Hello and Welcome to Western sev Episode two hundred and eighty two. The New
Josiah. As I mentioned last time, Henry the Eighth's death would usher in
a new period of English history. While Henry may have started the English Reformation,
his son and his son's supporters would finish it. Under Henry, the
Reformation proceeded in fits and starts. Henry's desire to break with Rome was never
driven out of true religious conviction, but out of the desire to secure the
succession with a new wife. Henry maintain gained many Catholic practices that were still
anathema to Protestants and Evangelicals. Today, we will begin to see how life
would change under the young Edward and critically the men who ruled in his name.
Henry's body lay in state for ten days. From there it was transferred
to Windsor. We're on the fifteenth of February fifteen forty seven. One of
England's most impactful kings was laid to rest. That night, the lords surrounding
Edward hastened back to London. There were more important ceremonies to prepare for the
next day. These men around Paget and Seymour gathered in the Tower of London,
where they all received their rewards for agreeing to Seymour's place as protector.
Seymour himself was elevated to become Duke of Somerset, which is how he will
be referred to from here on out. Dudley and Riversley became the Earls of
Warwick and Southampton, and Catherine's brother William Parr the Marquess of Northampton. There
were peerages for Sir Thomas Seymour, Sir Richard rich Sir William Willoughby, and
Sir Edmund Sheffield. At the same time, Dudley was granted the staff of
Great Chamberlain, while Thomas Seymour replaced Dudley in his former office of Lord Admiral.
To finish the day, Edward attended his first chapter of the Order of
the Garter. On Saturday, the nineteenth of February, the day before his
coronation, Edward made his procession from the Tower of London toward Westminster. It
was to be the main occasion for Edward to be shown off to his people
and for his subjects to catch a glimpse of their new king. Crowds gathered
along swept and freshly graveled streets as Edward left the tower at around one o'clock,
riding on horseback and dressed in a vivid white jerkin of velvet to make
sure he was easily recognizable amongst the mass of thronging people. His gown was
a fine mesh of gold with a cape of sable, while the horse he
rode upon was draped in crimson satin and beaded with pearls. By now,
preparations for Edward's coronation had begun in Earnest On the fourth of February, a
proclamation had been issued demanding quote all the nobility and other subjects claiming to do
service at the coronation should make their claims to accord. At Whitehall on the
seventh of February. These were debated among the council. Many of the ancient
nobility expected to perform tasks at the coronation that they had always performed that their
ancestors before them had performed. The Earl of Shrewsbury, for example, was
to provide the king's right hand glove and support his hand while he held the
scepter. The Earl of Oxford, as Great Chamberlain, to serve the king
water in order to wash his hands and face before the coronation, while the
Earl of Arundel, the nobleman with the oldest lineage of all the lords,
was to act as chief butler at the coronation feast. The reward for such
service was more than just honor. Arundell would be given all the wine left
in the barrel afterward, in addition to the best cup served to the king.
Oxford would be given the silver basins and towels once Edward was finished with
them. The officers at Westminster Abbey received one hundred loaves of bread and eighty
eight gallons of wine. At nine in the morning, Edward was taken by
barge to Whitehall. At Westminster Abbey, he appeared before the representatives of his
kingdom. Cranmer read the first part of the coronation aloud to the three estates
gathered. Each time, those present were required to swear in some way or
another to uphold Edward's rule and authority so long as he lived. To each
pronouncement, the audience replied, perhaps a bit mechanically, quote yay, yay,
yay, God save King Edward. End quote there was something new here.
However, Grandmer cleverly tipped his hand a bit when he decreed that church
reform now came from the crown directly, not from the people. The people,
not the king, had to consent to new laws. Granmer explained these
changes in a sermon he provided Thereafter he addressed the king. The oaths given,
he told him, were not to be quote taken in the Bishop of
Rome's sense end quote. The clergy had absolutely no right whatsoever to hold English
kings to account. The archbishops of Canterbury had crowned Edward's predecessors, but once
God's anointed, they had no right to reject them. Indeed, the coronation
ceremony itself had no hold over Edward, who could act as however he wished.
