Tudor Rebellions, now in its seventh edition, gives a chronological account of the major rebellions against the Tudor monarchy in England from the reign of King Henry VII until the death of Queen Elizabeth I in 1603.
The book throws light on some of the main themes of Tudor history, including the dynasty’s attempt to bring the north and west under the control of the capital, the progress of the English Reformation and the impact of inflation, taxation and enclosure on society, and makes comparisons with the other Tudor realm of Ireland. This new edition has been revised once more to take into account the exciting and innovative work on the subject in recent years and bring the historiographical debates right up to date. The primary sources, alongside the narrative history, allow students to fully explore these turbulent times, seeking to understand what drove Tudor people to rebel and what sort of people were inclined to do so. In doing so, the book considers both ‘high’ and ‘low’ politics, and the concerns of both the noble and the unprivileged in Tudor society.
With supplementary materials including a chronology, who’s who and guide to further reading along with a selection of maps and images, Tudor Rebellions is an invaluable resource for all students of Tudor history.
List of illustrations
Preface to the seventh edition
Acknowledgements
Chronology
Who’s who
Part I The background
Chapter 1 The shape of Tudor society
Chapter 2 Ideas of submission, ideas of justice
Part II Descriptive analysis
Chapter 3 The first Tudors: from rebels to rulers
Chapter 4 Rebellions in the era of Thomas Cromwell
Chapter 5 The Western Rebellion
Chapter 6 Robert Kett and the ‘rebellions of Commonwealth’
Chapter 7 Wyatt’s Rebellion
Chapter 8 The Northern Rebellion
Chapter 9 Epilogue
Part III Assessment
Chapter 10 Rebellion and Tudor government
Part IV Documents
Document 1 The Duke of Norfolk to Wolsey, 1525
Document 2 The examination of Nicholas Leche, 1536
Document 3 The Lincoln Articles, 1536
Document 4 The Oath of the Honourable Men, 1536
Document 5 Robert Aske to the lords at Pontefract, 1536
Document 6 The Pilgrims’ Ballad, 1536
Document 7 The commons of Westmorland to Lord Darcy, 1536
Document 8 Advice to the Pilgrims at Pontefract, 1536
Document 9 The Pontefract Articles, 1536
Document 10 Richard Morison, A Remedy for Sedition, 1536
Document 11 The examination of Robert Aske, 1537
Document 12 Petition of Suffolk bondmen on the former Howard Manors of Kelsale, Framlingham, Peasenhall and Earl Soham to Protector Somerset, 1547–48
Document 13 The demands of the western rebels, 1549
Document 14 A Copy of a Letter, 1549
Document 15 Philip Nichols’s Answer to the Commoners of Devonshire and Cornwall, 1549
Document 16 The Council to the Justices of the Peace of Devon, 1549
Document 17 The Council to Lord Russell, 1549
Document 18 ‘Kett’s demands being in rebellion’, 1549
Document 19 Royal letter to those assembled in Norfolk, 1549
Document 20 Nicholas Sotherton, ‘The Commoyson in Norfolk’, 1549
Document 21 William Paget to Protector Somerset, 1549
Document 22 Sir Thomas Wyatt’s scheme for a local militia, 1549
Document 23 The Tower chronicle, 1554
Document 24 The proclamation of the earls, 1569
Document 25 Sir Ralph Sadler to Sir William Cecil, 1569
Document 26 The examination of the Earl of Northumberland, 1572
Guide to further reading
Index
Biography
Diarmaid MacCulloch was Professor of the History of the Church in the Faculty of Theology and Religion at the University of Oxford. His previous publications include Reformation: Europe’s House Divided, 1490–1700 (2003), A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years (2009) and Thomas Cromwell: A Life (2018).
Anthony Fletcher was Professor of History, University of Essex.
Praise for previous edition
'Tudor Rebellions is one of the most successful undergraduate textbooks of the past half century. Elegantly written, meticulously arranged and crammed full of vivid detail, it has introduced thousands of students to some of the most fascinating and controversial episodes in English history. Now, in this splendid new edition, Diarmaid MacCulloch brings the story fully up-to-date, incorporating the findings of the very latest historical research and surveying the field with his customary gimlet eye.'
Mark Stoyle, University of Southampton, UK
'Tudor Rebellions has been required reading for my students for over thirty years. It provides superb and concise accounts of the rebellions and deftly sets them in their context.'
J. Sears McGee, University of California, Santa Barbara, USA
'Tudor Rebellions is an incomparable teaching tool. It contains lucid narratives of complicated events along with sophisticated synthetic and analytic essays that provide contexts for the meticulously chosen primary sources. In sum, the book has everything needed to give students a chance to "do" real historical work.'
Freddy C. Dominguez, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, USA