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Henry VII (Henry's claim (The importance of Bosworth (Although…
Henry VII
Henry's claim
Henry took the throne from Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485 and continued to rule until his death in 1509.
Despite Henry being the male Lancastrian claimant to the throne, his claim was poor and was likely to be challenged by the Yorkist claimants who had seen their king killed at Bosworth.
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This weak claim ultimately meant that Henry only really held the throne because he defeated the king during the battle of bosworth.
Henry was also in a weak position as he had been placed under exile for the past fourteen years in Brittany, this consequently meant that he was unknown.
Despite Henry's weak position, there were strengths.
Richard III had been widely unpopular especially after it had been rumoured that he had killed the 'children of the tower'.
People were after peace, especially after the Wars of the Roses, so people might have supported Henry is he promised peace.
Richard III was now dead so were many of the other Yorkists that had a claim to the throne, this meant that he was the best option.
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Royal finances
To Henry, strong financial stability was vital in securing his place on the throne as it would allow him to raise an army that would defend him from pretenders to the throne. In addition, it would provide his son with a strong foundation to also defend his position as king.
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Yorkshire tax revolt, 1489
this started because Henry needed to raise tax to aid Brittany in their war against France. Some of the Northeners rejected this because they are normally excluded from tax as they defend their border against the Scots.
Henry did not negotiate and the tax collector, Earl of Northumberland was murdered. The rising was easily crushed but no tax was collected as Henry recognised to need to comprimise.
The Cornish Rising, 1497
This was more serious but was caused by the same factors. Henry wanted the West, as a Yorkist stronghold, to pay for the attack of Warbeck in the North. They marched to Blackheath but were easily crushed by a royal army.
Financial Administration
In the middle ages, monarchs used the 'Exchequer' to administer crown finances, but it was too slow.
In 1487, Henry went back to the Exchequer system but eventually went back to the Chamber system.
Ordinary Revenue
This mostly came from crown lands, customs, justice and feudal dues, with the amount of income varying each year.
In 1486, the Act of Resumption restored crown lands.
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Henry skilfully exploited the crown lands to increase his income. Henry also exploited the justice system by using fines rather then imprisonment to raise money.
Extraordinary Income
Extraordinary income was a source of one off payments that the government had to boost their economy.
Parliamentary taxation was the most frequent source but it was expected that it would be raised only at times of emergency and even then it cause widespread opposition.
Henry also asked wealthy subjects for loans and benevolences, the latter were not repaid and could not be used regularly.
Yorkist Opposition
Despite the wars of the roses there were still a couple of nobles that posed a particular threat to Henry. Edward, Earl of Warwick and John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln. Warwick was soon removed as a threat as he was taken to the tower and Lincoln professed loyalty to the kind and was invited to join the 'King's Council'.
Yorkists also found that they were able to gain strong support from abroad, especially form Margaret of Burgundy who was sister to Richard III.
Lovell Rebellion
After a year of gaining the throne, Henry faced a rebellion led by two nobles, the Stafford brothers and Lord Lovell. They had been supporters of Richard and thus raised an army in the North and Midlands. It was easily crushed however as Henry had placed a strong spy network within the north.
The threat of Pretenders
Simnel's Rebellion
Lambert Simnel claimed to be one of Richard III's nephews, one of the princes of the tower, Earl of Warwick. This was a major threat to Henry as it came from within a year of him gaining the throne and forced him into battle, which could had a similar outcome to Bosworth. In addition to this once Henry had paraded the real Earl of Warwick around London people were still willing to support the rebellion.
Simnel was crowned Edward VI in Ireland and received support from Margaret of Burgundy and the Earl of Lincoln. Once they had landed in Lancashire however they struggled to gain support and this was not helped by the presence of the Irish who were seen as brutal within the force.
Perkin Warbeck
Perkin Warbeck claimed to be Richard, Duke of York, one of the princes murdered in the tower the tower, making it impossible for Henry to parade the real Duke around London. The conspiracy was not an immediate threat to the king however it lasted for a long time and had international aid from France and Burgundy.
Warbeck began in Ireland but gained little support, he then was welcomed at the French court, however was forced to leave after the signing of the 'Treaty of Etaples'. He didn't gain any further support in Ireland but was however welcomed in Scotland, were he married Jame IV's cousin, he attempted to invade from the North but was unsuccessful and upon returning to Scotland was not welcomed. He attempted one final rebellion which combined with the Cornish rebellion, he later gave himself over to the king and was later executed after he was accused of continuing to conspire against the king.
The final Yorkist challenge came from Edmund de la Pole, but in 1506 Philip of Burgundy was persuaded to hand him over. Therefore it can be argued that despite it taking most of his reign Henry was finally secure.
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Relations with nobility
The major problem that was represented by the nobility is that they were really powerful, some even more than Henry. This therefore meant that there was nothing stopping them doing what Henry did and overthrowing the king.
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