Henry VII: seizing the throne and trying to keep it, 1485-97
How successful were the methods Henry VII used to secure his hold on the throne
Claiming the throne and the significance of the marriage to Elisabeth of York
- The Tudor claim to the throne by right of brith was undoubtedly dubious; there were many
alternatives to the throne candidates with equally strong claims
- Henry VII had a decisive victory at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485 with Richard III being killed
in the process
- This was regarded by some as a sign of God’s approval of the Tudor candidate
- In the speech Henry gave at his first parliament in November 1485, therefore, he suggested
that his claim was hereditary, but also through right of conquest
- Henry was understandably concerned about the about strength of claim to the throne as was
anxious to consolidate his position as quickly as possible
- He got parliament to date his reign from the 21 st august, the day before the battle of
Bosworth, so that technically those who fought against him were traitors
- This instantly put Yorkist supporters in a legally weak position and ensured they were
immediately aware of their need to please the new monarch
- A key factor in stabilising his reign and consolidating his kingship was his choice of bride
- Before Bosworth, he had publicly pledge to marry Elizabeth of York
- This match was very advantageous as it would allow his heirs to claim the throne through
both the Lancastrian and Yorkist line
- For Elizabeth, this also secured the safety of the remaining Woodville family
- This match was arranged in 1483 by Lady Margaret Beaufort and Elisabeth Woodville
- Once Henry became king, it was important he married Elisabeth and on the 10 th December
1485 parliament formally requested that he do so; there were a number of impediments
that needed to be sorted
o As both Elisabeth and Henry were great great grandchildren of John of Gaunt they
required papal dispensation to marry
o A reverse bastardisation was required as under Richard III all of Edward IVs children
had been bastardised
o Papal dispensation for the marriage was authorised and on the 18 th of January 1486,
the two were married
How successful was Henry’s marriage to Elizabeth of York
- Despite the match being made for political reasons, the union appears to have been
successful
- Henry was very carful to ensure his wife and her family did not attract any negative attention
as had been during Edward IV’s reign
- Henry benefited from the small circle of both blood relations and in laws which meant he did
not need to support too many people
- Despite the difficult relationship with her mother in law, Elisabeth was highly successful in a
much prized sphere of queen ship:
o She gave birth to a number of children with her first, Arthur being a boy and
therefore an heir solidifying Henry’s legacy
o She also had two more sons, Henry and Edmund
o Only Henry made it to adulthood with Arthur dying in 1502 and Edmund in 1503
Living in fear and striving for security: the use of spies and bonds
- In order to secure the throne for the Tudor dynasty, Henry used a number of methods to
control the people and nobility
, Henry’s intelligence network
- A feature of the early Tudor regime was the use of his spies.
- Earlier monarchs had also made use of an intelligence network ,however, Henry made great
use of his spies to keep a watchful eye on the nobility
- Henry especially made use of his spies in regard to before battle to gain knowledge of the
enemy’s position, proposed tactics and strength.
- In 1497, Henry used spies to keep him informed of the movements of the Cornish rebellion
- Henry also used spies to gain information from other royal courts
o This was a wise precaution ad foreign involvement had been an important factor in
assisting a number of rebellions or invasions of England during the Wars of the roses
(Henry’s own invasion had been largely successful due to foreign support)
o The base of Calais was used as a base for espionage
o However, Henry and his use of spies was not new for a monarch; Edward IV had paid
Scottish informers to keep him informed about the movements of Henry VI and
Margaret of Anjou
- Henry also made use of spies to keep him informed of any plots in the english court
o It is probable that Sir Richard Clifford was a main informer and responsible for the
execution of William Stanley
- This system was imperative in regard to Perkin war beck and Edward, earl of Warwick
- Henry placed a great deal of financial pressures on the nobility to ensure they acted as
informers, willing or otherwise
o This use of bonds to gain information and secure loyalty was one of his least popular
policies
Henry’s financial polices towards the nobility
- Henry developed the use of financial forms of coercion against the nobility to gain
information
- Many historians believe that Henry’s use of bonds and recognisises were an extremely
effective way of controlling the nobility
- These bonds were payments to the crown by members of the nobility in return either for
privileges or a fines
o These were imposed upon those whose loyalty to the king was questionable or who
were liable to quarrel violently with another noble family
- The use of bonds were not new, however, Henry increased their use considerably and, during
his reign, more than half the peerage were obliged to pay money to the crown as security for
their own good behaviour
- These bonds were not always called in but nobles lived under the threat of being forced to
sacrifice huge amounts of money if they offended the king
o In addition, any noble could be made to pay an annual sum in lieu of the whole
amount
o This occurred in 1507, when lord Abergavenny was finned £70,000 which he was
unable to pay
o Henry instead agreed to £500 per year for the next years, providing no disloyalty was
suspected
- A key figure who was frequently linked to the unpopular financial polices was Edmund
Dudley, a lawyer
o He was disliked by many nobles because of his involvement in the use of bonds
o Dudley’s unpopularity can be seen by his immediate arrest after Henry VII died being
beheaded by Henry VIII in 1510
- It is clear that Henry saw his financial policy as a way to gain large amounts of money as well
ensuring total monarchical control over the nobility; Henry equated financial security with
power
