Insurrection Read online

  In October 1538, Robert Ward began his report of the papist misdemeanours of John Adryan, a parish priest in Suffolk, by thanking him for past favours received. John Freman in Lincolnshire wrote to Cromwell that he remembered his kind words when the two last met at Windsor. He desired help and living which, he said, would not be possible without Cromwell’s help. He asked Cromwell to move the king’s ‘highnyse to be a good lorde unto me’ in order to obtain the demesnes of Hawnby Abbey, in Lincolnshire, which he had in farm for £36 7s.

  In November of the same year, Thomas Elyot wrote twice to Cromwell. The first was a letter of compliments in which Elyot appealed to Cromwell’s recollection of their past friendship since they first met twenty-one years previously, and to Cromwell’s good opinion of his learning.9 This letter was followed immediately by one which offered Cromwell ‘all hearty love and service’.10 Elyot went on to request that Cromwell would obtain for him from the king a portion of the suppressed lands on which he could live.

  Sir William Waldegrave lamented his ‘heartburn’ for informing on his grandmother, but also took the opportunity to ask Cromwell to ‘put the King in remembrance of me to have something given me one day’.11 Horrox has identified the fact that the possibility of patronage may have motivated service, and the examples of Elyot and Waldegrave support that contention. Indeed, the provision of an opportunity to serve might in itself be a form of patronage.

  As will be discussed in a later chapter, the Crown via Cromwell also deployed propaganda as a weapon in the battle to win hearts and minds. Theology and obedience were themes for rhetorical works within the realm, and here, too, Cromwell emerges as a benefactor with his hands on the purse-strings. The Scottish Lutheran, Alesius, denounced the monasteries, the cruelty of the rebels and stated that the real cause of the rebellion was ‘papistical doctrine’. On the same day (5 November 1536), he wrote to Cromwell asking for money.12

  Richard Morison, author of two tracts against the Pilgrimage of Grace, wrote frequent letters to Cromwell and the request for money was a common feature. Morison’s two tracts were the only ones printed, apart from the royal admonitions, and as Zeeveld has stated, through them his future was secure. By December 1537, Morison was able to write of his gratitude to Cromwell for his ‘goodnes towards me’. The next sentence continued in Italian: ‘Thanks to your bounty, I have no cause to complain of fortune.’ Here we see an expression of gratitude for favours granted – a characteristic feature of a patron–client relationship. It illustrates how a man with few resources of his own was a dependent client, aiming to perform service which would please his patron whilst being beneficial to himself.13 Morison’s rhetorical works will be examined in the following chapter, but it is important to note that a man of such apparently meagre means became a highly regarded member of the administration and was to enhance both his wealth and prestige as a result.

  Morison was to benefit materially from his loyalty and service to the Crown and his career survived Cromwell’s fall. In April and June 1540, he was granted various lands in London (the late priory of St Mary, Bishopsgate, Covent Garden and tenements and buildings in Shoreditch), as well as various properties in Worcestershire and Yorkshire. The following March, he was granted a number of lands in Yorkshire. In April 1544, the propagandist who had regularly complained of his impoverishment was granted £587 5s and various lands in Yorkshire.14

  Events in August 1545 must have pleased Morison immensely. He was granted manors in Quenyngton, Gloucestershire and Lustbye, Lincolnshire, as well as Bardney Monastery. However, a more spectacular grant rapidly followed. This consisted of manors in Yorkshire, Worcestershire, Warwickshire and Somerset; five rectories in Yorkshire and another in Worcestershire; nineteen woods; Reading Monastery in Berkshire; St Alban’s Monastery in Hertfordshire; the lordship and manor of Cassiobury in Hertfordshire; Montague Priory and Christchurch Priory in London.

