Council of the North

Last updated

The Council of the North
History
Founded1484
Disbanded1641
Leadership
President
Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford (final)
Meeting place
King's Manor, York - DSC07900.JPG
King's Manor, York, the seat of the Council of the North 1539–1641

The Council of the North was an administrative body first set up in 1484 by King Richard III of England, to improve access to conciliar justice in Northern England. This built upon steps by King Edward IV of England in delegating authority in the north to Richard, duke of Gloucester (i.e. before Richard himself became king), and in establishing the Council of Wales and the Marches. [1]

Contents

It was based in Yorkshire throughout its history: first at Sheriff Hutton Castle and at Sandal Castle, and then at King's Manor, York. Henry VIII re-established the council after the English Reformation, when the north became identified with Roman Catholicism. It was abolished in 1641, just before the English Civil War.

History

The first 'council in the north' was established in 1484 by King Richard III of England. [2] The council was administered from Sheriff Hutton. Richard placed the council in the hands of John de la Pole, 1st Earl of Lincoln, who was charged with control primarily of Yorkshire. [3] [4] A sudden decline in numbers of cases from the far northern counties appearing in the court of king's bench at this time may indicate that in the middle and late 1480s litigants from Northumberland, Cumberland and Westmorland diverted certain legal affairs to this new council. [5]

After Richard's death the council was re-established by Henry VII in 1489, nominally led by the king's young son Arthur Tudor. After Arthur's early death it existed as a sporadically constituted body to deal with pressing issues. [6] The council was led by Thomas Savage, Archbishop of York from shortly after his appointment as Archbishop in 1501 until his death in 1507. [7] During this time he clashed with Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland, one of the most powerful noblemen in the north of England. Northumberland had wanted several of the positions on the council to go to his supporters but was unable to secure these positions, he had also frequently clashed with two of the Archbishop's household officers Sir John Hotham and Sir Robert Constable. The Archbishop's and the Earl's retinues notably clashed on the road out of Fulford near York in 1504 and the Archbishop's career declined after this point, although he maintained leadership of the council. [8] Following the death of Savage most of the administration of the north was handled by the king's mother Margaret Beaufort via a council based in the Midlands. [6]

Re-creation

The council was re-established by Henry VIII in 1537, after a period when the north was governed by a less formally constituted council led by Henry Fitzroy. [6] [9] It was established to administer royal justice in the northern parts of England – Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Yorkshire, Lancashire, Durham, Cumberland, Westmorland, and Northumberland. [6]

Resistance to the Reformation was the spur to the recreation of the council. Resentment arose in the north following the English Reformation, the Church of England's split from Rome and the dissolution of the Monasteries. In the north, most people's faith remained staunchly Roman Catholic and many were unhappy with changes. A rebellion rose up in York creating a 30,000 strong Catholic army, carrying crosses and banners depicting the Holy Wounds. This movement became known as the Pilgrimage of Grace.

It was promised that the rebels would be pardoned and a parliament would be held in York to discuss their demands. The rebels, convinced that monasteries would be reopened, returned to their homes. However, after the failed Rebellion by Sir Francis Bigod, Henry had an excuse to arrest rebel leaders and to execute 200 people involved. Suppression followed the Pilgrimage of Grace. The council was reorganised again in 1538 under Robert Holgate as President. [9] It organised four sessions annually, in York, Durham, Newcastle and Hull. [6]

After York Abbey's dissolution, founded by the Lord of Richmond as St Mary's, its abbot's house was retained by the king and allocated it to the council in 1539. The building is now called King's Manor. [9]

Abolition

In 1620, Thomas Wentworth gave a famous speech to the council in which he emphasised "authority of the king" as the basis for social order: "the keystone which closeth up the arch of government". [10] By 1640, the council was no longer perceived as a centralising royal power agent in the north, but rather as a potential locus of resistance. Edward Hyde advocated the council's abolition. The Long Parliament abolished the council in 1641 for reasons relating to the Reformation: the council was a chief supporter of Catholic Recusants. [11]

Presidents

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward VI</span> King of England and Ireland from 1547 to 1553

Edward VI was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. The only surviving son of Henry VIII by his third wife, Jane Seymour, Edward was the first English monarch to be raised as a Protestant. During his reign, the realm was governed by a regency council because Edward never reached maturity. The council was first led by his uncle Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset (1547–1549), and then by John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland (1550–1553).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Cromwell</span> English statesman and politician

Thomas Cromwell, briefly Earl of Essex, was an English statesman and lawyer who served as chief minister to King Henry VIII from 1534 to 1540, when he was beheaded on orders of the king, who later blamed false charges for the execution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury</span> English nobleman

Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury KG PC was an English nobleman and magnate based in northern England who became a key supporter of the House of York during the early years of the Wars of the Roses. He was the father of Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick, the "Kingmaker".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland</span> English nobleman

Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of WestmorlandEarl Marshal, was an English nobleman of the House of Neville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cuthbert Tunstall</span> English humanist, church leader, diplomat, administrator, mathematician and royal adviser

Cuthbert Tunstall was an English humanist, bishop, diplomat, administrator and royal adviser. He served as Bishop of Durham during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earl of Northumberland</span> Earldom in the Peerage of Great Britain

