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He had brought the country to the brink of dynastic ambition, but not quite, so his closest advisers kept his death secret until St Georges Day, the annual meeting of the Order of the Garter. Author Thomas Penn takes an extraordinary journey into the dark and chilling world of the first Tudor King, Henry VII. [citation needed], To secure his hold on the throne, Henry declared himself king by right of conquest retroactively from 21 August 1485, the day before Bosworth Field. The King, normally a reserved man who rarely showed much emotion in public unless angry, surprised his courtiers by his intense grief and sobbing at his son's death, while his concern for the Queen is evidence that the marriage was a happy one, as is his reaction to Queen Elizabeth's death the following year, when he shut himself away for several days, refusing to speak to anyone. And yet this time removed was summer's time, The teeming autumn, big with rich increase, Bearing the wanton burden of the prime, Like widow'd wombs after their lords . Swynford was Gaunt's mistress for about 25 years. When the Lancastrian cause crashed to disaster at the Battle of Tewkesbury (May 1471), Jasper took the boy out of the country and sought refuge in the duchy of Brittany. (1): (April 24, 1883. Thanks largely to the desertion of his stepfather, Lord Stanley, to him, he defeated and slew Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth on August 22, 1485. There's a (relatively) brief explanation of Henry's rather tumultuous childhood and his rise to the throne, before Penn really gets into the nitty gritty details during the second half of Henry's reign, focusing on his intricate foreign policy, his increasing use of finance as a means of control over his subjects and, most entertaining to me, the various plots and conspiracies of Henry's enemies. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. The future Henry VIII, in contrast,. Updates? Read all Directors Giulia Clark Stuart Elliott Writers In 1407, Henry IV, Gaunt's son by his first wife, issued new Letters Patent confirming the legitimacy of his half-siblings but also declaring them ineligible for the throne. [49] The confused, fractious nature of Breton politics undermined his efforts, which finally failed after three sizeable expeditions, at a cost of 24,000. Two themes of his book preside: the permanent vulnerability of Henry's regime, and his ruthless methods of rule. [68] In 1505 he was sufficiently interested in a potential marriage to Joanna of Naples that he sent ambassadors to Naples to report on the 27-year-old Joanna's physical suitability. Life at court was merry under Henry 8th, a fresh new beginning likened to springtime. He was the founder of the Tudor dynasty, and his marriage to Elizabeth Woodville brought together the too sides that were facing off during the Wars of the Roses (the Lancasters and the Yorks) basically uniting the two houses into a single family. Henry was also worried by the treason of Edmund de la Pole, earl of Suffolk, the eldest surviving son of Edward IVs sister Elizabeth, who fled to the Netherlands (1499) and was supported by Maximilian. [64] This made Henry VII's second son, Henry, Duke of York, heir apparent to the throne. Henry VIII, (born June 28, 1491, Greenwich, near London, Englanddied January 28, 1547, London), king of England (1509-47) who presided over the beginnings of the English Renaissance and the English Reformation. [63] Despite this, Henry was keen to constrain their power and influence, applying the same principles to the justices of the peace as he did to the nobility: a similar system of bonds and recognisances to that which applied to both the gentry and the nobles who tried to exert their elevated influence over these local officials. [31] Despite such precautions, Henry faced several rebellions over the next twelve years. He led attempted invasions of Ireland in 1491 and England in 1495, and persuaded James IV of Scotland to invade England in 1496. This revived an earlier practice of using a small (and trusted) group of the Privy Council as a personal or Prerogative Court, able to cut through the cumbersome legal system and act swiftly. Since he was the second son, and not expected to become king, we know little of his childhood until the death of his older brother Arthur, Prince of Wales. Today is Shrove Tuesday time for pancakes! Henry VII was king of England from 1485 to 1509. Shakespeare later turned to Henry's son and successor Henry VIII, whose rule brought marital sensation, renaissance spectacle and the reformation. It seems that Henry was skilful at extracting money from his subjects on many pretexts, including that of war with France or war with Scotland. The usual courts and justice system were totally circumvented, and there was no chance of appeal other than purchasing extremely high priced royal pardons. [4] Owen is said to have secretly married the widow of Henry V, Catherine of Valois. [40], Henry VII improved tax collection in the realm by introducing ruthlessly efficient mechanisms of taxation. There's a lot of cloak-and-dagger stuff here, something