Henry VIII liked to have an overview of his government, but he was happy to let others do the mundane work for him - be it his Royal Council or his chosen ministers. The style of government therefore varied across his reign. A further complicating factor was the existence of Parliament and the use to which this was put. Indeed, thanks to a very personal matter relating to Henry's concern for a son to succeed him, a major overhaul of relations between Crown and Parliament took place during Henry VIII's reign.
Before the 1530s, there was little to suggest that Henry VIII's view of the role of Parliament differed from that held by his father. Its two main functions remained, to grant extraordinary revenue to the Crown and to pass laws. Parliaments could also advise the monarch, though neither Henry VII, nor Henry VIII in his earlier years, saw the need to seek Parliament's advice. Indeed, before 1529 Henry VIII only summoned parliaments in 1510, 1512, 1515 and 1523. His first minister, Wolsey, in particular, seems to have regarded Parliament with some distaste and only one parliament (that of 1523) was called during his period of dominance (c1514-29).
In the first part of the reign it is evident that the use of Parliament by Henry VIII followed the pattern associated with his father. The primary reason for calling Parliament was to secure revenue. Wolsey seems to have been reluctant to use Parliament. On the other hand, Cromwell exploited its legislative possibilities much more thoroughly. Consequently, Parliament met much more frequently in the second half of Henry VIII's reign.
During Henry VIlI's reign, governance via councils broke down for the first time because of conflict between the king's own impulsive personality and that of his more conservative councillors. It was Thomas Wolsey who came to Henry's rescue and provided the effective management of government which was required.