The title of Earl of Northumberland has been created several times in the Peerage of England and of Great Britain, succeeding the title Earl of Northumbria. Its most famous holders are the House of Percy, who were the most powerful noble family in Northern England for much of the Middle Ages. The heirs of the Percys, via a female line, were ultimately made Duke of Northumberland in 1766, and continue to hold the earldom as a subsidiary title.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pilgrimage of Grace</span> 1536 uprising against Henry VIII in England

The Pilgrimage of Grace was a popular revolt beginning in Yorkshire in October 1536, before spreading to other parts of Northern England including Cumberland, Northumberland, Durham and north Lancashire, under the leadership of Robert Aske. The "most serious of all Tudor period rebellions", it was a protest against Henry VIII's break with the Catholic Church, the dissolution of the lesser monasteries, and the policies of the King's chief minister, Thomas Cromwell, as well as other specific political, social, and economic grievances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henry Hastings, 3rd Earl of Huntingdon</span> English noble (1535–1595)

Henry Hastings, 3rd Earl of Huntingdon, KG, KB was an English Puritan nobleman. Educated alongside the future Edward VI, he was briefly imprisoned by Mary I, and later considered by some as a potential successor to Elizabeth I. He hotly opposed the scheme to marry Mary, Queen of Scots, to the Duke of Norfolk, and was entrusted by Elizabeth to see that the Scottish queen did not escape at the time of the threatened uprising in 1569. He served as President of the Council of the North from 1572 until his death in 1595.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Percy family</span> English noble family

The Percy family is an English noble family. They were among the most powerful noble families in Northern England for much of the Middle Ages. The noble family is known for its long rivalry with the House of Neville, another family powerful in northern England during the 15th century. The Percy-Neville feud led into the Wars of the Roses, at the time known as the Civil Wars, in England.

Hugh de Puiset was a medieval Bishop of Durham and Chief Justiciar of England under King Richard I. He was the nephew of King Stephen of England and Henry of Blois, who both assisted Hugh's ecclesiastical career. He held the office of treasurer of York for a number of years, which led him into conflict with Henry Murdac, Archbishop of York. In 1153, Hugh was elected bishop of Durham despite the opposition of Murdac.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury</span>

George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury, 4th Earl of Waterford, 10th Baron Talbot, KG, KB, PC was the son of John Talbot, 3rd Earl of Shrewsbury, and Lady Catherine Stafford, daughter of the 1st Duke of Buckingham. He also held the subsidiary titles of 13th Baron Strange of Blackmere and 9th Baron Furnivall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Savage (bishop)</span> 16th-century Archbishop of York

Thomas Savage was a prelate, diplomat and scholar during the Tudor period. Savage served as Chaplain to King Henry VII and was Archbishop of York from 1501 until his death in 1507. Prior to his consecration as a Bishop, Savage served as a diplomat and rector. As a diplomat Savage held the positions of English Ambassador to Castile and Portugal, during which time he helped broker the marriage treaty between Arthur, Prince of Wales and Catherine of Aragon in 1489, and later held the position of English Ambassador to France from 1490, where he took part in the conference at Boulogne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lady Jane Grey</span> Claimant to the English throne in 1553

Lady Jane Grey, also known as Lady Jane Dudley after her marriage and as the "Nine Days' Queen", was an English noblewoman who claimed the throne of England and Ireland from 10 to 19 July 1553.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheriff Hutton Castle</span> Castle in North Yorkshire, England

Sheriff Hutton Castle is a ruined quadrangular castle in the village of Sheriff Hutton, North Yorkshire, England. The site of the castle is 10 miles (16 km) north of York, and 8 miles (13 km) south-east of Easingwold.

Events from the 1530s in England.

Events from the 1470s in England.

Events from the 1500s in England.

Events from the 1550s in England. This decade marks the beginning of the Elizabethan era.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">House of Neville</span> English noble family

The Neville or Nevill family is a noble house of early medieval origin, which was a leading force in English politics in the Late Middle Ages. The family became one of the two major powers in northern England and played a central role in the Wars of the Roses along with their rival, the House of Percy.

Richard le Scrope was an English cleric who served as Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield and Archbishop of York and was executed in 1405 for his participation in the Northern Rising against King Henry IV.

References

  1. Reid, Rachel R. (1921). The King's Council in the North. London: Longmans, Green and Co. pp. 41, 59, 243.
  2. Reid, Rachel R. (1921). The King's Council in the North. London: Longmans, Green and Co. p. 243.
  3. Brooks, Frederick William (1954). York and the Council of the North. Borthwick Publications. p. 4.
  4. Ross, Charles D. (1981). Richard III. English Monarchs series. London: Eyre Methuen. pp. 182–183. ISBN   978-0-413-29530-9. OCLC   251461788.
  5. Armstrong, Jackson W. (2020). England's Northern Frontier: Conflict and Local Society in the Fifteenth-Century Scottish Marches. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 223. doi:10.1017/9781108561686. ISBN   9781108472999. OCLC   1249750829. S2CID   213779832.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Schmid, Susan Walters; Wagner, John A., eds. (2011). Encyclopedia of Tudor England. ABC-CLIO. pp. 304–305.
  7. 1 2 Reid, Rachel R. (1921). The King's Council in the North. London: Longmans, Green and Co. p. 486.
  8. Penn, Thomas. Winter King: Henry VII and the Dawn of Tudor England. p. 136.
  9. 1 2 3 "After the dissolution".
  10. Wilcher, Robert (2001). The Writing of Royalism 1628-1660. Cambridge University Press. p. 3.
  11. "King's Manor Tudor and Stuart".

Sources