Author: Lawson, Becky

A crisis in mid-Tudor England?

The aim of this work is to help you understand what historians mean by the term mid-Tudor crisis. The views of historians have changed over time over this issue. The views of historians about mid-sixteenth century England have changed and they use the ideas of crisis and the development of the State to explain events. By examining the problems created by political, social, economic and religious change you should be able to come to a decision about whether there was a mid-Tudor crisis

Mid-Tudor England 1540-1558
Henry VIII
In 1540 the fall of Thomas Cromwell, Henry’s chief advisor in the 1530’s, heralded a period of increased political instability. There was a growth in the rivalry between factions act court. The main issue lay between the Reformists who supported reform in politics and religion, and the Conservatives who were opposed to reform. The rivalry between these two factions began in 1534 when Henry broke away from the Roman Catholic Church and made himself Supreme Head of the Church in England. Since then the ruling elites had been split over the issue of whether the English Church should remain essentially Catholic or become Protestant.
The reformists
The reformists were led by Archbishop Cranmer and Edward Seymour, later Duke of Somerset, the uncle of Prince Edward. The reformists were unhappy with the Anglo-Catholicism established by Henry VIII and Cromwell in 1534. They wanted the church in England to become Protestant
The conservatives
The Conservatives were headed by Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk, and Stephen Gardiner, Bishop of Winchester. Some conservatives wanted the church to return to Roman Catholicism, but the majority were content to continue Anglo-Catholicism established by Henry VIII. The conservatives were united in opposing a Protestant Church in England.
Disputes between the factions
The disgrace and execution of Cromwell, the architect of the Reformation, had been a success for the conservatives. This was confirmed by Henry’s marriage to Catherine Howard, the Duke of Norfolk’s niece. The conservatives hoped to influence the King and the shaping of royal policy via his new wife. However, Catherine’s trial and execution for adultery in 1542 marked a victory for the reformists. In seeking out the evidence to destroy her, the reformists hoped to ruin the reputation of both Norfolk and Gardiner.
For the next five years the two factions strove for supremacy at court. Henry’s final marriage to Catherine Parr, a committed Protestant, showed that the conservatives were losing ground. In 1546 the reformists gained a decisive advantage when the Duke of Norfolk was arrested and put in the Tower of London on a charge of treason, and Stephen Gardiner was dismissed from the Privy Council. It was against this background that Edward VI, brought up as a Protestant, came to the throne in 1547.
Some historians see these disputes between the factions as a sign of increasing dynastic weakness. Others argue that factions were a normal part of Tudor politics and that such rivalry was necessary for a healthy government.
Nevertheless, the fact remains that Henry VIII’s death marked the beginning of 11 years of less stable government and this has prompted many historians to see it as a period of crisis.

Key words
Faction - a group of people who have come together for a common political cause, usually to advance or prevent a particular development
Protestant - Used to describe those who had protested against and separated from the Roman Catholic Church
Anglo-Catholicism– Used to describe the English Catholic Church set up in 1534 with the King as its head rather than the pope.
Reformation - Used to describe the religious changes of the 16th Century in England and continental Europe.
Privy Council - Elite body of councillors drawn from the nobility and more powerful gentry who met the monarch on a regular basis to offer their advice, frame laws and govern the country

Edward VI: the Somerset years 1547-9
Henry VIII was succeeded by his 9 years old son Prince Edward, his son by his third wife Jane Seymour. This was a problem in itself because Edward was too young to rule, and periods of minority government (government by councillors when the ruler is a child or minor) were often times of potential political unrest. Henry had tried to prevent trouble by establishing a Regency Council led by Edward Seymour, Edward’s uncle. Edward Seymour quickly gained control of the Council and, under his new title of Lord Protector Somerset (he had been made Duke of Somerset by his young nephew) ruled the country until 1549. During this time the political situation deteriorated steadily. Whether this was caused by Somerset’s lack of ability or by the numerous difficulties which he had to overcome is hotly debated by historians.
Three major problems were inherited from the policies of Henry VIII:
Religious policy—Should the Church of England remain essentially Catholic or become more Protestant? Somerset inherited a divided church that lacked decisive leadership and a clear direction. Somerset himself was a moderate Protestant, as were most members of the Regency Council, whereas Edward VI, despite his youth, favoured more radical changes. However, powerful politicians such as the Duke of Norfolk and Bishop Gardiner were opposed to change, and such differences only increased the in-fighting among the political factions.
Foreign policy—Should the war with France and Scotland begun by Henry VIII in 1542 be continued or stopped? Somerset inherited a war that Henry had hoped would secure the marriage of Edward VI to the young Mary Queen of Scots. Although the government was already bankrupt, Somerset continued the war and thereby further crippled the country’s finances. At the same time he strove to continue Henry’s policy of keeping on good terms with Charles V, ruler of Spain and the Holy Roman Empire, for fear of provoking him into war
Economic policy—Should the economy, which had been neglected by Henry VIII, be reformed or left to repair itself? Somerset inherited an English economy that was in a very weak condition. Population levels had been increasing rapidly since the 1530s, causing prices to rise and making it difficult for young people to find work. The problem was made worse by the fall in demand for English textiles abroad, which caused growing unemployment among cloth workers. By 1549 there was widespread discontent among the mass of the population, leading to a large-scale popular uprising in Norfolk and the West Country.
Although the rebellions were eventually supressed, Somerset’s enemies on the Council seized the opportunity to overthrow him and take power.