Henry and certain of his counselors seemed especially skilled at, and it was those parts that I particularly enjoyed. Penn ended the programme by visiting the tombs of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York in Henrys chapel at Westminster Abbey, a chapel that remains at the heart of political life. The rebellion began in Ireland, where the historically Yorkist nobility, headed by the powerful Gerald FitzGerald, 8th Earl of Kildare, proclaimed Simnel king and provided troops for his invasion of England. Their main aim was money. Henry gained the support of the Woodvilles, in-laws of the late Edward IV, and sailed with a small French and Scottish force, landing at Mill Bay near Dale, Pembrokeshire. To unite the opponents of Richard III, Henry had promised to marry Elizabeth of York, eldest daughter of Edward IV; and the coalition of Yorkists and Lancastrians continued, helped by French support, since Richard III talked of invading France. Consultant editor for the. This is why he named the book the "Winter King". Its restoration by the Magnus Intercursus was very much to England's benefit in removing taxation for English merchants and significantly increasing England's wealth. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. Here is a rundown of the programme for those who missed it. While there, he feigned stomach cramps and delayed his departure long enough to miss the tides. His claim to the throne was precarious and was from an illegitimate line, a family who had been banned from taking the throne, so Henry needed to make the people believe that he was their rightful King and to do that he had to start behaving like one. I really enjoyed it. After obtaining the dispensation, Henry had second thoughts about the marriage of his son and Catherine. The significant role played by bitcoin for businesses! However, such a level of paranoia persisted that anyone (John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln, for example)[27] with blood ties to the Plantagenets was suspected of coveting the throne. Detailed Information. Through luck, guile and ruthlessness, Henry VII, the first of the Tudor kings, had clambered to the top of the heap--a fugitive with a flimsy claim to England's throne. This book is a nonfiction look at King Henry the VII. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Famed British author Thomas Penn takes an extraordinary journey into the dark and chilling world of the first Tudor King, Henry VII. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. Many of the entries show a man who loosened his purse strings generously for his wife and children, and not just on necessities: in spring 1491 he spent a great amount of gold on a lute for his daughter Mary; the following year he spent money on a lion for Elizabeth's menagerie. On the debit side, he may have looked a little delicate as he suffered from poor health. If you are new the era, this wouldn't the first book I would pick up because it does flip flop around a bit in the beginning-but if you want to understand the players that ultimately have a significant impact on Henry VIII, this is the book for you. ||sitemap_index.xml A King from upstart usurper to renaissance monarch to Machiavellian schemer. He was the first monarch of the House of Tudor. By 1500, Henry felt safer and things were looking good. I wasn't disappointed because, as usual, he did a great job with the narration. His early reign was plagued by pretenders to the throne, giving the new Tudor dynasty a rocky start and a fear of conspiracy which dogged Henry VII throughout his life. After Edward retook the throne in 1471, Henry Tudor spent 14 years in exile in Brittany. That is, suspicious, insecure and crafty but also determined, patient and fiercely proud of his Lancastrian ancestry. So 4 stars. The baby died and Elizabeth, herself, died on 11th February 1503, her 37th birthday. [45], Henry VII established the pound avoirdupois as a standard of weight; it later became part of the Imperial[46] and customary systems of units. He was crowned on October 30 and secured parliamentary recognition of his title early in November. Poor Henry VII. Thank you for subscribing. Thomas Mores coronation poem for Henry VIII contrasted the new Kings reign with the dark days of the past. Pembroke Castle, birthplace of Henry VII [ JKMMX ] [ CC BY-SA 3.0 ]. He had enough of that getting himself to the throne. Henry VII The Winter King is also the title of a book by Thomas Penn, and a useful read. He was probably baptised at St Mary's Church, Pembroke,[1] though no documentation of the event exists. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. [81], Henry VII and Elizabeth had seven children:[b]. Henry VIII had become heir to the throne when his elder brother, Arthur, died in 1502. Henrys throne, however, was far from secure. The Merchant Adventurers, the company which enjoyed the monopoly of the Flemish wool trade, relocated from Antwerp to Calais. He invited artists, musicians and scholars to live at his court. It was no easy feat. He spent most of the next 14 years under the protection of Francis II, Duke of Brittany. Henry was devastated. Sometimes, Penn explained, charges against people were fabricated so that they would have to pay a fine, for example, a man who was charged with murdering a child and who was found guilty because the jury was rigged. France, Burgundy, the Holy Roman Empire, Spain and the Hanseatic League all rejected the treaty, which was never in force. [29] Henry secured his crown principally by dividing and undermining the power of the nobility, especially through the aggressive use of bonds and recognisances to secure loyalty. Reading this, I got a much better understanding of where Henry VIII came from, and why he was destined to be the colorful ruler he became, as an antidote to his own father. When Henry VII became king, the royal exchequer was effectively bankrupt. He was, said Penn, a man who never knew a moments peace during his reign. More than a biography of Henry VII, this book is really a highly detailed history of the last ten years of his reign, and how he meticulously and ruthlessly turned England into a police state ruled by what amounted to an organized crime syndicate. [11] When Edward IV became King in 1461, Jasper Tudor went into exile abroad. February 7 Sir Francis Bryan loses an eye and Henry VIII has a new love, An interview with historical novelist Sandra Byrd, Henry VIII and His Six Wives event open for registration. [41] Henry also increased wealth by acquiring land through the act of resumption of 1486 which had been delayed as he focused on defence of the Church, his person and his realm. 1) The number of books on Henry VII can basically be counted on one hand 2) This is Penns first book. With the assistance of the Italian merchant banker Lodovico della Fava and the Italian banker Girolamo Frescobaldi, Henry VII became deeply involved in the trade by licensing ships, obtaining alum from the Ottoman Empire, and selling it to the Low Countries and in England. I thought the book was well written, even though a bit dry is spots. In 1485, history was about to be changed for ever by a man who was a refugee, a fugitive whod spent half his life on the run and with barely a claim to the throne: Henry Tudor. This was accomplished through the targeted imposition of fines and bonds through extrajudicial councils. Inadvertently, he provoked a revolution. [citation needed] Henry also formed an alliance with Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I (14931519) and persuaded Pope Innocent VIII to issue a papal bull of excommunication against all pretenders to Henry's throne. [62], Henry VII used justices of the peace on a large, nationwide scale. This book was way too focused on what happened, but not so much on the why or why it was important. Up to a point, he succeeded. ), The Reign of Henry VII. Before Henry VIII, English kings were addressed as "Your Grace" or "Your Highness.". [56] This trade made an expensive commodity cheaper, which raised opposition from Pope Julius II, since the Tolfa mine was a part of papal territory and had given the Pope monopoly control over alum. There were too many powerful noblemen and, as a consequence of the system of so-called bastard feudalism, each had what amounted to private armies of indentured retainers (mercenaries masquerading as servants). [74] Margaret Tudor wrote letters to her father declaring her homesickness, but Henry could do nothing but mourn the loss of his family and honour the terms of the peace treaty he had agreed to with the King of Scotland. [75], Henry VII died of tuberculosis at Richmond Palace on 21 April 1509 and was buried in the chapel he commissioned in Westminster Abbey next to his wife, Elizabeth. The purpose of the agreement was to prevent France from annexing Brittany. His first chance came in 1483 when his aid was sought to rally Lancastrians in support of the rebellion of Henry Stafford, duke of Buckingham, but that revolt was defeated before Henry could land in England. In 1621 Francis Bacon's history of. I would read more by this author. I'm not giving this a star rating because I suspect it's me at fault not the book. He would learn better as the new reign unfolded. [48], Henry later concluded a treaty with France at Etaples that brought money into the coffers of England, and ensured the French would not support pretenders to the English throne, such as Perkin Warbeck. His history plays depicted the dramatic conflicts of the wars of the roses, which Henry's accession after his victory at Bosworth in 1485 brought to an end. Castles of . A man who rewrote history and rebuilt the crown, but who was paranoid, manipulative and suspicious; a dark prince with a wintery reign. Watch with Prime The 17 year-old Prince Henry became King Henry VIII and started a different era. [44] Following Henry VII's death, Henry VIII executed Richard Empson and Edmund Dudley, his two most hated tax collectors, on trumped-up charges of treason. [39] Despite this, during his reign he became a fiscally prudent monarch who restored the fortunes of an effectively bankrupt exchequer. It was 1501. This approach raised puzzling questions about similarities and differences in the development of national states. Penn explained how Henry