Post by Mr Modica on Sept 25, 2013 12:12:21 GMT
Causes
As with most rebellions there are a variety of causes and the causes do vary from groups of rebels and over time.
However religion was a key issue in this rebellion. The rebels of Devon for instance disliked getting ‘common bread’ rather than wafers during mass, and they objected to its new form. They did not want children to have to reach adulthood before confirmation and they wanted the Six Articles to be re-imposed and the statutes of Henry VIII to be imposed until Edward came of age.
A second set of demands was issued by the combined rebels of Cornwall and Devon on 2 July 1549. It complained of the clergy not explaining the new liturgy to their flocks, of the withholding of baptism and burial services from those that could not afford them and that services should be in the Cornish tongue. They also wanted the Treason Act of 1534 to be restored.
Also mentioned was a ‘poll-tax’ on sheep and a new tax on the sale of woollen cloth. Prior to the rising this had already caused some disturbances (Somerset needed money for war against Scotland and wanted to discourage enclosure). Most farmers in Devon kept some sheep, and of course the West Country had a history of protest against novel taxation.
The final set of demands, c.27 July, shows the influence of conservative clergy. It called for the English Bible and all books in that language on scripture to be called in; the exclusion of the laity from communion except at Easter, and then only in one kind; the restoration of abbey lands. Gone were the demands on the Treason Act, sheep tax and food prices. Instead came a demand to limit the number of servants a person may have.
Archbishop Cranmer, and the evangelical Protestant Philip Nichols, responded in writing to the rebels’ demands, taking, in particular, their religious demands apart.
One reason that the rebellion was able to flourish was the lack a single major noble in the SW, along with a lack of decisive action on Somerset’s part. Anthony Fletcher, Tudor Rebellions, has argued that the rebellion may also demonstrate factional politics at a county level – with the loyalists being connected to the Carew family (Nichols for instance enjoyed the patronage of Sir Peter Carew) and the rebels, at least, associated with the Courtney family.
The course of events
There had been disturbances in Cornwall over religion since 1547, which had resulted in April 1548 in the murder of William Body, archdeacon of Cornwall, for his role in inventorying chantries.
The reforms of 1549 therefore needed to be introduced sensitively in the county – the government for instance, following the abolition of the chantries, kept four schools going – and a new preacher was sent to ‘convert’ the county to the reformed religion.
However it was the simplified liturgy that was imposed on Whitsunday, 10 June, 1549 that led to full scale rebellion. The rebels gathered on Bodmin Moor and were led by Humphrey Arundell (a substantial land holder in the area) and John Winslade of Tregarrick. In June the rebels advanced in to Devon, sending a small force to besiege Plymouth.
In Devon the rising had begun independently at Sampford Courtney, again around Whitsunday. Local JPs, perhaps because of the lack of a leading noble, felt unable to deal with the rebels. By 20 June the Cornish and Devon rebels had united at Crediton.
The government sent Sir Peter Carew to deal with the revolt. Carew had West Country connections (MP for Tavistock in 1545 and sheriff for Devon in 1547) but he was a known religious radical. By 21 June he was at Exeter. After conferring with local gentry he went out to speak to the rebels at Crediton, they refused to negotiate and one of Carew’s men set fire to some houses leading to the abandonment of the town and general panic. Not surprisingly this ruined Carew’s chances of negotiating a solution.
By June 23 the rebels had moved to Clyst St Mary near Exeter where two local gentry, Sir Thomas Denys and Sir Hugh Pollard met with the rebels and extracted a promise from them that they would pursue their demands by petition. This approach was criticised by Carew. Due to this disagreement amongst the gentry the rebels started to block roads in to Exeter in an attempt to force Carew to listen. They took some Exeter merchants hostage and Carew was forced to flee.
Certainly by 29 June Somerset still believed the rebellion was confined to Sampford Courtney and had no idea the rebels of Cornwall and Devon had joined forces. Lord Russell was sent to try to restore calm, but Somerset’s resources were spread thinly as there were disturbances in the midlands and south east and he feared French invasion. Russell had expected to add to his small force in Wiltshire and Somerset, but found it difficult to enlist men.
