Impact of the Dissolution of the Monasteries

• What was the final break with Rome associated with?

  Henry VIII’s authority over religion
• What was lost due to the dissolution of monasteries?

  Monastic centres of education, relics, and pilgrimage
• What did the exposure of fake relics reinforce?

  Protestant criticisms of Catholic practices
• How many new bishoprics were created using former monastic buildings?

  Six new bishoprics
• How did the dissolution of monasteries affect the Church's power in government?

  Weakened the Church’s power by replacing abbots
• What was a social consequence of the loss of monastic medical care?

  Increased vagrancy and burden on local communities
• What happened to many monks after the dissolution?

  They received pensions or found alternative roles
• Why did nuns and lay brothers face hardship after the dissolution?

  They could not marry or become priests
• How many acres of land were redistributed due to the dissolution?

  2,000,000 acres
• Who gained power as a result of the redistribution of land?

  Nobility, gentry, lawyers, and merchants
• What was a consequence of the decline in charitable giving?

  Increased responsibility for local government in poor relief
• What did the sale of monastic land help fund?

  Wars with France and Scotland
• What was a financial consequence of selling monastic land cheaply?

  Reduced long-term Crown revenue
• How did the dissolution affect Henry's relationship with Parliament?

  Made him financially independent from Parliament
• What was established to manage monastic wealth?

  The Court of Augmentations
• How did the dissolution help secure noble support for Royal Supremacy?

  Nobles gained land from the dissolution
• Why could the dissolution not be reversed under Mary I?

  Due to vested interests of the landowning class
• What precedent did the dissolution set for Parliament?

  Involvement in religious and economic changes
• What was destroyed leading to the loss of historical records?

  Monastic libraries
• What happened to religious artefacts and relics during the dissolution?

  They were either sold or destroyed
• How did the dissolution affect literacy?

  Increased literacy due to the printing press
• What are the short-term impacts of the dissolution of monasteries?

  • Loss of monastic medical care
  • Increase in vagrancy and burden on poor relief
  • Scramble for monastery furnishings and goods
  • Monks received pensions or found Church employment
  • Nuns and lay brothers struggled
• What are the long-term impacts of the dissolution of monasteries?

  • Redistribution of 2,000,000 acres of land
  • Nobility and gentry gained power
  • Decline in charitable giving and masses for souls
  • Shift towards local government responsibility for the poor
• What are the religious impacts of the dissolution of monasteries?

  • Loss of centres for monastic education, relics, and pilgrimage
  • Exposure of fake relics
  • Many monks became chantry priests temporarily
• What are the political impacts of the dissolution of monasteries?

  • Henry became financially less dependent on Parliament
  • Creation of the Court of Augmentations
  • Nobility supported the Break with Rome
  • Precedent for Parliament’s role in changes
• What are the economic impacts of the dissolution of monasteries?

  • Monastic land sales provided financial boost
  • Funded wars without raising taxes
  • Wealth shifted from Church to Crown and gentry
• What are the cultural impacts of the dissolution of monasteries?

  • Destruction of monastic libraries and loss of artefacts
  • Loss of monasteries as centres of learning
  • Some wealth reinvested in education