Henry Viii Influences On British Society free essay sample

In The Sixteenth Century Essay, Research Paper Henry VIII: Influence on British Society in the Sixteenth Century Final Outline Henry VIII: British Society in the Sixteenth Century I. Influence on royal tribunal A. Titles B. Serfdoms C. Taxes II. Influence on Lords A. Palaces B. Garrisons III. Influence on provincials A. Serfs B. Taxs C. Welfare of common people 1. Farmers 2. Workers IV. Influence on diplomatic negotiations A. France B. Scotland C. Ireland Fifty-six old ages, six married womans, eight kids, and a atrocious disease that consumed his life. Sound like a atrocious swayer to you? Henry VIII was one of the most influential and greatest swayers of all time known in Britain, or the universe alike. His royal tribunal was the centre of attending for all Renaissance civilization, and his land prospered and grew, in ways neer dreamed of earlier. He introduced the Protestant faith into Britain, and even forced it with the act of domination, which declared the Crown as caput of church and province. He was educated to go a reverend, but when all other qualified swayers died in his household, the Crown was passed to him. His male parent, Henry VII, and mother, Elizabeth of York, neer intended Henry to be King. Henry reigned from 1509, to his decease in 1547. One of his major achievements was his change of the royal tribunal. Before Henry VIII, rubrics were divided on footing of household. Henry changed that to do it so anyone, with adequate money, could keep a rubric in Britain. Titles before Henry VIII were few, and many people were merely common mans, even the rich. Henry foremost divided the high powered rubrics of Duke, Prince, and Earl, into a new system, supplying more rubrics and dividing up more land. At the underside of the list came the Lord rubric. The rubric of Lord was more a signifier of reference for a Marquis, earl, viscount, baron, or a younger boy of a duke, Marquis, or bishop. Next was the Baronet. This was a particular familial rank, above Knight, and below Baron. Baronets were required to pay 1,080 lbs for their privilege. Then came the Baron/Baroness. This was the lowest signifier of the baronage. This was normally applied to tenants-in-chief, the holders of land granted to them straight by the King. Then the Viscou nt/Viscountess. This was the rank below earl, and above baron. Originally a viscount was a sheriff of a shire and the Earl # 8217 ; s deputy. The Earl ( Count/Countess ) was the main royal representative in the shires. The Marquis/Marchioness was the rank above an earl, and below a duke. It was the Marquis # 8217 ; s occupation to supervise the shires, and guarantee the King of the Earl # 8217 ; s work. The highest rank, below the King himself, was the Duke/Duchess. The Duke was the expansive superintendent of a group of shires. He employed the ranks below him to command the shires. All ranks below reported straight to the Duke/Duchess who reported to the King. The rubric of King changed with Henry VIII every bit good. Henry # 8217 ; s matrimony to Catherine of Aragon was denied an revocation by the Catholic Pope. When this was denied, Henry made all loyal topics swear to the Act of Supremacy. This act declared the King # 8217 ; s crown caput of church and province. Henry # 82 17 ; s sole intent in this was to obtain a new married woman who might bear him the boy he yearned for. Those who chose non to curse to the act were executed. Another country Henry did off with was Serfdoms. Before Henry VIII, Serfdoms were big and broad spread, and controlled by one Lord. The helot were dreadfully oppressed, and no Torahs were set that would impact those who committed offenses against helot. Henry created the Manorial Lordship, making off with the Serfdoms for the most portion. A Manorial Lordship was purchased, non given. The rubric allowed the buyer, typically a Knight, to a little portion of a shire. The people populating inside it, were meant merely to pay a little revenue enhancement, and non forced into labour. The Lord so would construct a palace, engage tenants-in-chiefs, and run his Manor. Manorial Lordships rapidly spread throughout the state, and people became more free, and happier. Another subject that Henry addressed was revenue enhancements. Taxs in Britain at the clip were merely from those who controlled shires, for they received their revenue enhancements from the people under control of them. With the abolishment of serfhoods, and the input of Manorial Lordships, the Manorial Lord, and the King took revenue enhancements from the helot. Though this may look to be more revenue enhancements, the existent fee given to the Manorial Lord was rather low, and the King lupus erythematosus, so as to decrease revenue enhancements from the serfhood yearss. The King besides collected revenue enhancement from the Manorial Lord, and other coroneted Lords. This fee was dependent on the privileges and land of the rubric. With the creative activity of new rubrics, chiefly those being purchased, instead than being hereditarily transferred, Nobles sprouted out of Britain, at a rate neer seen earlier. Unlike Scotland in this clip, the Nobles were comparatively peaceable, and got along instead good. One conjecture as to why this was was that Henry could non stand his ain Nobleman moving like barbarians and contending with each other. With the execution of Manorial Lordships, and the abolishment of Serfdoms, Nobles were faced with a new job, who to