On 2 July 2,000 rebels carrying a banner of the five wounds and other religious items, advanced towards Exeter. When they were refused admission they laid siege to the city. It was not until 10 July that Somerset realised the seriousness of the situation, and it was not until six weeks after the siege had begun that Russell was able to relieve it. It was only loyalty to the crown that prevented the religious conservatives within Exeter from joining the rebels.
The rebels tried to attack the city many times, including with a mine, and early in July Russell advanced to Honiton, but he was still short of men (1,000 footmen and 700 cavalry). On 12 July he was told that the reinforcements he had been expecting had been diverted to deal with trouble in Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire. Further reinforcements were again diverted, this time to deal with Kent.
Russell finally began his advance on 28 July, two small engagements were fought and on 3 August Russell was joined by Lord Grey with his soldiers and 300 Italian mercenaries. The rebels numbered about 6,000. They tried to defend Clyst St Mary’s, but the village was set on fire. On 4 August a battle on Clyst Heath was easily won by the crown forces. On 6 August Russell reached Exeter and was joined by Sir William Herbert with 1,000 Welsh troops.
Somerset ordered that the ringleaders be made an example of, but leniency should be shown to the mass of the rebels, so the vicar of St Thomas was hanged from his church tower festooned with ‘popish trash’. However Russell did not feel strong enough to pursue the rebels as he was beset by problems with money and supplies.
By the second week of August the rebels had re-established their camp at Sampford Courtney. Russell came under twin pressures from Somerset: to release the gentry from his force so that they could be at home to defend the south coast, but also to deal with the rebels quickly as the French declaration of war on 8 August could lead to a very dangerous situation.
However the rebels were not in contact with the French. Russell left Exeter on 16 August at the head of 8,000 men. The rebels put up a stout defence at Sampford Courtney, where Arundell was able to catch the royal forces in the rear. It was not until evening that Russell was able to force the rebels to retire. The rebels were pursued through the night, some making a stand at Okehampton where it was claimed 4,000 of them were slain.
As with most rebellions there are a variety of causes and the causes do vary from groups of rebels and over time.
However religion was a key issue in this rebellion. The rebels of Devon for instance disliked getting ‘common bread’ rather than wafers during mass, and they objected to its new form. They did not want children to have to reach adulthood before confirmation and they wanted the Six Articles to be re-imposed and the statutes of Henry VIII to be imposed until Edward came of age.
A second set of demands was issued by the combined rebels of Cornwall and Devon on 2 July 1549. It complained of the clergy not explaining the new liturgy to their flocks, of the withholding of baptism and burial services from those that could not afford them and that services should be in the Cornish tongue. They also wanted the Treason Act of 1534 to be restored.
Also mentioned was a ‘poll-tax’ on sheep and a new tax on the sale of woollen cloth. Prior to the rising this had already caused some disturbances (Somerset needed money for war against Scotland and wanted to discourage enclosure). Most farmers in Devon kept some sheep, and of course the West Country had a history of protest against novel taxation.
The final set of demands, c.27 July, shows the influence of conservative clergy. It called for the English Bible and all books in that language on scripture to be called in; the exclusion of the laity from communion except at Easter, and then only in one kind; the restoration of abbey lands. Gone were the demands on the Treason Act, sheep tax and food prices. Instead came a demand to limit the number of servants a person may have.
Archbishop Cranmer, and the evangelical Protestant Philip Nichols, responded in writing to the rebels’ demands, taking, in particular, their religious demands apart.
One reason that the rebellion was able to flourish was the lack a single major noble in the SW, along with a lack of decisive action on Somerset’s part. Anthony Fletcher, Tudor Rebellions, has argued that the rebellion may also demonstrate factional politics at a county level – with the loyalists being connected to the Carew family (Nichols for instance enjoyed the patronage of Sir Peter Carew) and the rebels, at least, associated with the Courtney family.
The course of events
There had been disturbances in Cornwall over religion since 1547, which had resulted in April 1548 in the murder of William Body, archdeacon of Cornwall, for his role in inventorying chantries.
