The dissolution of the monasteries took place during 1536-1539 and was carried out by Henry VIII along with Thomas Cromwell, chief minister to Henry VIII. Henry married Catherine of Aragon and to do this, he needed special permission from the Pope. After a while he wanted to divorce Catherine, but to do this he would have to go against the Catholic Church and the Pope, so Henry set up the Church of England. He needed to close all the Catholic monasteries and make them into Church of England monasteries. One of the main reasons that he closed the monasteries down was because they were corrupt. Another main reason that Henry dissolved the monasteries is that he wanted to do it for the money.
There were a number of different reasons in which the monasteries were corrupt. Source F lists a large amount of factors that contribute to this argument such as (from Crossed Friars Monastery in London) ‘Found the prior at that time in bed with a woman’. Monks are not allowed to have a girlfriend or a woman in their lives. An extract from a report received by Cromwell says (from Langdon in Kent) ‘About the house I go and I find a woman’ again showing that monks were found with woman. A report from a monastery in St Edmunds says ‘delighted much in playing at dice and in that spent much money’. This displays that the monks were drinking, gambling and many other forbidden actions. The author of source G argues
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Reports from monasteries imply that some are not breaking any rules. The author of the report from Woolsthorpe in Lincolnshire says ‘The abbot is well loved having eight religious persons’ and ‘living religiously, having such qualities of virtues’. This suggests that some monasteries are good and have no reasons to be shut down. From this report from Woolsthorpe we have gathered that not all monasteries need to be shut down because of corruption. So why shut them
The members of the Council of Trent realized the unfair abuses of the church, and called for reform. In this way, they were protecting themselves against criticism from Protestant reformers. A drastic reform of monastic orders was launched. The council acted against the abuse of indulgences while still upholding the principle. This meant that indulgences could not just be sold; indulgences were granted when an individual did something truly good. Also, bishops were to reside in their respective dioceses and attend more carefully to their duties, exercising more control over clergy. Pluralism was checked and steps were taken to make sure church officials were eligible for the job. In order to have an educated clergy, the council ordered that a seminary be set up in each diocese for priest training. More careful steps were to be taken to ensure the celibacy of clergy. The Council of Trent was able to eliminate many abuses of the
The break from the Catholic Church began when King Henry VIII came into conflict with the Pope over the divorce he wanted to obtain from his wife Catherine of Aragon. After several years of bickering with the Papacy, Henry VIII eventually separated from the church of Rome to the church of England. But this new entity, the church of England, was basically the Catholic Church without the Pope and the monasteries. For the rest of the reign of Henry VIII, and that of following Tudor monarchs there would be vicious competition between the new Protestants and Catholics for supremacy. There was also dissension among the Protestants themselves over how far the reform of the Church should go, and over the course of some years a split began to form between the members of the Church of England.
Participants in the Pilgrimage of Grace had many concerns about this negative impact that the King’s actions were causing. In Documents 4, 5, and 11, the shared concern of participants was for the negative economic impact of the dissolution of monasteries, caused from King Henry VIII’s break from the church (since the Church did not allow him to have his marriage annulled). Document 4 is a source from a Marcher’s ballad; it expresses participant’s concerns of the economic impacts of losing monasteries during to the 3 or 4 lines of the ballad, stating “…robbed, spoiled and shorn of cattle and corn, houses and lands.” These lines signify concern of economic impact since due to King Henry’s actions, the monasteries which
Monasteries were a very powerful influence on people in the Middle Ages. It was were a community of monks and nuns lived and worshipped, devoting their time and life to God. They were seen as intermediates between the mortal world and God. The daily chores and activities that they carried out were all seen as acts of worship to God. This was how they would live out their lives preaching to God and spreading the word of the Lord. Monasteries had a social, cultural, economic and spiritual significance to the society.
Henry the VIII has influenced the church today by making his own religion in the Catholic Church. After Wolsey's downfall, Thomas Cromwell became Henry's chief minister and earned the confidence of the King by helping him to break off with Rome and establish Henry the VIII as head of the Church of England. (BBC, 2016) This profession also brought him in a lot of wealth through the dissolution of well-funded monasteries. Over four years Cromwell ordered that 800 monasteries be disbanded and their lands and treasures taken for the crown (BBC, 2016). All the land that was sold to the gentry and churches and monasteries were gutted and destroyed. Henry’s contribution to the church started with translating all the bibles to English and then he had
Voltaire satirizes the clergy as consisting of pleasure-seeking, deceitful individuals masquerading as a holy priesthood. A reason for this behavior is that during this time, the clergy was the only way for younger sons to lead a respectable life. As a result, according to Friar Giroflée “jealousy, discord, and rage inhabit the monastery” and at the end of the day he “wants to smash his head against the dormitory walls and all my colleagues are in the same state” (Voltaire 74). Because many people within the clergy don’t want to be there, many of them engage in corrupt behavior. They engage in romantic relationships despite their vow to be celibate (Voltaire 24) (Voltaire 72). A member of the clergy preys preys on Candide when he is dying in Paris. The clergy member tries to convince Candide to pay a large sum of money to receive absolution for his sins (Voltaire 59-60). Requiring payment in exchange for absolution is corrupt behavior on the part of the Catholic Church.
