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WOLSEY AND THE CHURCH (Hunne affair (Hunne was a prosperous London…
WOLSEY AND THE CHURCH
Hunne affair
Hunne was a prosperous London merchant who had challenged the church over the high mortuary fees he had been forced to apy over the death of his infant son
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He was found hanged there and the jury returned a verdict of murder with the Bishop as an accomplice
Parliament took the case and Wolsey as the senior representative of the Church in England, had to kneel before parliament and beg for forgiveness
This was humiliating for Wolsey, but also is a good example of general dissatisfaction and mistrust in the church at the time
Reform
Wolsey made some reforms, but did not see them as a major aspect of his work
As Papal Legate he instructed bishops to carry out duties more scrupulously and inspect the quality of life in monasteries
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As Legate a latere he could give leadership or reject those who wanted to reform the Church in England
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Religious learning
Monastic reform
This was not an attack on religious learning, but a way of making monasticism more efficient to benefit religious learning
In 1528, he made plans to close monasteries with fewer than 6 inmates and forcibly amalgamating those with under 12. Thus provided a starting point for Cromwell
He closed down 30 religious houses, however this was mainly to pay for his schools, eliciting criticism in defenders of the monastic way
He planned to fund a school in his hometown of Ipswich and establish Cardinal college in Oxford, but had fallen from power before these could be established
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Criticism of Wolsey
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Pluralism, nepotism and absenteeism
To some, Wolsey embodied everything that was wrong with the Catholic church
He held bishoprics in plurality (illegal) , archbishop of York, bisop of Winchester and the abbey of St. Albans
he used ecclesiastical patronage to support his illegitimate son, Thomas Winter
He was absent, never visited his sees of Lincoln, Bath and Wells or Durham. He only visited York after his fall from power
Evaluate
However these abuses were nothing new, senior churchmen across Europe indulged in these too
They did not attract the contemporary criticism they we think they would, in some ways viewed as part of the post
Historiography
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Lutherans
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Lutherans were seen as well meaning people who has been wrongly influenced and needed to recognise their error and reform