The Reigns of Edward and Mary

Edward's reign
1. Somerset
  1. Relations with foreign powers
    1. A French/Scottish alliance threatened England, prompting Somerset to invade Scotland, where Scottish forces were trounced at Pinkie.
    2. Somerset tried to enforce a marriage treaty arranged BY Henry between Edward and Mary Queen of Scots
      1. Tried to persuade them to enter a voluntary union
        he destroyed all chances of reconciliation by invading Scotland and defeating the Scots at the Battle of Pinkie (10 Sep 1547), and completely alienated the Scots when he laid waste to SE Scotland.
        Cemented France and Scotland's relationship
  2. Religion
    1. The Book of Common Prayer, the work of Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, was instituted in 1549
      1. Act of Uniformity 1549
    2. Henrician treason and heresy laws were repealed, transforming England into a haven for continental heretics.
      1. Catholics were pleased with the softer version of Protestantism
        radical Protestants clamoured for further reforms
  3. Economy
    1. Economic hardship plagued England during Edward's rule.
      1. The new faith and the dissolution of the monasteries left a considerable amount of ecclesiastical officials out of work
        Enclosure of monastic lands deprived many peasants of their means of subsistence and into poverty
      2. Unemployment soared
      3. Debasement of the coinage
        New coins were minted from inferior metals, as specie from the New World flooded English markets.
  4. Henry VIII's will
    1. Wanted a Council of Regency
      1. To prevent the problems of a minority
        Would govern until Edward came of age
    2. Short sighted and impractical
    3. Earl of Hertford and Sir William Paget planned coup
      1. Hertford, Jane Seymour’s brother and Edward’s uncle, would be made Lord Protector and Paget would be first minister.
        Somerset cared for Edward but also used his role to further his own interests.
        Edward's religious radicalism helped him to pursue his own Protestant interests
  5. Style of ruling
    1. Never allowed the council to function with any degree of autonomy and rarely consulted its members.
    2. Excessively strict with Edward
      1. Limited money and extracurricular pursuits
        Edward particularly cold about him in his journals
    3. He ruled by edict, issuing proclamations to a greater extent than any head of government in the Tudor age.
    4. Fall was inevitable because of his divisive nature that made the nobility hate him
2. Northumberland
  1. Relations with foreign powers
    1. Willing to sacrifice influence in Scotland in order to concentrate on internal issues
    2. Considered that it might be useful in the future to ally with France
      1. Main enemy in the future would be Spain and the Holy Roman Empire during the Counter Reformation
      2. Treaty of Boulange signed in 1550
        Peace with France at the cost of Calais and Boulange
        Had to remove remaining garrisons from Scotland
        Marriage between Edward VI and Henry II of France's daughter, Elizabeth, agreed
        England-Scotland border returned to pre-Henry VIII lines
  2. Rise
    1. Northumberland led the troops who defeated the Kett's rebellion
      1. Had supporters in parliament
    2. Not until 1550 that he was properly in charge.
      1. First had to work to gain sufficient support within the Council
        Did not automatically appear to be successor because he had no direct link with the young King
      2. Gained title, Lord President of the Council
  3. Succession and fall
    1. Lady Jane Grey
      1. 1544 Succession Act stated Edward's heir was Mary
        Posed a problem for Northumberland because if Mary became Queen, he was in danger of being swept away, along with all of his policies.
        To protect himself and the Protestant faith he claimed two things:
        Mary was made illegitimate when Henry's marriage to Catherine of Aragon broke down. The same happened with Elizabeth and the collapse of Henry's marriage to Anne Boleyn. Although both had been officially restored to the succession, these changes had been damaging
        Henry had directed his succession towards his own children but had not set aside the claims that his younger sister's family might make.
        Northumberland decided to ensure that Edward's will did not pass the Crown to either Mary or Elizabeth, but instead to Lady Jane Grey (who had married Northumberland's son in May 1553, six weeks before Edward's death
        Edward signed the agreement days before his death in July 1553 . Northumberland did not have enough time to prepare properly for the succession of Lady Jane Grey, who 'reigned' for nine days before Mary was crowned queen.
        Not enough support for Lady Jane Grey- more support for Mary because she was the traditional choice and followed Henry's line of succession
        Northumberland was imprisoned in the tower and executed in August 1553
        lllustrated the strength of the Tudor dynasty but also how it could easily be interrupted by political disruption.
