UNIT II: Tudor Imperialism
No sooner was the Hundred Year’s War over than a long power struggle (1455 – 85) began
for the English Crown between two families: the House of Lancaster and the House of York. The
War of the Roses ended when Henry VII (Henry of Tudor) united the two rival houses, giving
origin to the Tudor dynasty.
Economic and social panorama at the beginning of the 16th C

THE GROWTH OF POPULATION AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 16TH C: By the year 1485,
England’s population begun to increase due to internal peace and order because the
Hundred Year’s War and the War of the Roses had come to an end. Then, it was necessary
to produce crops and to satisfy the needs of a growing population.

VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY: It is of great importance that with the Discovery of America
(1492), England started trading with America, Asia and Africa. Moreover, after the defeat of
the Spanish Armada, England acquired the monopoly of international trade and the
command of the seas. Thus, Colonies would be the providers of cheap raw material to the
mother country.

EXPANSION OF THE MARKET: Meanwhile and due to the market expansion, there was a
growth trading activity with the Netherlands. Wool trade became the main source or wealth
in the international sphere. This increasing demand of wool caused an acceleration of
pasture farming. OPEN FIELDS were swept away and enclosed. The main purpose of
1
ENCLOSURES was the conversion of arable land into pastures for sheep-raising. Two
consequences arose from enclosures:
o
Depopulation of villages
o
Farmers’ divorce from land.
Philosophical panorama of the Modern Ages
o
HUMANISM: It was the philosophy of the RENAISSANCE. It puts emphasis on man and
his abilities. It’s a man-cantered philosophy.
o
RENAISSANCE: It was an artistic revival of the classics (Greek and Latin). A new vision
of man: adventurous, versatile, intelligent, independent. It led to a strong desire for
knowledge and the Age of Secularization.
o
INDIVIDUALISM: It became stronger. People were no longer guided by the ideas of the
church. It was an individual freedom.
o
NATIONALISM: It consolidated since the early modern states emerged. Besides England
defeated the Spanish Armada to foster international trade.
Henry VII’s son and heir, Henry VIII (1509 – 1547), was a typical Renaissance prince:
handsome, learned, ambitious and unscrupulous. He also had an instinctive understanding of
his times. His father had become powerful by taking over the nobles’ land, but the lands owned
by the Church had not been touched. The taxes paid to the Church reduced his own income.
But he was not the only European king with a wish to “centralize” state authority. He had
another reason for standing up to the authority of the Church.
2
In 1510, Henry had married Catherine of Aragon,
the widow of his elder brother Arthur. But by
1526 she had still not had a son who survived
infancy and was now unlikely to do so. Henry
tried to persuade the pope to allow him to
divorce Catherine. But the Pope had political and
family
reasons
to
keep
Henry
married
to
Catherine, so he forbade Henry’s divorce.
In 1531, Henry persuaded the bishops to
establish himself as the head of the Protestant
Church of England, and this became law after
Parliament passed the Act of Supremacy in
1534. He was now free to divorce Catherine and
marry his new love, Anne Boleyn.
His decision to act through Parliament greatly
strengthened this institution, which had lost virtually all its authority under Henry VII. There
was general support on the part of the English people, who were resentful of papal interference
in national affairs. His Reformation led to the creation of religiously distinct Anglican Church.
The dissolution of the monasteries (and the confiscation of their large estates) served to
destroy papal authority in England and at the same time provide Henry with much needed
wealth.
The Reformation
The Reformation had already been developing from very early times. It is considered to be a
process and not an event. The Reformation was a 16th century religious movement marked
mainly by rejection or modification of some Roman Catholic doctrine and practice and the
3
establishment of the Protestant Churches. But it is said to be not only a religious movement but
much more than this. It also had political, social, religious and economic connotations.
This PROCESS started in the early middle ages, but reached their climax during the 16th C. It
was much more than a religious movement, since it had political, social and economic
connotations:
POLITICAL IMPLICATIONS
In this period, the bridge with the Pope came
to an end. Tudor Monarchs disliked the idea
of having a ruler above. Thus, they rejected
the Pope as a political and religious figure
and controlled the English Church as its
supreme head, becoming its political and
spiritual ruler.
SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS
It meant the reaction of the laymen against
the
clergy’s
corruption
economic
and
the
power,
malpractices
moral
of
the
Church.
ECONOMIC IMPLICATIONS
Government started to check the economic
power of the Church. The Church lost
properties and lands.
RELIGIOUS ANTECEDENTS
The
English
had
always
resented
their
dependency on the Pope on religious matters:
(i) Feelings of anticlericalism
(ii) Feeling of antipapalism
The Secularization of Education
4
With the Act of Dissolution of Monasteries, education was affected. Monasteries, the previous
centres of education, were abolished and the lands were sold mainly to the High Middle
Classes. When Charity schools were abolished, new grammar schools came into being. More
schools were founded by members of the higher-middle classes.

AIMS OF EDUCATION IN THIS PERIOD: Previously the main aim of education was to
prepare future priests. In order to get education men had to become priests. With the
discovery of new routes and developments in astrology the aim of education turn to training
the ruling class to be future responsible citizens that could occupy posts in the offices of
State. Education would prepare men of affairs.

NEW SUBJECTS: In addition to theology, metaphysics, and philosophy, new subjects
were introduced such as: literature, poetry, the classics, ethics, rhetoric and history. The
degree of literacy increased widely.

THE OXFORD REFORMERS: at Oxford University the Oxford Reformers began to criticize
the malpractice and corruption of the Church. English Humanism influenced not only
secondary education, but also university education.
5