construct their palaces? Castle edifice before Henry was left to serfs, and non paid for at all by the Baron himself. It was expected of the helot to execute the edifice for their Lord. With Serfdoms abolished, Nobles had to travel in hunt both in their lands, and throughout Britain, for a skilled designer, every bit good as tonss of skilled workers, stuffs, and the 100s of manual labourers needed to build the monolithic palace. From therefore Forth, the stereot yped rock palace was left largely to those of huge wealth and rubric. Most Lords, were non affluent plenty to afford a palace, would construct themselves a stone Keep. The Keep was the centre edifice of a palace, inside the outer walls. The Lords did non lose much in the manner of land, but they lost the power, and the feeling of security, that the huge, 25 pes midst rock walls of the palace provided. Another typical edifice built by the less affluent Lords, was the Norman Tower. This edifice came from a Norman design, therefore the name. The tower was taller than broad, typical of most edifices of the clip. It had big Fe bars, that lowered downward, alternatively of the usual horizontally mounted wooden Gatess of the palace. Inside the tower, was a big cellar below, which was the centre of the edifice. Above the cellar, were many floors, including the typical suites of the kitchen, armoury, sleeping rooms, and so forth. Most Lords preferred the support, because it was larger in bre adth than the tower, which was a larger mark of power to them. Nobles, of class, employed skilled soldiers to watch over their supports and manors. These were known as forts. With the comparatively peaceable times of the Lords during Henry # 8217 ; s reign, forts were cut down drastically. Before Henry, Lords would frequently hold extended forts of soldiers of luck. It would include crossbowman and bowmans, hosts of pikeman and fencer, and the Baronial Knights, merely for the palace. The largest of manors would good keep two 1000 plus soldiers runing from assorted reservess, to mounted Knights, the really image of the in-between ages. Lords sliced their forts much during Henry # 8217 ; s reign. Keep forts would frequently merely consist of a set of crossbowman, a big division of bowmans, and one to five regiments of pikeman and fencer. This would depend upon the size of the support and the part the baronial controlled. The more militant Lords, in northern England, and Scotland, still employed big forts, but they were cut down in size. Manor gu ards were besides reduced during Henry # 8217 ; s reign . Nobles normally would hold their ain reserves ( armed provincials ) , ten or so regiments of pikeman and fencer, horse, bowmans, and the Lord’s knights. While this still may look a big fort, the latter forts were much more huge, and consisted of a wider assortment of military personnels. Peasants were another group strongly influenced by Henry. Before Henry, provincials were all those who did non keep rubric, but were non serfs. Henry changed all that. With the abolishment of Serfdoms, the provincials became vaster, now being judged on money and rubric, alternatively of rubric entirely. Their manorial Godhead gave serfs the rubric of provincial. They still performed many of their same undertakings, but were now paid for their work, instead than forced. The manorial Godhead would pay his provincials land, harvests, and money in exchange for work. While they were no longer forced to make they work, they were still non paid much but it was a measure in the right way. Peasants now were more well-thought-of, able to derive larger rubric, and did non hold to populate in fright of their Baron throwing them off his lands and going homeless. Taxs were a new construct of the new provincials. They had non paid them before under their Serfdoms. With the establishment of Manorial Lordships, and abolishment of Serfdoms, the now freed helot would hold to pay revenue enhancements, as did all provincials. The revenue enhancements from helot were collected straight by the Manorial Lords # 8217 ; revenue enhancement aggregators, and distributed to a separate fund for peasant revenue enhancements. The revenue enhancements for helot were really low, dwelling of around.05 % of their one-year income. However, when one considers the mean cost of life is 50 gold pieces a twelvemonth and you make merely 55 or so a twelvemonth, it can be a batch! Taxes collected from the provincials by the Manorial Lord were normally non needed. Payment from assorted lands and titleholders was more than plenty to pay for the care of the manor and revenue enhancements to the King. The Lords continued to take the revenue enhancements anyhow, and used them on points for themselves and their households. The public assistance of the common individual was besides an country influenced by Henry VIII. Before Henry, common mans were non treated good, overtaxed, overworked, and their life conditions were non good. Henry changed all that, get downing with the abolishment of Serfdoms, and go oning with husbandmans, and workers. Farmers before Henry were forced to maintain a run of all their harvests raised, and direct a part of them off to the proprietor of their lands. This normally was a big sum of their harvests, and it was hard for the husbandmans to pay it, and still gain gold and feed their households at the same clip. Henry made it so husbandmans did non hold to maintain path of their harvests, and kept all that they raised. This was a really good