Changes to the Structure of Government (Edexcel A-Level History): Revision Notes

Changes to the Structure of Government

Introduction to Tudor government structure

By the Tudor period, England had developed a complex system of government that could both support and hinder monarchs in their rule. This system included:

• Formal institutions: the Council, financial systems, and judicial systems
• Informal structures: the court, the household, and the privy chamber

During 1509-88, chief ministers such as Wolsey and Cromwell attempted to reform the structure of Tudor government to increase efficiency and extend royal power. However, their success was limited because:

• Some changes were permanent, while others were temporary
• Reforms could be blocked by monarchs or parliament
• Tudor government remained fundamentally personal, dependent on the monarch's preferences
• Chief ministers' powers were ultimately reliant on the monarch's support

Informal structures of power

The court

The court was not a legal institution but rather served the monarch directly. Key features included:

• The court followed the monarch wherever they travelled
• It was crucial for display and entertainment
• It functioned as an informal source of power and influence
• Those seeking power or influence came to court seeking patronage
• Successful courtiers could build enormous power and wealth, but remained dependent on access to the court
• The court allowed Tudor monarchs to emphasise their power and wealth through elaborate displays such as tournaments and plays

The household

The household was responsible for the monarch's domestic needs:

• Monarchs and their families were served by hundreds of people who travelled with them
• Servants worked in kitchens, laundries, and gardens
• Most were menial servants, but they were controlled by high-level officials called the board of the green cloth
• The household could grow or shrink according to the personal needs of individual monarchs and their families

The privy chamber

The privy chamber was a series of rooms where the royal family lived. Under Henry VIII, it became an important political hub:

• The chamber had its own staff called the gentlemen of the privy chamber
• The most important official was the groom of the stool, who was in charge of the royal toilet
• Under Henry VIII, these positions were filled by trusted friends from the nobility or gentry
• These men were not simply servants but became the king's advisers due to their intimate daily contact with him
• They were often employed in formal areas of government, such as diplomatic missions to France (1520-25) and military expeditions against Scotland

The role of the Council

The Council was a formal body that had existed since medieval times to advise (or 'counsel') the monarch. Key characteristics included:

• The monarch chose Council members and was not obliged to take their advice
• However, it was usually beneficial for monarchs to listen to the Council's views
• The Council helped with day-to-day running of the country
• It could act as a judicial court
• The Council could be divided by faction, especially in the 1540s and 1550s when Henry VIII was ageing and his son Edward was young
• The Council's political importance varied depending on each monarch's style of rule
• During the Tudor period, the Council became increasingly formal and professional

The Council under Henry VIII

Until the 1530s, the Council was a large institution of around 40 members, most of whom did not attend regularly.

Wolsey's attempted reforms (1526):

• In 1526, Wolsey planned the Eltham Ordinances to reduce the Council to 20 men who would meet daily
• These reforms also included changes to the household and a reduction in the number of men serving in the privy chamber
• Wolsey claimed these reforms would improve royal finances
• In reality, they were an excuse to remove men he considered enemies from the chamber
• Wolsey's plans initially came to nothing

Emergence of the Privy Council (by 1537):

• By 1537, a smaller council similar to Wolsey's plan had emerged
• This became known as the Privy Council
• By Elizabeth's reign, it was responsible for much of the daily running of the country, especially administration and legal matters
• The Privy Council emerged without Cromwell's deliberate planning
• It appeared as an unplanned response to the political crisis of 1536, when Henry VIII faced serious rebellion and needed a small council of trusted men to give rapid and clear advice

The Council under Edward VI, Mary and Elizabeth

Size of the Council across the period:

• 1509-29 (under Wolsey): 120 members
• 1536-37: 19 members
• 1540: 19 members
• 1548: 22 members
• 1552: 31 members
• 1553-58: 50 members
• 1559: 19 members
• 1586: 19 members

Under Edward VI (1547-53):

• The Council became less politically important
• Government and politics were dominated by the king's protectors
• These protectors used control of the privy chamber to achieve their dominance

Under Mary I (1553-58):

