CHAPTER XI.

THE SPENDING OF THE SPOILS-THE EJECTED MONKS AND THEIR PENSIONS.

THE wealth amassed by the plunder of churches, monasteries, colleges and hospitals was quickly dissipated. It would serve no purpose to inquire too minutely into the history of its disappearance or to explore with any very scrupulous care the various channels by which the riches, which for some years came pouring into the royal exchequer, were as quickly carried off leaving the king as needy and as great a burden upon his subjects as before.* Much of the spoil melted away so quickly that it would be impossible to account for its disappearance. One thing is, however, quite clear from the accounts of the Augmentation Office, that, whatever large sums were spent upon coast-defences and in preparation for possible foreign wars, the greater portion passed ! out of the royal possession without serving any public

It has been pointed out as singular that Henry's attacks upon ecclesiastical property occurred in regular intervals of about five years. In 1530 he imposed an enormous fine on the clergy; in 1535 he commenced to dissolve the lesser monasteries; in 1540 he completed the dissolution of the larger houses; and in 1545 he attacked the universities and chantry chapels (see Blunt, "Hist. of Reformation," p. 293 note).

purpose. Lord Coke, in his fourth Institute, lays stress upon the fact that, "ad faciendum populum," the lesser monasteries were granted to Henry to use according "to the pleasure of Almighty God and the honour and profit of the realm," and, noticing the two statutes legalizing monastic suppressions, he observes that, amongst other promises, "the members of both Houses had been informed in parliament' that the "monasteries should never in time to come be converted to private use, and the subject never again be charged with subsidies, fifteenths, loans or [ other common aids." How utterly this was ignored it is needless to point out, for, says the same high authority," since the dissolution of the monasteries," the king "has exacted divers loans and received the same against law."

Before stating briefly the chief ways in which the monastic property disappeared, one word must be said as to the second act of Parliament dealing with it. It has been before pointed out that the action of the royal agents in regard to the greater monasteries was not strictly legal, and when all opposition to Henry's policy had been defeated a measure was introduced by which all the devastation, desecration and plundering of the previous years was legalized.* The object of the act passed through parliament, which commenced on April 28th, 1539, was not to dissolve monasteries, but to secure to the king the property of those which "by any means had come 31 Hen. VIII., c. 13.

into his hands by supercession, dissolution or surrender since the 4th of February," 1536. The bill was introduced by the chancellor on the 13th May. On Friday, the 16th, the house having adjourned over convocation and the feast of the Ascension, in the presence of twenty abbots, the bill was read the second time, and the following Monday, May 19th, it passed into law.* Unlike the act of 1536, this one does not allege any reasons for its action, but simply states that "sundry abbots, priors, abbesses, prioresses and other ecclesiastical governors and governesses of divers monasteries . . . of their own free and voluntary minds, good wills and assents, without constraint, co-action or compulsion of any manner of person or persons," have resigned their houses into Henry's hands, and therefore the king and his heirs are to hold them for ever. And this permission was to extend to all houses afterwards to be surrendered or dissolved.

Although in the words of the act itself there does not appear any considerations urged upon. the parliament to induce them to grant what the king desired, it would seem quite clear that many inducements were placed before them. "And now," writes Dugdale in his "History of Warwickshire," "when all this (i.e., the dissolution) was effected, to the end it might not be thought that these things

* Lord's Journals (B. Mus. Coll. MS., Tib., D. i., f. 58). In the parliament which assembled for its second session on April 12th, 1540, a note says, "No abbots present."

were done with a high hand, the king having protested that he would suppress none without the consent of his parliament (it being called April 28, 1539, to confirm the surrenders so made) there wanted not plausible insinuations to both houses,, for drawing on their consent with all smoothness thereunto the nobility being promised large shares in the spoil; either by free gift from the king, easy purchases, or most advantageous exchanges; and many of the active gentry advancement to honours, with increase of their estates: all which we see happened to them accordingly. And the better to

satisfy the vulgar, it was represented to them that by this deluge of wealth the kingdom would be strengthened with an army of forty thousand men, and that for the future they should never be charged with subsidies, fifteenths, loans or common aids. By which means, the parliament ratifying the above surrenders, the work became completed."

That some promises of this nature were actually made is more than probable. What is apparently the preamble of a projected act drawn up at this time, and having direct reference to the dissolution of the great monasteries, exists. The document is written and corrected by Henry himself, and proposes to take the revenues of the monasteries to establish * Within a year a loan was again asked and granted. parliament which began the 18 of April (1540) was granted to the king a subsidy of 2s. the pound lands and 12d. goods and four fifteens towards the king's great charges in building of blockhouses" (Stow's "Flores," 974).

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schools, almshouses and new bishops' sees. It was withdrawn, as Tanner believed, "when the bill for the suppression was actually passed."*

Some portion of the confiscated property, although only a very small portion, found its way back to the church. Six new bishoprics were created out of the ruins of the monastic houses, at Westminster, Oxford, Chester, Gloucester, Bristol, and Peter

*The projected act in Henry's writing is in the Cotton MSS. Cleop., E. iv., f. 305. The following portion is printed in Wright, p. 262::Forasmuch as it is not unknown the slothful and ungodly life which hath been used amongst all sort which have borne the name of religious folk, and to the intent that henceforth many of them might be turned to better use (as hereafter shall follow), whereby God's word might the better be set forth, children brought up in learning, clerics nourished in the universities, old servants decayed have livings, almshouses for poor folk to be sustained in, readers of Greek, Hebrew and Latin to have good stipends, daily alms to be ministered, mending of highways, exhibitions for ministers of the Church, it is thought therefore unto the king's highness most expedient and necessary that more bishopricks, collegiate and cathedral churches should be established instead of these foresaid religious houses, within the foundation whereof other titles before rehearsed shall be established."

On a second sheet of paper is another document written by the king, but apparently incomplete :