  4. Religion
    1. Acts and Changes passed
      1. Treason Act 1550
        Re-imposed censorship which helped restore law and order
      2. The Second Act of Uniformity
        Offence for both clergy and laity not to attend Church of England services
      3. 1552 Prayer Book
        Removed all traces of Catholicism and the mass.
        Significance of the Eucharist was reduced, with more emphasis on it being a commemorative ceremony
      4. Sheep tax of 1548 was repealed in 1550
      5. Anti-enclosure legislation was enforced
        Unpopular enclosure commission ended
      6. New Poor Law passed in 1552
        Made parishes responsible for raising money to look after the deserving poor
  5. Economy, Trade and exploration
    1. The population continued to rise
      1. Put more pressure on food supplies and prices
    2. Poor harvests in the 1550s
      1. Increase in grain prices
    3. Cloth trade
      1. Trade with the Netherlands suffered problems.
        Sudden drop in exports in the Summer of 1551 due to a temporary problem with trade at Antwerp
        Led to increased unemployment among textile workers in East Anglia and the West of Englands
    4. Encouraged expansion of trade routes
      1. Less reliant on Europe
      2. By 1553, English ships were trading with the Gold Coast of West Africa
      3. Beginning of English exploration that would continue into the future
3. Royal authority
  1. Figurehead but Somerset (and later Northumberland) had major influence
  2. Protestants in England were happy for the young king's ascension to the throne, but feared what might happen if the boy died.
    1. Fear of a return to Roman Catholicism
4. Rebellions
  1. Kett's Rebelllion
    1. Bad harvest, and rapid-price rises coupled with the belief that govt. ministers were profiting from Edward's inability to rule without a protector
    2. Demands: dismissing inadequate clergy, and those who were non-resident
      1. Suggests they had Protestant and reformer motivations
    3. Gangs emerged in May and June 1549 to break up enclosures
    4. Robert Kett was attacked for his property
      1. Agreed to help rebels and secure their rights
        Rebellion did not march on London but instead Norwich
        Ran a largely peaceful campaign to end enclosures, improve local government and secure better quality clergymen
        At the height of the camp, Kett believed he could call on 15,000 men if the army attacked
        End of August rebellion was defeated in a bloody confrontation that killed a combined total of 4000 men from both sides
        Shook government to its core and gave a reason for Somerset's opponents to imprison him in the tower on October 11th by order of the council.
        Released in Feb 1550 and allowed to rejoin the Privy Council but rumours began to swirl about him rallying support for another grab for power
        Charged with treason, (attempting to assassinate some of his rivals) and executed in January 1552
        Only crime was incompetence and panic
  2. Western Rebellion
    1. 1549
      1. Grew out of riots in Cornwall and Devon that demanded the restoration of Catholic doctrines and practices.
        When new Prayer Books started to be used in Churches, groups were formed to resist and by mid-June a full-scale rebellion had begun
        Gathered in Crediton. where they were met by a local landowner
        Treated them unsympathetically and accidentally burned part of the rebel defences , preventing any chance of a quick settlement.
        Then advanced past Exeter and set up camp
        No attempt to march up to London- instead brought army to them and brought the West to a standstill
        Army was slow to respond because of conflict in Scotland and France. Kett's rebellion was also beginning to emerge , meaning it took until August 1549 until the rebellion was defeated. It had begun in June 1549
Mary's reign
1. Religious Reform
  1. Changes in legislation
    1. Parliament met in October 1553
      1. House of Commons passed the First Act of Repeal
        Swept away all the religious legislation approved during the reign of Edward VI
        Doctrine of the Church of England restored to what it had been at the time of Henry VIII's death
        Advisers persuaded her not to make any more changes than this.
  2. Felt more secure after Cardinal Pole's return from exile in November 1554
    1. Parliament met and passed the Second Act of Repeal in January 1555.
      1. Abolished all doctrinal legislation since 1529
        Included 1534 Act of Supremacy so it reinstated the Pope as head of the Church
        Did not reinstate Church lands because this was too complex an issue to be resolved easily
  3. Government policy was split into two categories
    1. Education
      1. Better training and supervision of parish priests
      2. Bishops instructed to set up training schools and to make regular visits to priests in their area
        National decrees laid down the standards expected from priests and new editions of the prayer book and Bible were issued for guidance
    2. Persecution
      1. Leading Protestants churchmen were arrested and persecuted
        They were replaced by committed Catholics
        Within a year of Mary's succession, the senior clergy had been purged of Protestant influence.
