Mary I

Bloody Reign

Intro

Until quite recently historians dismissed Mary aslacking political experience and leadership qualities. In addition, she is also accused of being overzealous in her support of Roman Catholicism and Spain. By the end of her reign her religious and overseas policies had made her unpopular. Mary was widely popular on her accession.

Her two main objectives were:

To return England to Roman Catholicism

To create close links to the Hapsburgs

'Arrogant,assertive,bigoted,stubborn, suspicious and stupid' (G.R.Elton)

Mary's motto: 'Veritas Temporis Filia' (Truth is the daughter of Time) 

Early Years

Mary was born February 1516 and was a wanted and loved child, expensively nurtured and educated in humanist precepts by her mother and was even tutored in playing the lyre by her father.

She became fluent in five languages including Latin. Her mother chose the finest tutors including Vives from Spain and Linekar from Canterbury.

The King's Great Matter

The longer her father's desire for a male heir remained unfulfilled, the more disatisfied he became with his marriage and the  Golden days of Mary's childhood was soon over.

June 1527: The King's Great Matter, Henry's efforts to rid himself of an unwanted wife became public knowledge, and with it began the most trying years of Mary's life.

Though still heir to the throne, she was clearly estranged from her father and her future remained heavily clouded.

When the collapse of her parent's marriage reached the climax in 1532 Henry forbade her to have contact with her mother.

Two years later Henry married his pregnant mistress Anne Boleyn and declared illegal his previous marriage to Catherine of Aragon.

June 1536: Cromwell persuaded Mary to sign the articles refuting her mother's marriage and making her a bastard, her mother having died in January and Anne Boleyn having been executed on the 19th of May, it became a dangerous time to cross the King.

Mary and Jane Seymour

Jane Seymour became Queen in 1536 a day after Anne Boleyn's execution.

She put much effort to restore Princess Mary to court and she tried to persuade Henry to make her his heir after the children that she would have with him.

Though Jane was unable to restore Mary, Mary became reconciled with her family.

Mary and Katherine Parr

1545: Though Mary was still considered illegitimate she was reinstated in the line of succession by her father and parliament.

Henry's marriage to Katherine Parr in 1543 signalled a change for Mary. Parr deliberately set out to reconcile Henry with his two daughters and succeeded. Mary also became a lady in waiting to the Queen. She translated Erasmus' 'Paraphrases of the Gospel of St John' which was unfinished due to illness.

Mary and Edward VI

Henry's will gave both princesses £3000, but this was given to them in lands rather than cash due to the emptiness in the King's treasury.

Mary did well and received more lands including Framlingham and Norfolk making her a magnate in that area.

During Edward's reign, he became upset that Mary refused to abandon the mass for her household.

In his will he made Lady Jane Grey and her 'heirs male' rulers after his death; seeing both his sisters as illegitimate.The third act of succession laid down that Mary would succeed Edward and then Elizabeth.

Edward's plans (seconded by Northumberland) went awry and never passed through parliament. Jane was proclaimed Queen but londoners did not rejoice any more than herself, for they had very little idea who the 16 year old was. Northumberland persuaded the council to back him, hoping Mary would cave in under pressure. 

Lady Jane and Mary

14th July: Mary travelled to Framlingham Castle in Suffolk. This was much easier to defend than her other residences at Hunsdon and Kennighall. Whilst she was there, not only did she rally her household but she quickly attracted some supporters.

Northumberland set out with a small army towards Cumbridge to capture Mary. This was a mistake as his councillor's support for him swayed, cracked and fell entirely. Sir William Cecil was commissioned by his colleagues to make a presentation of loyalty to Mary.

16th July: Northumberland reached Cambridge and had sent six ships to cut off Mary's retreat by sea through Great Yarmouth.

18th: Several stalwart Marians had effected a mutiny of the ships so Northumberland had to fall back.

Mary's coronation

19th July: Mary was officially proclaimed Queen in London

28th September: River Pageant

29th September: Procession from the Tower to Westminster

There is not an extant pamphlet explaining the festivities, only the sketch of a triumphal arch, highly classical in style.