Edward VI: the Northumberland years 1550-53
From the ensuing power struggle John Dudley, Earl of Warwick, emerged as the new leader. He was made Duke of Northumberland and Lord President of the Council. He ruled the country as the Lord President Northumberland for the remainder of Edward’s reign. While Northumberland seems to have adopted more practical policies than Somerset there is some debate as to whether he was any more successful in overcoming the problems that faced the country.
Although the popular discontent had subdued, Northumberland faced the same problems as his predecessor. These problems were three-fold:
Foreign policy—Somerset’s fall from power caused a temporary breakdown in military leadership. This enabled the French to gain the initiative in the war and they went on the offensive. This, combined with a lack of money, formed Northumberland to make peace with both France and Scotland. This annoyed many of the ruling elites who thought that this was a humiliating climb-down
Religious policy—At the same time, possibly to secure support of Edward VI, Northumberland allowed increasingly radical reforms to be introduced into the Church of England. For example, altars were ordered to be removed and the church service was remodelled on the Lutheran system of worship. Such a move not only angered the Catholic elites at home, but also antagonised Emperor Charles V, England’s major continental ally, who was an active supporter of the Roman Catholic Church
Economic policy—Northumberland had learned from Somerset’s mistakes and introduced measures to try to restore stability. The Privy Council and the government were reorganised, finances were reformed, and debts created by the war began to be paid off. Although the economic situation continued to worsen, new poor laws were introduced to help the poorest sections of society

Northumberland and Lady Jane Grey
Whether Northumberland would have succeeded in establishing himself firmly in power is a matter of speculation because Edward VI died in 1553. This created an immediate constitutional crisis. Under Henry VIII ‘s will, Mary, the daughter of his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, was to succeed if Edward died childless. However, Mary was a devout Roman Catholic and it was feared that she would restore the authority of the Pope and so end the royal supremacy over the Church of England.
In an effort to prevent this, Northumberland tried to change the succession by disinheriting Mary and her younger sister Elizabeth, the daughter of Henry VIII’s second wife, Anne Boleyn. Instead the crown was to pass to Lady Jane Grey, the Protestant granddaughter of Henry VIII’s sister Mary. Moreover, to secure his own position, Northumberland arranged for Lady Jane Grey to marry his son Guilford Dudley.
The plot seemed to have succeeded and Jane was crowned Queen, but the ruling elites, both Catholic and Protestant, rallied to the support of Mary. Whether they did this through dislike of Northumberland or preserve the legitimate succession is not clear. Northumberland was arrested and quickly executed. Early in 1554 Lady Jane Grey and Guildford Dudley were also executed.

Mary Tudor 1553-58
Until quite recently, historians dismissed Mary as lacking political experience and leadership qualities. In addition, she is also accused of being overzealous in her support of Roman Catholicism and Spain. Certainly, by the end of her reign her religious and overseas policies had made her widely unpopular. However, it is now suggested that her reign was not altogether disastrous, and that, but for her early death, her policies might have succeeded.
Mary was widely popular on her accession and ad the full support of Parliament. Her two major objectives were:
To return England to Roman Catholicism
To create closer links with the Hapsburgs, her mother’s family headed by the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V
Before Mary could achieve her primary objective of returning England to the Roman Catholic Church she had first to secure an alliance with the most influential ruling Catholic family in Europe, the Hapsburgs. Mary believed that an alliance with the Hapsburg rulers of the Holy Roman Empire, Spain and the Netherlands would strengthen her religious position both at home and abroad. To achieve this she proposed to marry Charles V’s son Philip II of Spain. Although the Council and Parliament somewhat reluctantly agreed to the marriage, there was increasing opposition to the proposal. Many of the ruling elites feared that England would be dominated by Spain and drawn into the Habsburg wars against France.
With the Habsburg alliance secured, Mary began the task of restoring the Church of England to Roman Catholicism. In the first year of her reign, Parliament agreed to repeal (cancel) and thereby ignore all the Protestant legislation passed under Edward. Nevertheless, many of the ruling elites had misgivings about such a policy. Some disliked the idea of the royal supremacy over the church being ended, while others feared that they might have to return the church lands which had been sold off to the ruling elites during the reigns of Henry VIII and Edward VI. In the end, Mary had to compromise, and although papal authority was restored, no attempt was made to reclaim any church lands that had been sold. At the same time, the Marian government began another round of financial reform to reduce costs and increase revenues, and initiated a thorough review of the navy.
Before any benefits could be gained from these reforms the reign was overtaken by events. The persecution and execution of Protestants made Mary increasingly unpopular with all levels of society. Popular discontent was made worse by the steadily worsening economic situation and rising unemployment. Anti-Spanish feelings rose to fever pitch when Philip II, despite his promises to the contrary, involved England in his war with France. As a result, Calais, England’s last continental possession , was lost to the French. Mary’s death in 1558 was greeted with just as much enthusiasm as had been her accession five years earlier.