• Mary continued the trend seen in Henry's reign
• She had 50 named councillors, but only 19 were 'working' councillors who met three or four times a week
• Mary's councillors were particularly involved in advising her over her marriage and the return to Catholicism
• However, they did not always agree on these issues

Under Elizabeth I (1558-1603):

• The role of the Privy Council reached its peak
• Membership was reduced to about a dozen key individuals
• By the 1590s, these men were meeting nearly every day, sometimes both morning and afternoon
• The Council had become an essential part of government, handling much of the day-to-day business of the realm
• This did not sideline the monarch, as they appointed councillors and could dismiss them at will

Changes to the Crown's finances

A constant theme of the Tudor period was the tension between the Crown's income and expenditure. Both Wolsey and Cromwell attempted to put the Crown's finances on a more secure footing, but they were only partially successful.

The theory of royal finance

In theory, the monarch was supposed to be financially independent - to 'live of their own' as contemporaries put it. The Crown had two main sources of income:

1. Ordinary revenue: came from royal lands and the monarch's status as a landlord (rents or sale of lands)
2. Extraordinary revenue: usually taxation granted by parliament for special needs, usually the costs of war

The reality of Tudor finances

Even with considerable boosts to income, the monarchy rarely had enough money and was often reliant on:

• Parliamentary taxation
• Other legally dubious sources of income

Changes to royal finance under Henry VIII

Financial policy under Henry VIII was driven by the king's desire for war and its associated costs:

• Income from Crown lands in 1515: $25,000 per annum
• Cost of war against France (1512-14): approximately $1 million

Wolsey's financial reforms:

Wolsey was prepared to try new methods:

1. The Subsidy (introduced 1513):

   • A new form of parliamentary taxation based on an assessment of each individual's wealth
   • More flexible than traditional taxation
   • Raised $322,099 between 1513 and 1523
   • A further $117,936 was raised through traditional Fifteenths and Tenths (introduced in 1334, which raised a fixed sum of money)

2. Less legal methods:

   • The Amicable Grant (1525): effectively a forced loan from taxpayers
   • This came on top of high levels of taxation already demanded
   • 'Loans' extracted in 1522-23 raised $260,000 but were not repaid
   • The result was rebellion
   • Wolsey was forced to take full responsibility and withdraw the grant
   • Henry claimed no knowledge of his minister's plans

Cromwell's financial reforms:

In the 1530s, Cromwell attempted to solve financial problems through several measures:

1. Acquisition of monastery lands:

   • Temporarily raised Crown income to a peak of $126,296 in 1541
   • This did not last, as by the end of Henry's reign two-thirds of these lands had been sold off

2. Creation of specialised financial courts: Cromwell created four courts to handle the increased flow of money to the Crown:

   • Court of Augmentation: dealt with estates acquired from dissolution of monasteries
   • Court of First Fruits and Tenths: dealt with incomes acquired from the break with Rome
   • Court of Wards and Liveries: dealt with estates and heirs of the monarch's tenants (this was the only one to last beyond the Tudor period; under Elizabeth I it was run by William Cecil, allowing him to build enormous personal wealth)
   • Court of General Surveyors: dealt with estates acquired from dissolution of monasteries

Financial developments under Edward, Mary and Elizabeth

Under the protectorate of Northumberland and then Mary's rule, attempts were made to put the Crown on a more sound financial footing:

Debt reduction:

• More Crown lands were sold off to reduce debt

Customs reform under Mary:

• Crown income from customs had remained the same since 1507
• Under Mary, this was reformed
• Income from duties on imports and exports increased from $25,900 (1550-51) to $82,797 (1558-59)

Elizabeth's financial policy:

Elizabeth benefited from these reforms but did little to change the financial system herself:

1. Ending debasement of the coinage:

   • Debasement had begun in the 1540s, when the regime melted down gold and silver coinage and mixed it with other metals
   • This created more ready money for Henry VIII to spend on warfare
   • It had serious effects on the economy, causing price rises (inflation)
   • Elizabeth reversed this practice (Mary had also begun reversing it)