        Work began on parish priests
        Elimination of married priests. Had to choose between the Church and families
      2. After the Heresy laws from Henry VIII's reign had been revived, Protestants that would not renounce their faith were burned at the stake in their local communities
        300 Protestants were burned in total.
        Seen as necessary by Mary to 'cleanse' the country from Protestant heresy
        Cramner executed in 1556. Burned at the stake in the middle of Oxford.
        He had recanted but later decided to stand by his religious convictions
        Mary did not want him burnt to death but believed she had no other option when he withdrew his recantations
2. Foreign Policy
  1. War with France
    1. Philip wanted Mary's help in a war against France.
      1. Undid the diplomacy of Northumberland and put English foreign policy back on traditional anti-France footing
      2. Declared war in June 1557
        Achieved victory in the Battle of Saint-Quentin but Spain was too exhausted financially to follow up with further invasion
    2. Within a year, France had recovered and seized Calais from the English.
      1. Blow to national pride
        Represented the last outpost of the great medieval empire that had included England and half of France
        Severed England from the continent
        As a result, few people mourned Mary when she died ten months later in November 1558..
3. Reputation
  1. Dispute over Mary's legacy
    1. Protestants and historians regarded her reign as a failure
      1. Misjudged religious and foreign policies and sacrificed English interests to win the approvaal of Spain
        Sad victim vs. self-deluding idealist
      2. Protestants were burnt at the stake but no more than how many were killed under Cromwell
        Rebellions happened throughout the century but Mary destroyed the Wyatt rebellion with ease.
      3. If Mary had lived longer then she would have had time to established her rule and show she could rule without the influence of her husband.
    2. Successes
      1. Role of the Privy Council in managing the daily running of govt. was becoming more established, and committees were used to deal with specialised issues (eg. war against France)
      2. Efforts were made to collect revenue more efficiently by transferring more responsibility to the Exchequer.
        Started by Northumberland in 1552 by setting up a royal commission)
      3. New Book of Rates were introduced in May 1558 to improve Crown income from custom duties
      4. Plans were drawn up to revalue the currency after the "Great Debasement" of the 1540s
      5. Credited with reviving England's great military and naval traditions, providing Elizabeth with the means to resist Spain later in the century
      6. Government modernised the army with the 1558 Militia Act
        System of Commissioners of Muster with the responsibility for organising the recruitment of regional militias in wartime. The Arms Act of 1558 established better procedures for supplying weapons to royal forces
4. Marriage to Philip of Spain
  1. Wyatt's Rebellion
    1. February 1554
    2. Thomas Wyatt planned a Protestant rebellion against Mary.
      1. Initially planning took place when Mary was making plans to marry Philip
      2. Wanted to replace Mary with Edward Courtenay.
        He was the great grandson of the Yorkist King Edward IV. To cement his claim, Wyatt planned for Courtenay to marry Elizabeth
      3. Anti-Catholic and Spanish rebellion
        Circumstances in Kent
        Cloth industry in decline for some time.
        Created economic hardship
        Used the rebellion to air their grievances.
        Instability within local politics saw gentry families battling for positions of influence in court.
        What happened?
        Original plan involved four rebellions to take place in March 1554
        One in Devon; one in Leicestershire led by Lady Jane Grey's father; one on the Welsh border; and one in Kent, led by Wyatt
        Only one of these rebellions materialised: Wyatt's
        He gathered 3000 men and marched his rebel army towards London Bridge
        Failed to convince Londoners to join him so the rebellion collapsed within a week
        Wyatt's actions were serious because they threatened London.
        However, the failure to gather support in the City meant that the danger posed by rebels was reduced.
        Realisation that as long as Lady Jane Grey was alive, she posed a threat
        Executed: Lady Jane Grey, her husband, Wyatt, and another 100 conspirators
        Arrested Princess Elizabeth on suspicion of complicity but no solid evidence could be found to implicate her
  2. Opposition to marriage
    1. Philip was a staunch Catholic.
      1. Protestants feared that he would add strength to Mary's determination to reverse the Reformation
        Also feared that Philip would use England as a tool to further Spanish ambitions. He was already heir to the throne of Spain and its vast empire in Europe and the Americas.
        Philip was to be given the title of King but had none of the powers associated with the title
        No claim to the throne after Mary's death
        Forbidden to bring foreigners into English govt.
      2. Once he became King of Spain in 1556, he only paid Mary a brief visit to persuade her to join him in waging war against France
        Marriage of convenience for Philip but not for Mary
    2. Married in July 1554

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The Reigns of Edward and Mary

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