Nevertheless, Grandmer reminded Edward that God required from kings and rulers quote religion
and virtue end quote. He was a messenger from the Savior Jesus Christ,
and he reminded Edward of his princely duty with a direct comparison from the Old
Testament. Quote, Your Majesty is God's vice regent and God's vicar within your
own dominions, and to see with your predecessor Josiah, God truly worshiped an
idolatry, destroyed, the tyranny of the bishops of Rome, banished from your
subjects, and images removed. These acts be signs of a second Josiah,
who reformed the Church of God in his days. You are to reward virtue,
to avenge sin, to justify the innocent, to relieve the poor,
to procure peace, to repress violence, and to execute justice through your realms.
For precedents, on those kings who performed not these things. The old
law shows how the Lord avenged his quarrel, and on those kings who fulfilled
these things he poured forth his blessings in abundance. For example, it is
written of Josiah in the Book of Kings, thus like unto him, there
was no king before him that turned to the Lord with all his heart.
According to the Law of Moses, neither after him arose there any like him.
This was to that prince a perpetual fame of dignity, to remain to
the end of his days. End quote. This image of Edward as a
second Josiah, a reforming Josiah, was very powerful, and it was one
that those around Edward would cite frequently during his reign. It was an expression
both of Edward's supremacy, of course, but also the critical mission that lay
before him. The genesis of Cranmer's argument had already been expressed in a royal
proclamation issued previously on the thirty first of January. This declared that Edward had
come to the throne quote fully invested and established in the crown imperial of his
realm end quote. Technically, Cranmer was arguing there was no further recognition or
legal action required to confirm his authority. A striking coronation medal, produced in
gold and silver, also reflected this idea, showing the young king clad in
armor and girded with the Sword of Faith. Inscriptions on the opposite side in
Latin, Greek and Hebrew all stress Edward's supremacy over his realm and the church
therein. What all this amounted to was a powerful message Edward was not going
to be like any other English king that had gone before him. He was
the first king to be born with the title Defender of the Faith, the
first to be crowned with the powers that the royal supremacy brought with it.
No king before or since, was ever given such an unequivocal mandate for rule.
Aside all this religious messages, there were, of course the usual trappings
of a coronation. Over the following two days there were royal jousts, and
Ward watched from the galleys. Six challengers, including his uncle Thomas Seymour,
ran six courses against twelve defenders, and an extra two for their ladies.
The banqueting continued together with another play. This one was about Orpheus. Everyone
seemed very impressed, except for the imperial ambassadors. The ambassador to Charles the
fifth, vander Delft, who despite not having been invited to attend the coronation
banquet, complained that the entertainments were unremarkable. He had heard that other ambassadors
were not treated satisfactorily, and had found it difficult to find a seat in
the confusion. What Edward thought of the occasion, his diary entry reveals little,
recalling the ceremonies that encircled him. He merely remarked that he set next
to his uncle and Cranmer quote with the crown on his head end quote.
At this point it was clear the Somerset and Paget had won the game.