2. Avoiding costly warfare:

   • Elizabeth's natural caution meant she avoided costly warfare before 1585
   • After 1585, war with Spain led to high levels of taxation

3. Failure to reform taxation:

   • Elizabeth and her advisers did nothing to reform the system of taxation
   • This resulted in decreasing returns: a subsidy yielded $140,000 in 1558 but only $80,000 by 1603
   • This led to Elizabeth's controversial exploitation of her royal prerogative, which soured the last years of her reign

Changes to the legal system

The Tudor legal system structure

The Tudor legal system comprised:

• A series of national and local courts of law where most cases were heard
• 'Special' courts of equity, used for cases where:
  • There was no legal precedent
  • Circumstances made it difficult to get a fair hearing in main courts

Examples of equitable courts included:

• Court of Star Chamber
• Chancery (run by the Lord Chancellor)
• The king's Council

Wolsey's legal reforms

Under Wolsey, the role of Star Chamber expanded considerably:

• Under Henry VII: average of 12 cases per year were heard
• Under Wolsey: 120 cases per year

Wolsey's use of Star Chamber:

• To prosecute over-powerful members of the nobility
• To pursue his campaign against illegal enclosure
• He faced considerable opposition from parliament
• This use of Star Chamber did not outlast his fall

By Elizabeth's reign, Star Chamber was used as a convenient court for trying cases of riot and abuses of the judicial system.

Cromwell's legal reforms (1530s)

Cromwell carried out permanent changes to the legal system that enhanced royal power:

1. Abolition of franchises (1536):

   • Franchises were regions where the local lord had complete control over law courts
   • These had developed in the Middle Ages
   • They meant there were areas where the monarchy could not intervene in legal cases, giving local lords enormous power
   • Example: the Bishop of Durham, who since 1066 had only implemented royal laws in his region when he agreed with them
   • An Act of Parliament abolished these franchises

2. Welsh legal reforms (1536):

   • Parliament passed an Act bringing Wales into line with the English judicial system

Changes to the role of parliament

Parliament's role increased significantly during the Tudor period, particularly from the 1530s onwards. Several interconnected factors drove this change.

Henry VIII's desire for a son and heir

Henry's marriage to Catherine of Aragon produced no male heir:

• By the 1520s, Catherine was too old to have more children
• The belief that a woman could not rule in her own right meant Mary Tudor would not be able to rule effectively
• Henry was desperate for a son due to fear of challenges to the Tudor dynasty from rival claimants
• Anne Boleyn refused to become Henry's mistress
• She was young enough to have children and Henry was determined to marry her
• The international situation between 1529 and 1532 meant Henry could not persuade the pope to grant an annulment
• He needed another way to end his marriage to Catherine, which parliament provided

The role of Thomas Cromwell (1532-40)

Cromwell recognised the crucial role parliament could play:

• He manipulated anti-clerical feeling in the Commons to put pressure on the papacy
• He was the first to use parliament to define the powers of the monarchy (Act in Restraint of Appeals, 1533)
• He used parliament to legalise the Royal Supremacy (Act of Supremacy, 1534)
• This created a precedent for future monarchs: they would need to use parliament to make religious change
• Cromwell introduced the idea of 'king-in-parliament', which enhanced parliament's role

Use of parliament to enforce religious change

Once the precedent was set, subsequent monarchs used parliament for religious changes:

• Edward VI's advisers: used parliament to create a Protestant reformation through the Acts of Uniformity (1549, 1552)
• Mary I: reversed the break with Rome via parliament
• Elizabeth I: created her religious settlement through parliament (Acts of Uniformity and Supremacy, 1559)

The increasing frequency and growing confidence of MPs

Parliament sat with increasing frequency from the 1530s and 1540s. MPs became more confident in challenging the monarch's prerogative and policies:

Examples of parliamentary opposition:

• Opposition to the Exiles Bill (1555) under Mary
• Attempts to introduce a more radical religious settlement under Elizabeth
• Parliament's determination to discuss matters of state such as:
  • The queen's marriage and succession (1563, 1566)
  • The fate of Mary, Queen of Scots (1572, 1586-87)

Summary