move by Henry, and it resulted in the growing of population, gold, and the felicity of the people. Workers were another group treated below the belt, until Henry changed that. Before Henry, workers worked to their soap, morning to dusk, and were paid really small, most of which went to revenue enhancements. Henry forced the people, who hired workers, to pay them more and decrease the revenue enhancements upon the workers. The workers were now able to afford the common cost of life, gain a small spot excess, and still pay their revenue enhancement mulct. This made the workers really happy, and therefore they worked harder, quicker, and more expeditiously than of all time before. Manorial Godheads were besides happier because despite their loss in net incomes, their people were happier, less taxed, and better workers, which he could state was a direct consequence of him, which it was non, and derive even more favour with the people. The upgrading of husbandman and worker life style by Henry VIII was a really good move, and it saw a new age of Renaissance civilization in Britain, with happier and richer people. Diplomacy was another topic greatly touched by Henry VIII. The chief marks for Henry were France, Scotland, and Ireland. The dealingss with these states were for the most portion, improved by Henry. In Henry # 8217 ; s clip, the memories of the Wars of the Roses were still fresh. The Wars of the Roses were a series of English civil wars between the baronial houses of York and London. The name came from the different colour roses of the houses, white for London, ruddy for York. No on in England wanted another civil war and neither did Henry. One of the grounds for the Wars of the Roses was France. With a long and hovering history of diplomatic negotiations with France, the two baronial houses opposed each other on what determination to do on France. York wished to occupy France, and travel to war, and London wished to stay impersonal, and travel to peace negotiations. On this subject the houses feuded, and finally took weaponries against each other, with London eventually procuring t he triumph, and re-uniting Britain. Henry took a new attack to diplomacy with France, he had none. He let the Gallic come to him, and they did. Gallic Lords and swayers likewise came and had negotiations with Henry, and at that place was peace between the states, for the first clip in a really long epoch. In all the old ages of Henry # 8217 ; s regulation, there were no wars or discontent in a major manner between the two states, a great achievement for both the parties involved. Scotland was besides of involvement to Henry, with its hostile Lords, warring kins, and un-chivalrist, un-technological Highlanders. To England, Scotland was an antediluvial state that would profit from British regulation. Henry believed this, but left Scotland to be ruled by itself. Some were against Henry # 8217 ; s determinations, but baronial and peasant alike, none wished another British and Scots struggle. So Henry left the Scots to themselves, and at that place was comparative peace between the two states. The Scots did good on their ain, yet some believed they would make better under British regulation, including Henry himself, but none would dispute Henry # 8217 ; s authorization, and pay a war over the control of the Scots. Ireland was a whole other subject of treatment for Henry. Ireland had long been under rude British regulation. They were oppressed, suffered, and treated as if they were a group of dairy cattles. Henry did non wish to give the Irish back their ain regulation, and done non desire to be as dreadfully oppressive as other swayers were. He allowed them free reign of their military, taking away the restraints on Ireland and their right to support themselves. He allowed individuals of wealth to keep rubric and land in Ireland, and loosened the revenue enhancements the Irish had to pay to Britain. The Irish were really happy with this, and for the most portion it worked out for the better for England every bit good. Henry VIII was really good with diplomatic n egotiations, and England saw itself prosper from it immensely. Henry VIII was one of the most influential and powerful swayers in all Britain # 8217 ; s history. While in his ulterior old ages, Henry was a spot insane due to his terrible instance of Diabetes, his state prospered and flourished like neer earlier. Peoples were happy, Lords were rich, the Irish and Scottish were non impolitely oppressed, and the French did non hold an enemy any longer. The state of Britain saw great rise and enlargement in Henry # 8217 ; s reign, including societal, economical, political, and all other countries as good. Henry # 8217 ; s reign was a great one and the state flourished from it. Works Cited Corbishley, Mike. The Middle Ages. Oxford: Facts on File, 1990. Delderfield, Eric R. Kings and Queens of England and Great Britain. London: Greenwich Editions, 1996. Grey, Lady Jane. Henry VIII 1509-1547. [ Online ] Available hypertext transfer protocol: //www.britannia.com/history/ladyjane/henry8.html, November 18,1998. The Henry VIII Page. [ Online ] Available hypertext transfer protocol: //www.geocities.com/SoHo/Studios/1344/henryviii2.html, November 18, 1998. Howarth, Sarah. The Middle Ages. London: Penguin Books, 1993. Morgan, Kenneth O. The Oxford Illustrated History of Britain. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1984. Williams, Jay. Knights of the Crusades. New York: Meredith Press, 1962.