Henry VII - The Founder of the Tudor Dynasty

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The Tudors

Petty feudal lords ruled England before the Tudors took over the English throne.

Henry VII - The Founder of the Tudor Dynasty

Henry VII was King of England from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor.

Henry won the throne at the decisive battle of the Wars of the Roses. He was the last king of England to win his throne on the field of battle.

Henry VII took some major steps by which the power of the traditional feudal lords came to an end. Henry supported upcoming lawyers, small merchants, clerks, educated class, writers, small businessmen, etc. Common people thus started gaining prominence.

The English parliament was very reluctant to grant money to the King. It is generally accepted that Henry VII was a fiscally prudent monarch who restored the fortunes of an effectively bankrupt exchequer introducing ruthlessly efficient mechanisms of taxation.

Henry VII successfully carried out the administration. He gave secondary position to the parliament. But he never desired to reduce its legal powers.

Henry VII's policy was both to maintain peace and to create economic prosperity. Up to a point, he succeeded. He was not a military man and had no interest in trying to regain French territories lost during the reigns of his predecessors; he was therefore ready to conclude a treaty with France that brought money into the coffers of England.

Marriage alliances were another form by which Henry kept up the balance of power and also managed to make England a very powerful country.

Henry can be credited with the restoration of political stability in England, and a number of commendable administrative, economic and diplomatic initiatives, He secured his crown principally by dividing and undermining the power of the nobility. He was successful in restoring the power and stability of the English monarchy after the political upheavals of the Wars of the Roses. He founded a long-lasting dynasty and was peacefully succeeded by his son, after a reign of 23 years.

Henry VII was a farsighted ruler. His policies, both domestic and foreign, brought prestige to England and credit to the Tudors.

Henry VIII (1509 - 1547)

Henry VIII became King of England after the death of his father Henry VII. He was just 18 years of the age at that time. He was a man of great qualities. He had learned administration from his father. Apart from being a good administrator he was also a man of letters and interested in music and art. His father handed over a strong kingdom to him. Henry VIII was one of the greatest statesmen that England had. He offered great services to the nation. He established law and order when it was much required.

The relations of Henry VIII with his parliament were unique. He took great interest in the progress of the parliament. Even though he kept the parliament under his full control, he called repeated sessions of the parliament to take major decisions. He himself never acted against the will of the Parliament.

Henry also worked for the development of the naval authority of England. He encouraged the building of modern ships for navigation. The Navy was the real strength of England.

Although Henry VIII was a despotic king his people supported him greatly. His decisions were mostly according to the desire of the people. His strong army protected the people from frequent civil wars in England.

The aims of Henry VIII’s foreign policy were: to maintain the balance of power in Europe, to resist the power of the enemies of England, to dominate European politics.

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