  This was an impressive portfolio, extending across a number of counties. In addition to this, Morison was appointed collector of customs and subsidies in the Port of London. Morison had indeed come a long way thanks to his rhetorical gifts. He was a special ambassador to Denmark between 23 December 1546 and March 1547, serving as Henry’s delegate in Holstein for the peace conference held there by the Duke of Holstein and Christian III, King of Denmark. Here is clear evidence that service resulted in an enhancement in social standing.15

  Rhetoric and suggestion were not the exclusive preserve of known propagandists such as Morison and Starkey. Many sought Crown patronage or received it as a reward for loyalty during the rising, or for the expectation of diligent service and information to come. Alesius attempted to gain pecuniary favour by denouncing the Pilgrimage and, in January 1536, one John Parkyns suggested the reorganisation of the universities along evangelical lines as a remedy for dissent – he then proceeded to beg Cromwell for money repeatedly.16 It is worth highlighting that Cromwell was involved in the patronage and protection of evangelical preachers.17

  The dissolution of the monasteries, which was a precipitative factor in the outbreak of the Pilgrimage of Grace, caused the avaricious to contact Cromwell with a view to enhancing their financial status. Lady Elizabeth Ughtred, a sister of Queen Jane Seymour, wrote to Cromwell on 18 March 1537, seeking to have one of the farms from a monastery if they were dissolved, and went on to say that Cromwell had promised her his favour when she was last at Court as her living was insufficient to entertain her friends and described herself as a poor woman alone. In June 1537, Sir William Gascoygne implored Cromwell to plead for either Bridlington or Jervaulx Abbey. He stated that he had but a small living. Darcy’s lands were up for discussion before he had even been charged or tried: Thomas Dalaryvere petitioned Cromwell in February 1537 for the monastery of Rastall in the North Riding and Fosse in the same region ‘now in the hands of Lord Darcy’.18

  Despite the Duke of Norfolk being at pains to reassure Thomas Cromwell of his diligent service in early 1537, the king appeared pleased with his efforts in February and told him that his services would not be forgotten. Henry was glad to hear how the duke advanced the truth and how discreetly he painted ‘those who called themselves religious in the colours of their hypocrisy’. Revealingly, he went on to state that Norfolk was to ensure that the lands and goods of those attainted should be given to those who had truly served him.19

  Sir William Parr (whose subsequent career will be examined below) was very active in drawing attention to his loyalty and service at every given opportunity. On 7 March 1537, he advised the king that he was present at the executions in Lincolnshire, and the following day he asked Cromwell for the attainted Guy Keym’s goods for William Tyrwhyt ‘in recompense for part of his expenses’. Similarly, on 12 March, he asked for allowances for five men in Lincolnshire as ‘they have done good service’. On these occasions, he was obviously interceding on behalf of others: this is an example of a client attempting to secure favours for other dependents. Parr was a frequent correspondent of Cromwell’s and used this relationship to further his own career and financial resources. For example, he then asked Cromwell for the farm of Barlinges for his own use on 18 March. Parr was praised as having handled himself ‘wisely’ by the Duke of Norfolk on 24 March.20

  Parr was by no means unique in petitioning for the spoils of the confiscated lands of rebels or dissolved monasteries. Sir William Leylond wrote directly to the king requesting certain lands of the abbot and convent of Whalley, together with the parish church of Eccles and the chapel of the former dean of Whalley. Sir Thomas Wharton was able to confirm the state of affairs in Cumberland and advised Cromwell that the ‘goods forfeited of those traitors amount to a good sum’.

  William Lord Grey asked Cromwell for some of Lord Hussey’s property in Lincolnshire while Hussey was in the Tower in April, whilst Sir Thomas Wentworth was to be remembered for Bamborough, following an order taken of all Darcy’s offices in the North. Here we see the shrewd and calculating opportunism of some of the northern gentry. Hu
ssey and Darcy were imprisoned but not yet executed and vultures were circling around for prey. Norfolk also desired Cromwell’s favour for one Roger Myddelwode ‘who was in company with Gregory Conyers in pursuit of Bigod’. Sir George Lawson who had been loyal throughout the rebellion was also anxious to draw Cromwell’s attentions to his needs and said that he trusted that Cromwell would succour him in his old age.21

  The names of those who had been loyal to the king during the northern risings continued to be brought to Cromwell’s attention and on 1 May 1537, Norfolk praised three individuals and sought the minister’s favour. Thomas Barton was described as having served the king ‘right well’ and Norfolk was of the opinion that he deserved thanks for his conduct at Beverley during the Bigod rebellion. John Eland of Hull, he said, did good service in the apprehension of Hallam and his accomplices and Hugh Ascue was held in good estimation in the locality.