They had dictated the terms of the transfer of power, and their supporters had
been rewarded. Even Charles the Fifth's ambassador recognized how Somerset governs quote everything,
absolutely end quote, acting only on Paget's advice and counsel oddly enov However,
Somerset's legal authority remained poorly defined. There was no legal or constitutional justification for
the Protectorate. It had just kind of come into being because those in the
Privy Council had accepted it, most of them having been bribed. But there
were some cracks already forming in the evangelical faction. The same Imperial ambassador,
who had been so impressed by Somerset's authority, noted that Lord Dudley was already
growing jealous of the Lord Protector's authority. For the moment, however, Somerset's
attention was drawn elsewhere toward the Lord Chancellor Rislely, for though he had agreed
to support the Protectorate, the Imperial ambassador considered that Risley had done so out
of fear, perhaps believing that Somerset's ambitions could be reigned in. The Earl
would later tell the same ambassador resist any further changes that went beyond the provisions
set out in Henry's will, claiming that he had prevented Somerset from gaining even
further powers, and despite his reward of an earldom, Rithslely seems to have
been determined to resist Somerset's further plans for advancement. As Chancellor, Risley was
the keeper of the Great Seal, this needed to be affixed to every patent
for its authentication, giving him, in effect a veto on each royal patent
and commission. This point was never lost on Somerset. Rithsley would need to
be dismissed if he hoped to further establish his powers as Lord Protector, and
by the way, he didn't wait long to seize the opportunity. In fact,
Risley played straight into Somerset's hands. Two days before the coronation, he
had commissioned four civil lawyers to hear cases in his absence in order to concentrate
upon his business and council, importantly, without the new King's warrant. A
team of common lawyers declared this action to be quote the great hindrance prejudice and
decay of said common laws end quote, demanding as well let Risley be removed
from his position as Chancellor. The council examining the charge felt that they could
not pass judgment. This at least was the case according to a draft of
the proceedings. However, when the final version of the indictment was copied into
the Privy Council Register, this fact was curiously omitted. Risley was charged on
the fifth of March. While under examination the final indictment read quote, he
had not only met anist drivers of said learned law, but he had also
used unfitting words to me the said protector, to the prejudice of the King's
estates and the hindrance of His Majesty's reign. What danger might ensue if the
Great Seal of England, whereby the King and realm might be bound, should
continue in the hands of so stout and arrogant a person as Durst presume at
his will to seal without a warrant end quote. The upshot of all of
this, the Great Seal was taken from Risley's hands, and he was placed
under house arrest. Hence, even those of the Conservative faction which had initially
joined with Somerset were bitterly disappointed. Now by Risley's fall, but before they
could do anything about it, Somerset acted again. Somerset had the most important
one among them, including the powerful Bishop Stephen Gardiner, confined to their homes
and watched. Risley found himself detained in London, likely to prevent him from
meeting up with Gardiner. Meanwhile, Somerset moved to consolidate his power. On
March the first, fifteen forty seven, the executors of Henry's will, the
almost certainly forged will, were amalgamated to create a single Privy Council. On
March the twelfth, these men requested a new commission, granting the board full
authority during Edward's minority. As a result of all this, Somerset got huge
new powers. He could now add or remove counselors, convene the Council whenever
he wanted, and even if he chose act without any approval. In effect,
Somerset had become de facto king. Indeed, it was not long before
Somerset started to behave like one. He granted himself an annuity of eight thousand
pounds per year. When he wrote to Francis the First, he addressed the
French king as brother as English monarchs are wont to do now. Francis rebuked
him for that slight and quickly reminded him who he was. Then that summer
he had the family arms changed to resemble the royal ones. By May of
fifteen forty seven, the Imperial ambassador wrote to Charles the fifth that Somerset was
now basically king. All state business was conducted at his home. Soon Somerset
would be controlling the entire English government by himself. He even signed official warrants
on Edward's behalf. This wasn't without surprise. Regencies are always opportunities for ambitious
men to step in and seize control. In fact, during the last days
of Henry's life, a conservative preacher preached a sermon at Saint Paul's Cross,
hinting at the troubles to come if a boy king came to the throne.
Quote what a world it shall be when they shall have the rule. For
if they have the swing, it would be treason shortly to worship God end
quote. This conservative and ominous message would have struck a chord with everyone in
the audience. For thirty eight years the country had been dominated by Henry eighth.
I few honestly could remember a time before now no one knew quite what
to expect, but this preacher was proved right. The world would be a
very different place very soon. Henry's death had removed the greatest obstacle to further
unimpeded reform of the church. But when he was urged to press on with
the reformation, Cranmer was already worried about the speed at which events had begun
to progress under Henry. Saints' images had been condemned, but they had been
allowed to stand, provided that they were not the focus of the worship.
For religious evangelicals opposed to any form of religious imagery, this did not go
far enough. They wanted them smashed and broken up, so that there would
be no distraction observing the true word of God as set down in scripture.