Royal Wedding

Mary believed that she had to barr Elizabeth, who Mary thought was a Protestant, from claiming the throne after her. So Mary was determined to conclude a suitable marriage. Most of her advisors agreed. The only exception- and it was an ironic one as he was a potential candidate himself- was Reginald Pole. He urged Mary to remain unwed.

Charles V entrusted his ambassador, Simon Renard with presenting to Mary and official proposal of marriage to Philip II on 10th October 1553. It was rare for an unmarried woman of royal birth to have a free hand in her own marriage. Philip represented things Mary wanted: he was Spanish (like her mother) and Catholic.

7th December 1553 the agreement was settled and the wedding happened on the 25th July 1554. Philip was to receive the title as King but he would be a joint sovereign with Mary. As for the succession, if the marriage was to prove fruitless or if Mary were to pre-decease her consort, he and his heirs would hold no further claim to the crown of England.

Wyatt's rebellion

Some people feared Spanish rule under Philip II. In Kent Thomas Wyatt rallied about him his tenants and other gentlemen, there were about 2,500 armed supporters. His view was to call for English Patrioitsm and to an associated fear and resentmentof the Spanish.

Wyatt envisaged a quick march on london where he could either compel Mary to disavow her marriage plans or a coup to place Elizabeth on the throne. The conspirators planned to marry Elizabeth to Edward Courtenay, Earl of Devon, who Mary had rejected.

The simulataneous rebellions in the West Country and the Midlands failed because Courtenay disclosed the scheme to his patron, Bishop Gardiner.

Wyatt had success in that the troops sent to Kent against him were led by the Duke of Norfolk and the troops deserted. The Privy counmcil quickly raised forces to protect London. Wyatt took his time in making for the capital. He beseiged Cooling Castle and captured his enemy Lord Cobham.

He wasted more time by discussing grievances with Mary but this was a plan on Mary's part to gain time. The government had time to appeal to the citizens of London for support in defending the city. So when the main assault on London came the rebels were trapped and defeated at Ludgate.

Consequences of the Northern Rebellion

Wyatt and his leading supporters were executed

Lady Jane Grey was executed to pay for her father's treason

Princess Elizabeth was sent to the tower of London because she was used in Wyatt's plans

Marriage

Mary and Philip married 25th July 1554

'The Marriage was concluded for no fleshly consideration but in order to remedy the disorders of this Kingdom and to preserve the low countries' (Philip II)

Mary and Religion

Her first parliament repealed ecclesiastical legislation of Edward VI's reign and restored the service in use at Henry VIII's death.

It imposed sanctions against those who interfered with the work of the clergy, or who abused the Catholic rite which reaffirmed the traditional doctrine of the Lord's supper.

Despite the importance of the Royal Supremacy, Parliament were not asked to annul it.

Substantial majority of the clergy in July 1553, were unprepared either by training or the inclination to bear the burdens of a Catholic restoration.

BUT: Mary deprived around 25% of them of their livings, most of them for having taken wives. These deprivations did a great deal to aggravate the already serious shortage of manpower in the church.

Mary and her bishops encouraged greater diligence in clerical performances, with preaching, pastoral care, and more regular attendance by lay people at services.

Mary began to restore certain lands which remained in Crown hand. She managed to refound a few monastic institutions in the London area, including Westminster Abbey. However, this did not prompt the hoped for lay response.

Reginald Pole

Although Mary came to the throne in July 1553, Pole did not arrive to England until November 1554. He was not only kept away because of Charles V who wanted Philip to become established in England before Pole's return, but also by Mary herself.

Mary knew that Pole would return as Cardinal legate with the official assignment of reconciling England to the Papal See.

While she clearly longed for this, she knew enough about the attitudes of her subjects to fear the condition attached to it: the restoration to the Church of all lands taken from Henry VIII. Therefore, she prolonged his return.

Reconciliation to Rome

'To reconcyle, not to condemne...not to destroy but to build,...not to compel but to call agayne..' (Pole Nov 1554 to Parliament)

Parliament met and passed the second act of repeal which ended the royal supremacy and returned England to Papal authority by repealing all the religious legislation of the reign of her father.

To achieve this, Mary came to a compromise with the landed elites. Careful provision was made in the act to protect the property rights of all those who had bought Church lands since 1536. This demonstrates that Mary had to recognise authority of Parliament over matters of religion.