  By mid-May, Norfolk had switched his attention and praise further north to the Borders and requested that Cromwell be a good lord to the ‘four brethren of the Greymes’ (Grahams) who, he said, had served the king well on the Borders. They had, he stated, attacked the rebels at Carlisle. Norfolk sent a similar letter with regard to Robin Gase, ‘otherwise Robert Greme’, praising him for his efforts at Carlisle and stating that he was one of the best spies in Scotland.22

  Sir John Neville shed some light on the state of affairs in the North in his letter to Cromwell and ended his description with a request for some reward. Neville stated that the country had never been as quiet since the king granted his pardon. He said he would like Richard, Cromwell’s nephew, to be there, so he could hear the people for himself and finished by asking Cromwell’s favour in his ‘grete suit to the kyng’.23

  In the period following the collapse of the risings, it is clear that those who had remained loyal wanted to emphasise the fact that stability had been restored whilst, at the same time, impressing upon Cromwell’s mind their diligent service and request for some recompense. In addition, individuals who had not featured prominently in the proceedings obviously saw opportunities for self-aggrandisement and sought to benefit from the disloyalty or misfortune of others. Thomas Hall of Lincolnshire was quick to stake a claim to Lord Hussey’s mills at Sleaford in a letter to Richard Cromwell on 26 June, and covetous eyes were also trained on some of Hussey’s other lands. One Richard Gresham asked for the lease of the manor of Wytheham and the parcel of Barkele’s lands ‘which Lord Hussey had’. Darcy’s demise also brought the speculators to the fore and one John Babington told Cromwell that he trusted he would be remembered in his suits for Lord Darcy’s lands in Lincolnshire.24

  The Dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk recommended individuals for reward as a result of loyalty to the Crown and the Earl of Shrewsbury also adopted this strategy on occasion. He wrote on behalf of Sir Henry Sacheverell who, he stated, did very good service with him during the recent insurrections. Sacheverell was en route to the king, and Shrewsbury requested that Cromwell grant him access to the king’s presence and to instruct His Highness of his services.25 The Earl of Shrewsbury was not averse to furthering his own ends as well as those of his clients; in October 1537, he contacted Cromwell seeking some of Darcy’s lands and was granted ‘various lands in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire’ that same month.26

  Norfolk continued to further the causes of loyal men into July, in correspondence with the Lord Privy Seal, and he desired him ‘to be good lord to’ John Horseley who had been one of the best defenders of Northumberland during the uprisings. Around this time, in August, Norfolk was seeking clarification from Cromwell with regard to the possessions of Lord Darcy, Sir Robert Constable and the Bulmers. He went on to plead in favour of Sir George Lawson: ‘I require you to be good lord unto George Lawson concerning th[e] offere that I wrote unto you of before’.27 These examples serve to highlight the link between retribution following the Pilgrimage of Grace and the rewards gained by those who served the Crown. Those who had demonstrated their loyalty were opportunistic – they seized the chance for wealth, gain and material advancement. They benefited from the disloyalty or, depending on one’s perspective, misfortune of others.

  It is worthwhile considering those individuals who had remained steadfastly loyal to Henry during the Pilgrimage, despite having close family members who had chosen the path of rebellion. We have already examined the role played by Sir Robert Constable in the Pilgrimage of Grace and his subsequent demise. We can now turn our attention to his younger brother, Marmaduke. Marmaduke had established a junior branch of the family at Everingham by his marriage to a local heiress, the daughter of Sir John Sothill.28 He did not follow in his brother’s footsteps and participate in the Pilgrimage of Grace, thus remaining loyal to the Crown. By the summer following the Pilgrimage, in June 1537, Norfolk had suggested Marmaduke for a place on the Council of the North, and confirmed this to Cromwell, specifying that Constable was to have four servants and £20. His membership of the council and fee of £20 was confirmed in October 1537 and he is referred to as Sir Marmaduke Constable ‘the elder’, so as to differentiate him from yet another Marmaduke Constable (the son of the executed Robert). On 12 November, he was present at the funeral of Queen Jane Seymour.29