Even before Henry's body had been laid in the grave, the parishioners of the
City Church of Saint Martin in London had ripped out their church interior, replacing
these figures with royal arms saints im with biblical text declaring quote thou shalt make
no graven images, lest thou worship them end. Quote now examined by the
Council, these same people alleged that the roof was in need of repair,
the crucifix and images quote being so old. They were so rotten that they
felt a powder end quote. At the time they received reprimand for this arrogance,
but only because they hadn't taken this action before they had gotten royal approval.
But now, according again to our imperial ambassador, who's a great chronicler
of the events of Edward's reign, by the way, events started to take
a turn. Now the evangelicals were unrestrained. Quote, the people are beginning
to adhere strongly to the sex end quote. And the council started to order
evangelical preachers to give daily sermons before Edward at court, where they seemed to
vie with each other about who could just simply heap more abuse on the old
Catholic Church. On Ash Wednesday, one such preacher denounced the images of saints,
and others quickly followed. There were plays condemning Lent performed before Edward,
all the time, provoking protests from Stephen Gardner to the council. He wrote,
Lent remaineth still, my Lord, and shall God willing. Somerset replied
to this, somewhat sarcastically, he wrote that he was so earnestly addicted to
the new faith that he was perfectly content for the reformers to continue their attacks.
Historians today still very much debate the nature of Somerset's own religious beliefs.
Certainly, he was a patron of several Protestant ministers, which suggests that he
was more than a moderate reformer. But beyond that, honestly, there is
little evidence that he supported major reform. Determining the religious leanings of those who
lived hundreds of years before is always a difficult task. This is unfortunate because
Somerset was King Edward's tutor and instructor in the ways of government, and so
Somerset's religious beliefs are very relevant, certainly for the evangelical faction. Somerset was
quote bound in conscience to set forth God's lively word, and ordained by God
himself to make so godly a ready way in the hearts of all end.
Quote, God's temple was to be restored. England must become a new Eden.
Nothing less would suffice. Still, at least officially, for the moment,
nothing had changed. Edward continued to hear mass in his chapel. In
fact, on Easter Sunday alone, he heard four Catholic masses. When Francis
the First died that March, he was mourned in the Catholic fashion in Saint
Paul's. This, however, would be the last time that Catholic funerary rites
would be used in an official state service in England. Sensing the direction the
kingdom was moving, Catholics began leaving England in droves, usually heading for France
or Italy. Their worst fears were soon confirmed. In June, Somerset announced
a royal visitation of the entire kingdom that would begin in July. This was
intended to ensure everyone was following the new religious directives. These included the old
reforms under Henry, like encouraging the laity to read scripture, but they also
included prohibitions on centuries old practices like rosary beads and the us use of candles
on altars. Even stained glass images of saints were to be destroyed. It
was an all out assault on traditional Catholic practices in England. Nothing was left
a discretion anymore. Priests across England had to follow the new rules or get
out. End of story. With risly destroyed and the Conservatives firmly out of
power, Somerset's authority was now unquestioned. The Council, owing their places of
power to Somerset, effectively worshiped the man. But not everyone was so content
to allow Somerset's powers to continue unchecked. Since his disappointment at the council Chamber,
his brother, Sir Thomas Seymour, had refused to come to terms with
his brother's appointment as protector. He wrote once, quote, why was he
made protector? There is no need of a protector. It was not in
the King's will that dead is that anyone who should have both the government of
the king and also the realm end quote? Looking at the chronicles history showed
that in the minority of Henry the six the offices of protector and governor of
the king had been kept separate. Why couldn't he be governor and his brother
be protector? So Seymour decided he would try to trod an old path toward
power. Marriage. He would seek to marry Henry's widow, Katherine Parr.
Catherine had dutifully watched Henry's funeral, clad in black but in reality, his
death had come as a relief. She was now free to practice her Protestant
faith and live as she wished. She soon realized Seymour was interested in her
and saw the potential for a new beginning. According to one report, Seymour
was making romantic overtures the very day after Henry's death. That's not likely,
but the two soon became lovers. Catherine moved into a house in Chelsea,
a secluded spot where the two could easily meet. Catherine soon divulged the affair
to a friend, Lady Paget, who urged Catherine to marry Seymour without delay,
but Catherine, mindful of public opinion, was hesitant. Soon, however,
rumors of the affair leaked out by may or perhaps June. The couple
had wed in secret. Catherine was playing a dangerous game by moving so quickly.
