The Church
History: KS3, topic 8.1.2
The Church
The Church was very important in the way the country was run. It was powerful due to the involvement of churchmen in politics, education and land ownership.
Bishops
- All of the bishops in England also sat in the House of Lords, and therefore influence which laws could be passed.
Land
- The Church owned about 1/3 of the land in England. This made it incredibly powerful and influential.
- This land would produce goods and taxes for the King, as well as giving jobs to the peasants who worked on it.
King's advisors
- Many of the top churchmen worked in government to advise the King.
- Lower down, it would be Church-trained clerks who would do all of the paperwork necessary to run the country. For example, the Treasury and law courts.
Education
- Churches were often the only place of education available to the public.
- The Church could teach boys how to read and write in Latin, to train them to become priests.
Libraries
- The Church also ran the majority of libraries and was the main place where books could be produced, carefully copied out by hand by the monks.
The Pope
- The Head of the Catholic Church, the Pope, had the final say on who became an Archbishop in each country.
- They also sent special representatives, called cardinals, to make sure everything was running as it should, or to hear special law cases.
Power of the Pope
- The Pope was seen as having power over all of the monarchs of Europe because he was appointed by God to lead the Church.
- We can see this power when the Holy Roman Emperors (rulers of roughly modern-day Germany) had to be approved and anointed by the Pope.
Test yourself on The Church
In which House did all of the bishops of England sit?
How much English land did the Church own?