This was the largest tax ever and was extremely significant in Wolsey’s financial campaign; Henry would most likely not have raised the funds for the war given his lazy demeanour, leaving the monarchy in a large debt. Wolsey further improved crown finances with the reduction of expenditure. Although Wolsey was not making any significant
There are many events that occurred in 1483 as a result of the weaknesses of Edward IV that led to the usurpation of the crown, such as the overmighty nobility, strong division between the Yorkists, the premature death of the King and the opposition of the Woodvilles. However there were also the personal ambitions of his brother Richard III, who had a strong powerbase in the North, needed to protect himself from the Woodville’s revenge, arranged the arrest and deaths of nobles in his way of the throne and imprisoned his own nephews. One of the biggest weaknesses in Edward’s reign was his nobility, who were hugely overmighty despite the fact that he had distributed less patronage in his second reign than he did in his first. Gloucester and the Woodvilles benefited in particular from his extensive patronage. In July of 1471 Gloucester was granted all of Warwick’s northern lands and to help him conduct the war against the Scots in 1480-82 he was also made Lieutenant General in the north.
However, wars generally led to very expensive costs to the country. Henry's father, Henry VII, left the country in quite a stable state economically, but Henry devoted most of England's money into his campaigns to take over France, because he believed had a right to the Throne. To some extent source 4 supports the idea that the foreign policy did fail due to the lack of resources, because it states that “the young warrior family accepted the fact that royal finances could not support a repetition of the campaign of 1513”. This quote implies that the lack of resources seems to be the dominant reason for stopping Henry from invading France and therefore source 4 supports the statement to some extent. In source 4 we also learn that much must have depended on diplomatic relations with Maximilian and Ferdinand, however Henry’s allies proved unfaithful and unreliable.
There are several reasons and causes for the wars, including growing religious tensions, weak monarchs, foreign intervention, the role of Catherine de Medici and the existence of weak Kings coupled with strong Nobles. These factors provided shaky foundations, which, when confronted with a collapsing economy, led to rebellion and civil war. One of the most important reasons for war in the second half of the century was the existence of weak kings. During the first half of the century, France was led by domineering Monarchs, who kept control with an authoritarian style. In addition, the wars only ended when a strong King returned to the Throne; Henry IV after the ninth war.
Why did Wolsey fall from power in 1529? Thomas Wolsey was Henry VIII’s Lord Chancellor and he held many positions within the government and clergy. Starting off with a humble background Wolsey worked his way up the country’s hierarchy and became the most powerful man in Britain. However it all went wrong for Wolsey and a culmination of factors ended up with his fall from grace in 1529. Wolsey’s rise to power was a mixture of both luck and skill.
He was a complex man, ruled by his conscience, which he conveniently altered to suit his needs. Before his aims were formed, he made 2 immediate actions; the first was the imprisonment of Empson and Dudley, Henry VII's trusted advisors and secondly, made Catherine of Aragon the new queen of England. Henry VIII's aims for his reign were made clear from the start. These aims included glory in war with France, to reclaim lost territory, to be a popular king and to secure succession of the throne to carry on the Tudor dynasty. Henry's underlining aim was to achieve eternal glory.
It has long been debated whether Henry was successful in his acts in foreign policy. He had many policy’s which were masterminded on many occasions by either Oliver Cromwell or Thomas Wolsey which differed from divorce to war mongering. His main aims were honour and glory, aggressive against the French, peacemaker, securing his dynasty, to go down in history, collecting his pension and maintaining links with the Netherlands. These are very different aims put forth in different periods of time during Henry VIII’s long and illustrious rein. Henry had a very aggressive policy on France throughout his rein until he eventually decided on trying to become the peacemaker of Europe.
Whilst this played a key role in the Wars of the Roses breaking out, Henry’s ability to isolate important nobles went a long way towards explaining the Lancastrians defeat in 1461. - The role of Warwick The decision of Warwick to switch sides was particularly momentous. He had money, castles and retainers in England, and given his time as Captain of Calais he could command the support of the largest garrison of English soldiers. He effectively led the Yorkist invasion in 1460 and his belated involvement at Towton helped the Yorkists claim
Some may say that Henry was largely successful in achieving his aims with his biggest success being the battle of the spurs in 1513. Henry VIII want to be seen as a different king to his father who had a bad reputation for being aware of his money and not engaging in many wars which the nobilities did not like. He started by giving away the crowns land and gave many titles to the nobilities to prove that he would be different to his father. Catherine of Aragon, who had married Henry’s brother Arthur was still kept in England after Arthur had died. Henry had immediately married her after all the delays that his father had caused.
Although he has achieved wealth, his social status is not backed by a tradition that comes from his family. Because Mr. and Mrs. Wilson live in the Valley of Ashes, it is implied that they do not have much money and would not be aware of this league of the socially elite. In conclusion, this “secret society” is a group of the influential members of society based on inherited wealth and status. The only way to become a member is if you are born into it. As a member, one must be customary in their actions.