  Like Ellerker and Bowes, Constable duly took his seat on the Council of the North and began to discharge his new-found responsibilities in an efficient and loyal manner. March 1538 saw Constable undertake surveys of Pickering and Scarborough castles with Sir Ralph Ellerker, and he was one of the examiners of Sir William Bulmer at York. Constable was also involved in the proceedings against Mabel Brigge, John Dobson and John Ainsworth, who were found guilty of treason. On 22 April, Tunstall wrote to Cromwell of ‘owre felowe Sir Marmaduke Constable th[e] elder’. Tunstall stated that Constable was ‘faithfull and substaniall’ and ‘at the tyme of the late commotion fleede frome hys brodyre Sir Robert for hys malice’. He praised Marmaduke for his ‘indifferencye and wisdome’ and stated, ‘I humbly beseech yo[ur] good lordship to be a good lord to hym’.30

  Together with Ralph Ellerker and John Eland (among others), Constable was then appointed to the Commission of Sewers for Yorkshire in July 1538. He was also appointed as a Justice of the Peace for Yorkshire, North, East and West Ridings – this illustrates an enhancement in social standing and an increase in influence – and on 22 July he was rewarded handsomely. He was given a grant of £200 of the house and site of the dissolved priory of Drax in Yorkshire. This included the church, steeple, churchyard, lands and the fishery of New Hey, with a house and lands attached. The annual value was listed as being £21.31 Although Drax Priory had been founded by his wife’s Sothill ancestors and this probably explains his desire to acquire it, it must be viewed as a reward for his loyalty.

  Like Ellerker and Bowes, Constable kept the sessions at Carlisle in December 1538 and, as a member of the council, dealt with a Scottish ship which was stranded at South Shields as a result of high winds in the spring of 1539. On board the ship were an English priest, Sir Robert More, and two Irish monks. The council sent the men, their letters and More’s examination to Cromwell. Soon afterwards, Constable signed a letter to Cromwell from the council to advise him of the apprehension of three Scotsmen and the discovery of a suspicious letter. These examples illustrate the diligence of the members of the Council of the North and the vigour with which they, Constable included, discharged their responsibilities. Constable continued to serve the Crown until his death on 14 September 1545, including participating in the Scottish campaign of 1544.32

  Although Marmaduke’s brother had been one of the most high-profile leaders of the Pilgrimage, he himself had steered clear of involvement. It may be that the brothers were not particularly close or that they shared the same opinions on the great matters of the day. Marmaduke evidently threw himself into the cut and thrust of northern government in the aftermath of the Pilgrimage and was, perhaps, all the more eager in an attempt to display loyalty and compensate for Robert’s disgrace.

  Although Geo
rge Darcy had been present with his father, Lord Darcy, at the council at Pontefract in early December 1536, both he and his younger brother, Sir Arthur, displayed coolness towards the revolt. By February 1537, Arthur had emerged as a staunch supporter of Norfolk’s mission to subdue the North and he ‘gained considerably in the king’s and Cromwell’s favour as a result’.33 Lord Darcy had obtained a general pardon on 18 January.34 Four days later, in a letter to his father, Arthur revealed something of his own character and his assessment that fidelity must inevitably lead to reward: ‘Old Sir Ralph Ellecarr is likely to be rewarded for his service against Sir Francis Bygod.’ He stated that he did not doubt that his father would also prove himself a true knight.35

  In April 1537, whilst his father was languishing in the Tower, Arthur was busy making enquiries as to the offices Lord Darcy held and what the king’s intentions were in respect of them. At the beginning of May, Arthur wrote directly to Henry and reassured him that the country was in ‘good quietness’ despite the fury of the late commotion. He went on to enquire whether his father’s acts condemned him and if he could exchange his lands for lands in the South. Arthur wrote that his house was in the middle of the countryside where there had been ‘pestilent commotions’ and that he would never be happy living there.36 Perhaps Arthur wanted to distance himself as much as possible from his father’s legacy of disloyalty and so reinforce his own credentials of fidelity. His use of the word ‘pestilent’ in relation to the Pilgrimage suggests more than distaste for the movement that Lord Darcy stood for. It may be that his father’s former allies in the movement, especially those of the lower social orders – the mere commons – harboured a lingering resentment against the gentry. How much more so towards the son of one of their leaders who could have been perceived as betraying his own father? In any event, Arthur was clearly unhappy and uncomfortable in his northern surroundings at this time.