reworked recent events to suit him. He explained how Henry VII had achieved what he set out to do, he had passed on the crown successfully. I had an idea Henry VII was a force for stability; in fact he was a terrifying kleptocrat, abusing the law with arbitrary fines and imprisonment, scheming to effectively steal entire estates and wring every penny out of subjects as well as impose political control through financial means. What freezings have I felt, what dark days seen! Henry VII was king of England from 1485 to 1509. All the powers of Europe doubted Henrys ability to survive, and most were willing to shelter claimants against him. This definitely was not that. Penn notes something else about the paeans on the son's accession: later in the Tudor period, apologists for the regime would remember Henry VII as the restorer of national peace and unity, but in 1509 it was the king's death, not his rule, that was held to have ended a long era of dark instability. Not only was . No. Happy St Davids Day! People saw him as being like a traditional king and hoped that his reign would bring positive change. Penn then went on to talk about the heir to the throne, the young Prince Henry, who seemed very different to the King. There he claimed sanctuary until the envoys were forced to depart. [30] Before departing for London, Henry sent Robert Willoughby to Sheriff Hutton in Yorkshire, to arrest Warwick and take him to the Tower of London. Henry had only been accepted as King because the Princes in the Tower, the sons of Edward IV, were dead, so when Yorkist exiles groomed Perkin Warbeck to pose as one of the princes and raised an army it was a huge threat. He married his brother's widow, Catherine of Aragon. [citation needed], In 1502, Henry VII's life took a difficult and personal turn in which many people he was close to died in quick succession. Having established his claim to be king in his own right, he married Elizabeth of York on January 18, 1486. For instance, the Stanley family had control of Lancashire and Cheshire, upholding the peace on the condition that they stayed within the law. Henry VII was born in Pembroke Castle , Wales, on January 28 th, 1457. [47], Henry VII's policy was to maintain peace and to create economic prosperity. [52] He also concluded the Treaty of Perpetual Peace with Scotland (the first treaty between England and Scotland for almost two centuries), which betrothed his daughter Margaret Tudor to King James IV of Scotland. Martin Luther 95 thesis. Henry VII's reign has yielded an evocative study, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, ILLUSTRATION: CLIFFORD HARPER/AGRAPHIA.CO.UK. Alison Weir points out that the Rennes ceremony, two years earlier, was plausible only if Henry and his supporters were certain that the Princes were already dead. The fact that a Cockney could provide a recognisable representation of him gives away part of his enduring appeal; in national memory, Henry was one of the lads, the only English king to have. When they married in 1396 they already had four children, including Henry's great-grandfather John Beaufort. Story's register still exists and, according to the 19th-century historian W.R.W. Blair Worden's The English Civil Wars is published by Phoenix. The expressive and evocative power of his writing, and the union of scholarship with artistry, are rare in modern historical writing. Anyone perceived to have any potential political power or social capital was rendered deeply indebted to the crown and at risk of complete financial ruin upon the whim of the king and his councillors. The reigns of his three predecessors were interrupted or foreshortened. Raised in France, admiring of Italian-trained lawyers (and reaping the reward of the return of a whole generation of educated English commoners who sat out the War of the Roses abroad), with good taste in Renaissance art and advised by his gracious wife and steely mother, Henry VII is a major figure, not a prequel. They were appointed for every shire and served for a year at a time. Letters to relatives have an affectionate tone not captured by official state business, as evidenced by many written to his mother Margaret. Henry decided to keep Brittany out of French hands, signed an alliance with Spain to that end, and sent 6,000 troops to France. [51], Henry VII was one of the first European monarchs to recognise the importance of the newly united Spanish kingdom; he concluded the Treaty of Medina del Campo, by which his son Arthur, Prince of Wales, was married to Catherine of Aragon. To strengthen his position, however, he subsidised shipbuilding, so strengthening the navy (he commissioned Europe's first ever and the world's oldest surviving dry dock at Portsmouth in 1495) and improving trading opportunities. Stanley was accused of supporting Warbeck's cause, arrested and later executed. It was presented by historian Thomas Penn, author of Winter King and was an excellent examination of the King who, as Penn pointed out, tend to be eclipsed by Richard III, the glamour and notoriety of Henry VIII and the charisma of Elizabeth I. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). In my never-ending quest to read possibly every single published book on the Tudor monarchy, I spied this little gem a few weeks ago and picked it up. Rarely was a father's reign so widely disparaged and disowned on the accession of the son. For Henry VII, it was all about the money and stability. He stabilised the government's finances by introducing several new taxes. [2] His father died three months before his birth. He had, Bacon added, much to be suspicious about, "his times" being "full of secret conspiracies and troubles". From his victory over Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth, to his secret death and the succession of his son Henry VIII, the film reveals the ruthless tactics . The first rising, that of Lord Lovell, Richard IIIs chamberlain, in 1486 was ill-prepared and unimportant, but in 1487 came the much more serious revolt of Lambert Simnel. MP3 CD. From 1527 Henry pursued what became known as "the King's great matter": his divorce from Catherine. He likens the beginning of Henry VIIIs reign to a metaphorical spring, a second coming of sorts because Henry VIII seemed to be the opposite of his father. Warbeck was finally captured in 1497 and executed. For inheriting an unstable throne, holding it for 25 year and leaving England relatively stable, Henry VII deserves his own biography and a lot more credit. Shakespeare, drawn to the colour on either side of the reign, skipped it. He had finished his palace of Richmond, he was controlling his allies and keeping an eye on his enemies, and now was the time to finalise the marriage agreement between England and Spain. [55] Since alum was mined in only one area in Europe (Tolfa, Italy), it was a scarce commodity and therefore especially valuable to its land holder, the Pope. But he leaves us wondering how Henry got away with it. [79], Amiable and high-spirited, Henry was friendly if dignified in manner, and it was clear that he was extremely intelligent. [8], In 1456, Henry's father Edmund Tudor was captured while fighting for Henry VI in South Wales against the Yorkists. Penn then moved on to how Henry became King. They were also in charge of various administrative duties, such as the checking of weights and measures. Henrys Chamber Accounts show payment to strangers and people across the sea, who appear to have been part of a network of spies and informers who kept an eye on potential troublemakers and alerted the King. Files Welcome Pack of 5 goodies, 28 January 1457 Birth of Henry VII at Pembroke Castle, 30 October 1485 Coronation of Henry VII, Henry VIIIs Enforcer: The Rise and Fall of Thomas Cromwell A Review and Rundown, Henry VII: Winter King A Review and Rundown, 31 May 1533 The Coronation Procession of Queen Anne Boleyn, Why I think Henry VIII was ultimately responsible for Anne Boleyns downfall, 4 March 1522 Anne Boleyn plays Perseverance, The Boleyns of Hever Castle now 99p on Kindle on Amazon UK, YouTube Live 4 March 2023 The Fascinating Background of Henry VIII. The country was in a perpetual state of emergency and Henrys subjects were scared and resentful. Early life Thomas Penns Winter King in a brilliant mash-up of gothic horror and political biography. [77][78] His mother died two months later on 29 June 1509. Henry was thus handed over to English envoys and escorted to the Breton port of Saint-Malo. Sometimes when reading nonfiction of this type, I never know if it is going to be dry and dull or not. [57], In 1506, Henry extorted the Treaty of Windsor from Philip the Handsome, Duke of Burgundy. At Rennes Cathedral on Christmas Day 1483, Henry pledged to marry Elizabeth of York, the eldest daughter of Edward IV. Henry Tudors claim to the throne was, therefore, weak and of no importance until the deaths in 1471 of Henry VIs only son, Edward, of his own two remaining kinsmen of the Beaufort line, and of Henry VI himself, which suddenly made Henry Tudor the sole surviving male with any ancestral claim to the house of Lancaster. Catherine's mother Isabella I of Castile had died and Catherine's sister Joanna had succeeded her; Catherine was, therefore, daughter of only one reigning monarch and so less desirable as a spouse for Henry VII's heir-apparent. Henry the eighth was a renaissance King. However, with the help of the forces of his step-father, Lord Stanley, he defeated Richard and Richard was killed on the battlefield. [20] He amassed an army of about 5,0006,000 soldiers. 7.1 59min 2013 16+. [76] He was succeeded by his second son, Henry VIII (reigned 150947), who would initiate the Protestant Reformation in England. 1509. Henry VIII was the first English king to be called "Your Majesty.". Scapegoats were needed for Henry VIIs reign, people to blame for the old regime, so Edmund Dudley was imprisoned and executed on trumped up charges. Stanley placed Richards circlet on Henrys head, he was now King. He attained the throne when his forces, supported by France, Scotland, and Wales, defeated Edward IV's brother Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field, the culmination of the Wars of the Roses. For many he remained a usurper, a false king. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title.