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Many of them who were executed were common people. “The list of martyrs under Mary includes only nine who were described as gentlemen. Just
over a quarter of those burned were in holy orders; the rest came from the lower levels of English society, and included weavers, fullers, shearman, tailors, hosiers,
cappers, husbandmen, labourers, brewers and butchers” Lockyer.127. Some of the gentlemen were the Protestant Leader. Queen Mary died in 1558 after she
spent long time in coma in her palace of St. James.
b. The Law
Law was tribal custom, or folkright, to which the king was subordinate in every respect, as any other member of the folk. He might, and on occasion
did, find it necessary to declare, with the express or tacit assent of the ‘wise man’ of his realm the witan, what the law was on certain points, and even
to commit such declarations to writing. Chrimes 73. In the 16
th
century, the English Law strongly depended on the King. According to Carrie’s England and Scotland in the Sixteenth Century, the king
established the royal council and the Parliament. The king also could call his council and Parliament on special occasions or according to the kings pleasure.
Then, the royal council and the parliament were in charge in determining the policy in England, including the laws, while it was also strictly depended on the
king or by the king’s permission.
c. The Society
The English monarchy, like other contemporary monarchies, had ruled well by a strong and capable king. King Henry VII was not only strong and capable,
but he was also a hardworking. Some surviving documents which related to his initials give a proof that King Henry VII was diligent in overseeing the day-to-day
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business of administration. His chief instrument of government was the royal council, which had in the fifteenth century been dominated by the nobles and was
consequently ineffective. But the tradition had a little bit broken down after the end of the reign of Henry VII. The successor, King Henry VIII was a king who
seemed willing to devote himself to enjoyment, and spending the treasure of his father. “Throughout the first half of his reign he devoted his days to hunting and
his nights to feasting and love, content to leave routine administration and the formulation of policy to Wolsey” Lockyer 33.
In his reign, it seemed that Henry VIII let others govern for him while he wasted his time on pleasure England and Scotland in the Sixteenth Century.
Henry VIII only showed his desire on adventure, including on military adventure and he was also willing to be involved in the complicated diplomatic relationships
of the Continental powers which violated the policy On the other hand, when talking about the common people, it is clearly
understood that they were dominated by the poor. Life of the poor was very hard. Chrimes 63 states the common people or His Majesty’s subjects possessed no
guarantees of freedom. The ‘rights of man’ were not guaranteed, nor even mentioned anywhere in English constitutional law. Therefore, the government in
Tudor England became very concerned about the poor, because there were a lot more than the rich. Chrimes 64 states “the secret of English liberty rests on the
fact that any subjects is entirely free to do what he likes and to say what he likes, provided only that he does not thereby break the law as it exists at any time”. His
Majesty’s citizen or the common people had duties as well as rights. It was the PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
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duty of every citizen to contribute in overcoming the disorder, if they were called to do so by any lawfully constituted authority Chrimes 66.
The common inhabitant lived in poverty. They were used too little food and to saving extra bits of food. They had one set of rags that he wears until they
fall apart. They expected to take care of themselves and to do things for themselves. They slept quite comfortably on straw, tossed in a pile on the floor.
Tudor statesmen did not have to be told about the problems caused by agrarian change. Most of them were themselves landowners, and in
London itself, the seat of government, the population was swelling rapidly as the beggars came to town. The stability of the Tudor state was
threatened by these hunger marchers, and the government tried to stop them moving. An Act of 1495 ordered that vagabonds were to be sent back
to their native parishes, and in 1501 the Justices of the Peace were made responsible for seeing that this was carried out Lockyer 137-138.
The poor were divided into three groups by the government. The first were called the ‘Impotent’ Poor. These would include the old, the sick, the disabled and
children. The second group was called the Able Bodied Poor. This group would include the people who could work and wanted to work. Each member was meant
to build a workhouse. The third group was known as Rogues and Vagabonds. This was a group which is targeted by the government, because this group consisted of
people who could work but preferred to beg or steal Lockyer 137-8
2. The Nobles