The reforms of 1549 therefore needed to be introduced sensitively in the county – the government for instance, following the abolition of the chantries, kept four schools going – and a new preacher was sent to ‘convert’ the county to the reformed religion.
However it was the simplified liturgy that was imposed on Whitsunday, 10 June, 1549 that led to full scale rebellion. The rebels gathered on Bodmin Moor and were led by Humphrey Arundell (a substantial land holder in the area) and John Winslade of Tregarrick. In June the rebels advanced in to Devon, sending a small force to besiege Plymouth.
In Devon the rising had begun independently at Sampford Courtney, again around Whitsunday. Local JPs, perhaps because of the lack of a leading noble, felt unable to deal with the rebels. By 20 June the Cornish and Devon rebels had united at Crediton.
The government sent Sir Peter Carew to deal with the revolt. Carew had West Country connections (MP for Tavistock in 1545 and sheriff for Devon in 1547) but he was a known religious radical. By 21 June he was at Exeter. After conferring with local gentry he went out to speak to the rebels at Crediton, they refused to negotiate and one of Carew’s men set fire to some houses leading to the abandonment of the town and general panic. Not surprisingly this ruined Carew’s chances of negotiating a solution.
By June 23 the rebels had moved to Clyst St Mary near Exeter where two local gentry, Sir Thomas Denys and Sir Hugh Pollard met with the rebels and extracted a promise from them that they would pursue their demands by petition. This approach was criticised by Carew. Due to this disagreement amongst the gentry the rebels started to block roads in to Exeter in an attempt to force Carew to listen. They took some Exeter merchants hostage and Carew was forced to flee.
Certainly by 29 June Somerset still believed the rebellion was confined to Sampford Courtney and had no idea the rebels of Cornwall and Devon had joined forces. Lord Russell was sent to try to restore calm, but Somerset’s resources were spread thinly as there were disturbances in the midlands and south east and he feared French invasion. Russell had expected to add to his small force in Wiltshire and Somerset, but found it difficult to enlist men.
On 2 July 2,000 rebels carrying a banner of the five wounds and other religious items, advanced towards Exeter. When they were refused admission they laid siege to the city. It was not until 10 July that Somerset realised the seriousness of the situation, and it was not until six weeks after the siege had begun that Russell was able to relieve it. It was only loyalty to the crown that prevented the religious conservatives within Exeter from joining the rebels.
The rebels tried to attack the city many times, including with a mine, and early in July Russell advanced to Honiton, but he was still short of men (1,000 footmen and 700 cavalry). On 12 July he was told that the reinforcements he had been expecting had been diverted to deal with trouble in Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire. Further reinforcements were again diverted, this time to deal with Kent.
Russell finally began his advance on 28 July, two small engagements were fought and on 3 August Russell was joined by Lord Grey with his soldiers and 300 Italian mercenaries. The rebels numbered about 6,000. They tried to defend Clyst St Mary’s, but the village was set on fire. On 4 August a battle on Clyst Heath was easily won by the crown forces. On 6 August Russell reached Exeter and was joined by Sir William Herbert with 1,000 Welsh troops.
Somerset ordered that the ringleaders be made an example of, but leniency should be shown to the mass of the rebels, so the vicar of St Thomas was hanged from his church tower festooned with ‘popish trash’. However Russell did not feel strong enough to pursue the rebels as he was beset by problems with money and supplies.
By the second week of August the rebels had re-established their camp at Sampford Courtney. Russell came under twin pressures from Somerset: to release the gentry from his force so that they could be at home to defend the south coast, but also to deal with the rebels quickly as the French declaration of war on 8 August could lead to a very dangerous situation.
However the rebels were not in contact with the French. Russell left Exeter on 16 August at the head of 8,000 men. The rebels put up a stout defence at Sampford Courtney, where Arundell was able to catch the royal forces in the rear. It was not until evening that Russell was able to force the rebels to retire. The rebels were pursued through the night, some making a stand at Okehampton where it was claimed 4,000 of them were slain.