Thomas Wolsey

• Thomas wolsey

  • well educated
  • 1498 - ordained as a priest
  • 1509 - not invited to H8 coronation
  • 1510 - appointed the the council through recommendation from Richard fox and dorset
  • 1512/13 - Wolsey starts provided for the kind , doing as he wishes
  • 1514 - became archbishop of York and a cardinal
  • 1515 - kinds chief minister, dominate over church and state
  • 1516 - lord privy
• what helped Wolsey gain power?

  • patronage
  • royal Chaplin in H7 reign
  • politically shrewd and skillful
  • 1521 - convinced king that Buckingham was guilty of treason
  • insatiable desire to flaunt wealth and power
  • 1523 - John Skelton wrote verses to attack his greed
• Thomas Wolseys domestic policies 1515-1529

  • tudor subsidy and fifteenths and tenths
  • court of chancery
  • star chamber
  • the kings great matter
  • Eltham ordinances 1526
  • parliament and the failure if the 1523 subsidy
• tudor subsidy and fifteenths and tenths

  • previously assessed using local commissioners to asses taxpayers wealth
  • risk as it relied on honesty
  • set up national committee - realist assessment of wealth of tax payers
  • raised extraordinary rev. for war
• parliament and the failure of the 1523 parliamentary subsidy

  • failed second attempt at raising rev. for second war 1523
  • parliament didn't grant subsidy
  • amicable grant 1525 = widespread resistance/ rebellion?
• Eltham ordinances 1526

  • reform the finances of the privy chamber
  • reflected fear the the grant might make him unpopular - risk of losing influence
  • reduction of no. of gentlemen in privy chamber
  • removal of H8 groom of the stool - sir William Compton with a more compliant Henry Norris
• court of chancery

  • uphold fair justice
  • Wolsey lord chancellor
  • too popular
  • led to introduction of star chamber
• court of star chamber

  • cheap fair justice
  • est. by act of parliament 1487
  • encouraged use of private lawsuits
  • became centre of gov.
  • had to set up 'overflow tribunals'
  • permanent committee set up 1519 to deal with cases involving the poor
• the kings great matter

  • annulment of marriage to CofA to Anne boleyn
  • biblical case = contradictory and confusing
  • used the levitican argument
  • used power of personal representative of pope
  • led to downfall
  • but also the royal supremacy
• Wolseys aims:

  • justice: effectively administer law and justice
  • work with parliament to ensure extraordinary rev. to subsidise royal finances
  • run the gov. efficiently
  • fulfilling humanist beliefs
  • resolve e the kings great matter
• domestic policies a success:

  • court of star chamber - had to set up offshoots, used to curb magnates absues (vendetta?)
  • built links between central gov and regions - magnates and ops invited to court = parrot of possible patronage
  • national committee to asses taxpayers wealth
  • replaces 15th and 10th
  • Eltham ordinances - reduce royal household spending (advance power?)
  • laws to restrict enclosure against 264 landowners
  • protect ordinary people from extortionate prices of basic goods (profiteering)
• domestic policies a failure:

  • court of star chamber nearly collapsed under workload
  • poor relationship with parliament - 1515 dismissed before taxes were discussed
  • amicable grant caused resistance/ potential rebellion 1525
  • found it difficult to control privy chamber
  • little done to enforce humanist measures
  • failed to resolve great matter
• reasons for downfall: 1529

  • failed to resolve great matter
  • failure of amicable grant
  • failures in foreign policy
  • unpopularity with nobility
  • Boleyn faction moved against him
  • constantly competing for kings favour
• national committee

  tudor subsidy - extraordinary revenue

  fairly measure taxpayers wealth accordingly
• amicable grant


  giving money to the king through an act of kindness

  heavy tax without parlimant act
• Eltham ordinance

  attempt to reduce royal household spending/ advance Wolseys power
• what was the kings great matter?

  • desire for annulment to CofA to marry Anne Boleyn = break with Rome/ the catholic church
• why was the great matter hard to resolve?

  • required dispensation from the pope
  • CofA had been married to Arthur previously
  • argued the biblical justification that his marriage was invallid
  • CofA claimed her previous marriage was never consummated
  • pope was being held captive by Maximilian (Catherines nephew)
• how did Wolsey try and resolve it?

  • 1527 convened a fake court to accuse Henry of living in sin
  • Catherine refused to accept the courts ruling and appealed to the pop
  • tried to annul the marriage through diplomacy with the pope
  • 1529 pope sent cardinal campeggio to hear the case but it was adjourned