If she became pregnant, there would be no way of knowing if the
baby was Seymour's or the deceased Henry's. Still, Seymour needed allies, and
he knew precisely who to turned to. He had maintained regular contact with the
young King Edward through a gentleman of the Privy Chamber, whom Seymour gave a
bribe about ten pounds shortly after the coronation. This man was in his regular
pay. Despite being almost continually in the presence of other gentlemen in the chamber,
this gentleman was soon able to converse with King Edward directly and struck up
a close relationship with the King. Speaking to him alone, it wasn't long
before Seymour was calling in favors. At the end of February, he met
with this man over a drink and asked whether Edward had mentioned him, and
in particular, whether the King had ever wondered why he had remained unmarried,
would Edward be happy for him to marry, and who should he take as
his bride? Without asking too many questions, this gentleman approached King Edward a
few days later and somewhat unsubtily repeating Seymour's query. Edward's first reply was to
suggest Anne of Cleaves, another, of course, of Henry the eighth old
wives, but then giving the matter more serious attention, he answered that he
thought Princess Mary would be the best choice. When Seymour heard, he laughed,
he said, I pray you if you may soon ask his grace if
he would be contented I should marry the Queen. He also wanted to know
if Edward would write a letter on his behalf in support of this marriage idea.
It was shortly after this that Seymour dispensed with the intermediary and began secretly
writing to King Edward. The King seemingly encouraged the relationship. He appeared also
to give Catherine Parr assurances he would protect her should Somerset turn against this proposed
marriage, which he would surely, given that it would increase Seymour's prestige at
the Protector's expense, and of course worse, Lord Somerset did find out.
When he did, he was enraged, but so was his wife Anne.
She was the wife of the Lord Protector and demanded that she be given precedence
over the queen. Unfortunately, this rivalry between Catherine Parr and Lord Somerset's wife
Anne would only increase the animosity between Somerset and his brother. Catherine to an
extent, had reason already to be miffed at Somerset. She probably had expected
to be named Edward's regent. She was the closest one to him after all,
though not his biological mother, she had done a lot to raise him.
Catherine was not pleased when Somerset was named Protector, making matters worse.
When Somerset later demanded that Catherine return the jewels Henry left her in his will,
she balked. At first. She tried to remain patient, but soon
the duke's be behavior proved too much even for her. When Somerset began to
grant leases on her dower lands without her prior consent, leasing a park to
a gentleman who subsequently refused to grant her any rights to her own property,
her temper finally boiled over. She wrote to Seymour, her new husband,
quote, my Lord, your brother hath this afternoon made me a little warm.
It was fortunate we were so distance, for I suppose else I should
have bitten him end quote. For the moment, Somerset's thoughts lay elsewhere.
The diplomatic situation remained tense, with England dangerously isolated. In August fifteen forty
six, William Paget had prepared a memorandum outlining the problem. France would soon
want to revenge the loss of Boulogne, recently captured by Henry the eighth,
the Emperor under the influence of the papacy to recover its quote usurped power and
tyranny over this realm end quote could not be trusted. These fears were realized
upon the death of Francis the First, when the resumption of war with France
became all but inevitable, since the new king, Henri the Second, was
determined to win back Belongne. His ascension also saw our return to power of
the powerful Geese family, who at the same time recovered their strengths in Scotland,
where Mary of Geese, the widow of James the Fifth and mother of
Edward's supposed future bride, Mary Queen of Sconce gained ascendancy over her rivals and
looked to ally her country closer to France. And that is where I want
to stop it for the moment. We need to introduce some of the revolutionary
changes going on in France, as those will dramatically impact affairs in England.
So next week we turned to France and its new king, Auree the Second.
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