The coasts of the British isles are now dotted with monasteries, not yet rich by the standards of medieval monasticism but with sufficient
Monasteries were places where groups of men or women could live together and worship God. The men in the monasteries were called monks and the women were called nuns. A monastery is sometimes called an 'abbey' or a 'priory'. Monasteries for women are also sometimes called 'nunneries'. Monasteries always had lots of small buildings for the monks or nuns to live in. These are called 'cells'. British ones were usually round. Saxon ones were rectangular. There would also be a kitchen and workshops. They could be built of wood or stone.
“Yet do not miss the moral, my good men. For Saint Paul says that all that’s written well Is written down some useful truth to tell.” (canterbury tales) Throughout the middle ages the church became more and more corrupt through four most leading issues. One betrays the main problems that caused the church to become corrupt. Two very significant perpetrators within the church that was a part of causing the downfall. Three many evil practices that led to corruptness in the people furthermore making the church itself become a sinnful place. Lastly, number four, Strong protestors, being the problems in and of themselves in the wrong they protested about. This resulted in problems: the black plague, perpetrators: those who were corrupt each in
The court of Henry VIII was known to be a prestigious and luxurious place for those close to the king; yet it was a dangerous and cruel place for those suspected of plotting against the crown. The king was known to be paranoid about the idea that a noble in his court would snatch the throne from Tudor control (Inside). Whisperings and rumor became many a courtier’s downfall and many victims were sent to the tower (Layton). Even with danger around every corner, many nobles, and even some peasants, became rich and immensely powerful (Inside).
The purpose of a middle age monastery is a sacred place where a monk, priest, etc. would devote their will of serving or worship their God. It was a place to focus on the God they believe in and leaves the outside world behind. To get away from the evil of the world and become closer to God. Outsider were forbidden in the monastery because the evil from the outside will distract them from their journey with their faith. Monastery comes from a greek word that means alone or to live alone. An ordained member may feel alone, but should consider that there are other members that are focus on being one with their God. Another feature that is a part of the monastery is the cloister. Within the interior of the monastery would have a cloister. The monastery cloister is an outside hallway that allow a pathway into an interior garden. Events would occur in the cloister such as learning how to read and write. The reason for where its name is from a Latin word that meant enclose. The main reason for the feature in the monastery is to all these members to enjoy the outdoors without being tempted from the evils and distract them. There would be manual labor in garden and that will help them keep their mind off the outside world evil. Most of the time, the members would be in the temple pray to their God and do ceremonies. The features of the monastery structure that is one of the most significant besides the chapel that is the chapter house. The chapter house would be use to meeting
In the general prologue, the Monk is described as being a hunter and not caring for the poor. The Monk loves hunting; to him "Hunting a hare or riding at a fence / was all his fun, he spared for no expense," (Chaucer 27-28). This quote supports the claim that the clergy are able to undertake unacceptable activities and have inappropriate behaviors because of their well respected status in society. Taking advantage of
The Monastery played a role in supplying priests for the Churches since the monasteries were also theological seminaries for those who wanted to join the priesthood. The medieval monasteries thought priests how to live a holy Christian life and the necessity of purity and humility. The monks were the ones who used to save the church especially when problems arose between the priests and the congregation. . It was also an institution of scrutiny and correction of oneself. The main reason for this was because the monks were highly trusted by the people and people expected them to be like God. Confession of one’s wrongdoing was usually made on a daily basis during prayer time. Monasticism had a positive impact from the political, social, educational and religious point of
This is significant because most patrons would retain some type of proprietary interest or use their patronage to instill their family as abbots. While this was a common practice, William I chose to free the monastery of any type of entanglements.
Between 1536 and 1541 King Henry VIII placed a set of administrative and legal processes that disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland. During the Dissolution of Monasteries as this time period is known for, the throne took the income of these groups and disposed of their assets. In destroying the monastic system, King Henry VIII was able to force the Roman Catholic Church out of England and effectively suppressing his political