Historiography

What is meant by historiography?
Historiography means how has the past been interpreted by historians. Therefore, when historians study a particular event or period in history, mainly through the reading and interpretation of original sources, they naturally record their own opinions in print. In this way, historical information is compiled alongside historian’s opinions, which together , builds into a body of work.
Over time, successive generations of historians studying the same event or period in history change their opinions and in doing so they might disagree with or even criticise what previous historians have thought or written. The historians who first study and publish their opinions or interpretations on a historical event or period establish the orthodox or traditional view of that history. The historians that come after and who disagree with their predecessors are usually referred to as revisionists because the revise earlier interpretations.

The Whig interpretation
Until the Second World War English historical writing was still largely dominated by the Whig interpretation of history. They middle of the sixteenth century was seen as a ‘dead’ period between the exciting changes under Henry VIII and the consolidation and expansion of the reign of the reign of Elizabeth I. This was because Whig historians of the 19th century did not see any great or ‘progressive’ events taking place in England at this time. They therefore regarded the reigns of both Edward and Mary as unimportant. Whig historians assumed that events were shaped by ‘great’ men. This attitude has created the traditional view of the period, and the years between 1547 and 1558 have tended to be seen in terms of personalities rather than events.
The major and tragic figures have been the dying boy king and the haunted, half-Spanish Mary, driven for love for Philip II and the Catholic religion to commit atrocities against her Protestant subjects. In the background lurked the obscure and slightly sinister figures of the Lord Protector Somerset and the Lord Northumberland, one provoking popular rebellion and the other plotting to seize the crown. These were the people who thought to have created history and little attention was given to the mass of the population, or the underlying issues that shaped events.

Why was the period between 1547 to 1558 seen as being a crisis?
Although Henry VIII had made careful provision for the succession of his young son Edward, the prospect of a minority posed a serious threat to the stability of the government, particularly as the factions at court were deeply divided over religious issues. This certainly represented a potential crisis for the state, which might have led to civil war, or invasion by a foreign power to restore Catholic religion.
As well as these political difficulties , England faced a number of long-term socio-economic problems. By the beginning of the 16th Century the English population had begun to recover from the worst effects of the Black Death in 1349 and the subsequent plague cycle. Rising population forced rents up and food prices and made it difficult to find work, causing distress among the urban and rural poor. These difficulties were made worse in the middle of the century by the temporary decline in the English cloth trade, which threw large numbers of people out of work.
Popular unrest was increased by the rapidity of religious changes between 1547 and 1550—from Anglo-Catholicism to Protestantism—as many people felt that their old, traditional way of life was under threat. This was reflected in the growing tension between the different classes. Many felt that landowners and richer tenant farmers were using the commercial and religious situation to their advantage.
So, by 1547, England seemed to be in a precarious position with possible conflict among the ruling elites, the threat of foreign invasion, a failing economy and rising popular discontent.

New approaches to the historical debate
Most historians have recently become suspicious of general theories, particularly of crisis. They have come to the view that history should be seen in terms of separate crises occurring in individual countries or regions at different times without any common linkage or cause. Although this does not necessarily rule out a mid-Tudor crisis, the concept is now no longer fashionable.
Continued research has led to considerable revision of ideas about all aspects of the reigns of Edward and Mary. Far from a danger of collapse, Mid-Tudor government is now considered to show considerable strength in overcoming a series of potentially damaging difficulties. Religious change is similarly seen as having been achieved with remarkably little disruption when compared with developments on the continent. Although there was popular unrest this is thought to have been caused by economic stresses rather than any weaknesses on the part of the authorities. The major crisis point is now thought to have been the economy, which suffered not only from government mishandling, but also from a whole range of long and short term problems.