Patronage

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The Significance of Royal and Noble Patronage

Patronage was central to gaining power and influence in the Tudor period.

Patronage

Patronage is the act of a ‘patron’ (whether it be a monarch or nobleman) bestowing support, encouragement or aid to an individual or group.

Political patronage

Starkey (1987): From 1500, the Court was the heart of political power in England.
Starkey: Access to the monarch was fundamental to gaining political power. In doing so, the Crown could bestow patronage.

Patronage under Henry VII

Henry VII felt threatened by the power of the nobility. Henry VII used patronage to constrain the nobility
E.g. he only made three earls during his reign.

Patronage under Elizabeth I

As Elizabeth I's privy chamber was mostly female, it was more difficult to access her.
Historians have argued that this meant it was more important to gain the Queen's attention at court.
Often, courtiers would perform poetry, music or give the Queen portraits or miniatures.
They hoped this would gain her favour and that she would give them patronage.

Cultural patronage

The Crown and the nobility were often patrons of artists, musicians and poets.
The system of patronage was central to enabling cultural development in England.
E.g. Elizabeth I’s patronage of artists was minimal and historians have argued that English portraiture was sub-par compared to other countries in Europe.

1Monarch & Government

1.1Tudor Monarchs

1.1.1Henry VII

1.1.2Henry VIII

1.1.3Edward VI

1.1.4Mary I

1.1.5Elizabeth I

1.1.6Succession Disputes

1.2Changing Role of Parliament

1.2.1Parliament & Henry VII

1.2.2Parliament & Henry VIII

1.2.3Parliament After the Reformation

1.3Principal Servants to the Crown

1.3.1Principal Servants to the Crown

2Religious Changes

2.1Tudor Monarchs & Religious Change

2.1.1The Henrician Reformation

2.1.2Impact of Religious Change Under Henry VIII

2.1.3Religious Change Under Edward VI

2.1.4Religious Change Under Mary I

2.1.5Elizabethan Settlement

2.2Catholicism & Survival

2.2.1Popular Attitudes to Catholicism

2.2.2Catholicism Under Henry VIII

2.2.3Catholicism Under Elizabeth I

2.2.4Catholic Nobility

2.3Protestantism & Puritanism

2.3.1Protestant Influences

2.3.2Protestantism Under Edward VI

2.3.3Protestantism Under Elizabeth I

3State Control & Popular Resistance

3.1Tudor Control of the Country

3.1.1Councils

3.1.2Role of Nobility

3.1.3Justices of the Peace

3.1.4Lord Lieutenant

3.2The State & the Poor

3.2.1Reasons for Growth of Poverty

3.2.2Punishments for Paupers

3.2.3Role of Charities

3.3Resistance to Tudor Rule

3.3.1Resistance to Tax & Subsidies

3.3.2Uprisings Against Henry VIII

3.3.3Uprisings Against Edward VI

3.3.4Uprisings Against Elizabeth I

3.3.5Decline of Popular Resistance

4Economic, Social & Cultural Change

4.1Patterns of Domestic & Foreign Trade

4.1.1Wool & Cloth

4.1.2Exploration & Trade

4.2Changing Structure of Society

4.2.1Population

4.2.2Dissolution of Monasteries

4.2.3Enclosure

4.3Cultural Change

4.3.1Education & Literature

4.3.2Impact of Religious Change

4.3.3Patronage

4.3.4The Arts

4.3.5Cult of Gloriana

5Historical Interpretations

5.1Significance of Threats to National Security

5.1.1Spain

5.1.2The Spanish Armada

5.1.3Ireland

5.2Court Politics

5.2.1Court Factions

5.2.2Essex's Rebellion

5.3Elizabeth & Parliament

5.3.1Conflict with Parliament

5.4Social Distress in the 1590s

5.4.1Social Distress in the 1590s

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