'more feared than loved'

The Nobility:

Biggest challenge = win loyalty while still controlling power and arrogance

Two methods = raise with titles and land, or incite loyalty through fear of consequences

Depended on them to maintain law and order, but they had become over-confident during war

Nobility needed wealth, land and support to thrive, and Henry reduced all during reign

Attainders:

Used to seize titles and possessions from disloyal subjects

Acts passed bt parliament = declared guilty of treason without trial

Willing to reverse attainder and reward subjects if they showed themselves worthy

Became more severe as reign progressed = attainders more frequent, whilst reversals became less so and more expensive for victims

Patronage:

Abandoned policy of distributing lands, decreasing number of nobles during reign

Vacant lands taken in Royal personal lands

When in need of royal agent, he picked lower-class men, who would therefore depend on him for position and status, and were not distracted by loyalties

Attacks on Retaining:

Regarded as a lawless method of control by the nobility

1485 = nobility sworn not to retain illegally

1504 = licences required to retain, with heavy fines

Financial Controls:

Demanded financial bond from individuals/families

Indebted to crown to ensure future loyalty

Forced nobles to behave, or be faced with ruinous fines

Established Council Learned in Law to enforce laws

Local and Regional Government:

Justices of the Peace (JPs) = responsible for public order, implementing laws and dispensing justice

National Government:

Personal government by the king and his advisors

Parliament met infrequently

King ruled mostly through decrees and proclamations

Assumed all power came from the monarch

Royal Council = took advice and deal with day-to-day management

Improvements to Financial Administration:

HVII dealt with finance in the Chamber and Privy Chamber = most important financial institution

Surveyor's of the King's Wards = investigate money owed to him

Council Learned in Law and Star Chamber used to implement law

Cautious and realistic policies = avoided aggressive foreign policy

Ordinary revenue:

Crown lands

Feudal dues

Custom duties

Legal dues

Extraordinary revenue:

Bonds and recognisances

Loans and benevolences

Feudal dues

Clerical taxes

Parliamentary taxes

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REMOVING THREATS TO HENRY'S POWER

Rebellions Against HVII:

Lovell's Rebellion 1486:

Led by Yorkist supporters Lovell, Humphrey, and Stafford

Hidden in sanctuary but emerged in 1486 to gather forces

Rebellion collapsed quickly

Lambert Simnel 1486:

Persuaded to pretend to be Earl of Warwick

Joined by Yorkist claimant Lincoln (John de la Pole), Margaret of Burgundy (2000 men) and 3000 German mercenaries

Proclaimed King Edward VI by followers

Defeated 1487 at the Battle of Stoke

Lincoln (Pole) killed

Yorkish Rebellion 1489:

Caused by attempts to raise funds for Brittany

Northumberland killed

Perkin Warbeck 1491, 1495, 1497:

1491: appears in Ireland

1495: attempts to invade via Kent

1497: third invasion attempt

Pretended to be missing Prince Richard

Gained support of dissatisfied nobles and foreign rulers

Court conspiracy 1494-5:

Scheme to support Yorkist claimant

Scottish raids 1496-7:

Enforced by supporters of Warbeck

Cornish Rebellion 1497:

Tax rebellion

Caused by attempt to raise taxes for Scottish war against Warbeck

Edmund de la Pole 1499:

Leading Yorkist claimant

Flees to Burgundy

Pretenders:

Posed a real threat = showed how the Yorkists could undermine him

Gained a lot of international support

Methods of defense:

Placed ey Yorkists under arrest

Used spies and informants

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RELATIONS WITH OTHER COUNTRIES, 1485-1509

Motivation:

Succession

Lack of money

Trade

Dynastic expansion

Acceptance of Rule and Alliance abroad:

1485 = Fr truce

1486 = Sc truce

1487 = Habsburg Empire truce

1489 = Treaty of Medina del Campo with Sp

Work together to defend land

Ally against Fr

Equal trading rights and fixed custom duties

Arrangements for marriage between Arthur and Catherine

Issues with France:

Difficult position between Fr and Brittany

Fr attacks Bri between 1488 and 1492

If Fr gained Britanny = coast would be ruled by one monarch, south coast and Calais would be vulnerable, disrupted trade

Breton Crisis:

Did not rush into war = expensive and ould annoy Fr

Secretly sent troops while negotiating with Fr

Parliament used to raise funds for a small army

Only acting in defense = no intention of trying to take Fr

Fr retaliated by accepting Warbeck at court

HVII moved more troops in, hoping Fr would give in

Fr was occupied with Italy and gave in

Treaty of Etaplés (1492)

HVII left Fr

Fr would pay 745,000 crowns = 50,000 pa

Fr agreed not to support HVII enemies

Expanding Trade and Exploration:

Aimed to break up the Hanseatic League

Navigation Acts (1485-6) = use of English ships only to carry goods

Promote the Merchant Adventurers (London)

1490 treaty with Venice allowed trade in the Meditteranean

Intercursus Magnus 1496 = allowed England to trade freely in all of Burgandy except Flanders

Spanish alliance aimed to encourage exploration of the New World

Built up small naval fleet of good quality

Cabot discovered Newfoundland

Foreign Policy in Last Years:

Death of Arthur and Elizabeth renewed succession worries

Needed to stay allied to Sp and Bu

HVII turned to Bu for wife for Henry, which angered Ferdinand

Ferdinand turns to Fr, where LXII is welcoming and arranges marriage to niece

League of Cambrai set up against Venice, but isolated England

How Successful was HVII's Foreign Policy?

Gained security from invasion, recognition in Europe, secured English trade

Curbed aspirations towards exploration due to finances

The Last Decade of HVII's Reign:

Achieved aims:

Established dynasty = Arthur and Catherine marriage

Defeated enemies

Strengthened government

Reduced dependency on nobility

Unpopular at time of death:

Death greeted with relief

Ministers seen as cruel = arrested 2 days after death and imprisoned

PLague with untimely deaths

Served harsh policies and laws

Renewed Instability:

1500 = Edmund died

1502 = Arthur died = threatened to disrupt relations with Sp, but secured new marriage to Henry after Pope's approval

1503 = Elizabeth died = loss of Yorkist support, loss of any more unification children

Highlighted fleeing of Edmund de la Pole

Harsh Policies:

Weakness of dynasty exposed by untimely deaths

Increased use of control methods

Demands increased with more vigor

Caused a lot of resentment

Death of HVII

Died 1509

Achieved stability, defeated rivals, controlled nobles, improved finances and secured a smooth succession

Secure foundations allowed successes later on in the dynasty

Was more respected than loved

Extent of successes is questionable

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SUMMARY OF HVII

Ended WotR

Established Tudor Dynasty

Used propaganda successfully

Controlled the nobles

Improved Crown's finances

Defeated rebellions

Defeated pretenders

Built up relations with Europe

Ensured legacy was secured

Reputation of fairness but harshness, respected but not loved