4 source exam question- page 29 and 30 of ocr textbook
Assess how far they support the view that Cade's Rebellion occurred because of the actions of the King's councillors.
Using these sources in their historical context, asses how far they support the view that Cade’s
Rebellion occurred because of the actions of the king’s councillors.
Most of the sources support the view that Cade’s Rebellion was due tot the actions of his advisors.
Only Source D puts forward the view that it was not the actions of the King’s councillors that caused
the Cade’s Rebellion and instead say that John Cade started the rebellion due to his dislike of the
King. The other three sources agree that the King’s councillors’ actions are responsible for Cade’s
Rebellion. However, Source C does suggest that it was partially due to the King’s weakness that his
councillors took advantage of him and their actions following this was the reason for the rebellion.
Source B gives the most compelling argument and a variety of reasons as to why the King’s
councillors were to blame for the Cade’s rebellion. Nevertheless, they still declare their loyalty to the
King and instead ‘say our sovereign lord may understand that his false council has lost his law’,
showing that the source entirely supports the view that the Cade’s Rebellion occurred due to the
actions of the King’s councillors. Indeed, many of Henry’s advisors were corrupt and used their
influence for personal gain and therefore the consequences for the actions affected the people of
England, therefore causing the rebellion. ‘His false council’ refers to the corrupt advisors he had such
as Suffolk, Warwick and Somerset who constantly took advantage of his weaknesses and therefore
damaging the country as a result. However, the source is somewhat unreliable as it is Jack Cade’s
manifesto that he sent to the King. This means that they naturally would not blame the King for the
country’s problems otherwise they would never have a chance of their demands being met and
instead immediately punished for treason. The source is also ‘adapted’ from Jack Cade’s manifesto,
making it less trustworthy as it was not the original message they sent to the king. On the other
hand, another strength of the source is that it highlights the mistakes that the King’s councillors
made which caused them to rebel, declaring ‘his common people is destroyed, the sea is lost, France
is lost…’ This further emphasises that the negative actions of the King’s advisors suggests that they
were responsible for the state of the country, the destruction of the ‘common people’ and therefore
Cade’s Rebellion. The provenance, however, devalues the source somewhat as the manifesto was
propaganda against those with power and was aiming to gain more support. This deflects from the
source’s usefulness. That being said, the source did include government proclamations and whilst
stressing loyalty to the King, it still blamed the councillors’ actions for the problems they were having
in Kent and the rest of the country.
Source A also gives a compelling argument and reasoning as to why the King’s councillors’ actions
were responsible for the Cade’s rebellion pointing to the ‘untrue council’ which took advantage of
the King for their own, personal gains. Members that they referred to included York, Suffolk and
Somerset. Suffolk’s greed resulted in his banishment for treason which resulted in his murder. His
death was another trigger for the rebellion as his body was found in Kent, where Cade was situated,
causing tension amongst the people for fear of being blamed for Suffolk’s death. The author of
Source A is a ‘chronicler’ who’s aim was to explain events rather than describe them, making the
source useful when identifying the causes of the rebellion. Many chronicles, however, were written
to provide official government versions of events to justify the actions of the government at the time
and influence the opinions of the people. Therefore, the source is not a completely objective
account of events. However, this particular chronicler was generally regarded as well informed,
making the source somewhat more reliable. Another strength of the source is that it was correct in
identifying that the people where controlled ‘with taxes and other oppressions’ as the councillors
wanted power and wealth for themselves as the council decided taxation for war effort, law and
order and their own wealth. This again suggesting that the councillors’ actions were responsible for
Cade’s rebellion. The provenance of the source somewhat limits its usefulness though, as it was
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