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The Dissolution of the Monasteries was one of the major results of the Reformation that happened between 1536 and 1541 during the reign of Henry VIII of England. The lands and wealth of the monasteries in England and Wales were closed and confiscated. Henry VIII also took over the role of the Head of the Church of England.
See the fact file below for more information on the Dissolution of Monasteries, or you can download our 30-page Dissolution of Monasteries worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.
Key Facts & Information
Background Information
- Henry VIII pushed through the Dissolution of Monasteries for two reasons. First, the Pope didn’t grant his desire to divorce his wife. Second, he needed money to support his government and military aspirations.
- Henry VIII wanted to divorce his wife, Catherine of Aragon, because he needed a male heir to secure the throne, but she was unable to fulfill this role. Catherine had been pregnant a couple of times, but only one child survived – Mary I, their daughter.
- Henry VIII believed his difficulty of having a male heir was a punishment by God because he had married his brother’s wife. He then lost interest in her and wanted to marry one of her ladies-in-waiting, Anne Boleyn.
- Henry VIII planned a secret wedding with Anne as he discovered that she was pregnant. He asked Pope Clement VII to nullify his marriage with Catherine, but the Pope wouldn’t allow it. This was also partly because the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, was Catherine’s nephew.
- Henry VIII pushed through the divorce with the help of Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury. As a result, Princess Mary became illegitimate and Henry VIII was excommunicated from the Catholic Church. He then broke with Rome and passed a policy that made him the Head of the Church of England, which also allowed him to divorce freely.
- The wealth and land of the monasteries had also been of interest to Henry VIII, due to the insufficiency of state money after the war against France, 1522 to 1523 CE.
Role and Wealth of the Monasteries
- Monasteries are buildings where a community or order of monastics, monks, or nuns live under their religious vows. For centuries, they were an important and huge part of local communities.
- They carried out charity work, gave alms, and distributed medicine to the poor, unemployed, widows, and more.
- They provided work in their estate for the laborers and village craftsmen. They provided education to the young poor children as well as the older wealthy children.
- They gave spiritual guidance and welcomed the pilgrims, laborers, travelers, and more.
- They also produced and kept books and artworks, and protected sacred relics, objects, and shrines.
- Even after their decline due to the pressure from Henry VIII’s earlier chancellor, they still owned almost 25% of the lands in England.
Events before the Dissolution of Monastery
- On November 28, 1534 CE, Henry VIII was formally declared head of the Church of England through the Act of Supremacy. In 1536 CE, Henry VIII submitted a bill also known as the Dissolution of the Monasteries that would close all the monasteries in England.
- Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII’s chancellor, sent teams of laymen assessors to gather information about the finances of England and Wales’ monasteries which are recorded in the “Valor Ecclesiasticus” of 1535 CE (this is a comprehensive catalog of riches). Visitations and reports about the monasteries were conducted. The monasteries were reported to have up to 360,000 pounds of annual income.
- The “Comperta Monastica” was also given to Cromwell by another group of his men who were mostly in favor of the dissolution of the monasteries. This is a compilation of lists of offenses and abuse by monks and nuns, varying from the smallest to largest issues.
- Those who were in favor of the Reformation like Henry and Cromwell doubted the positive impact of the monasteries on the community and even their religious belief about the relics and objects.
- After the visitations and reports, Henry VIII deemed that he could appoint himself head of the Church for the financial and spiritual benefit of all. The assessment of the reports showed that of the monasteries’ income, only 5% had gone to charity work. There were also confessions from some monastic members that they had not respected their vows of chastity (to refrain from sexual activity).
Events during the Dissolution of Monasteries
- The smaller monasteries were closed, and this was justified in the preamble of the act as there was a corruption of resources and low morale among many nuns and monks. The act’s main body also revealed a decline in the monasteries concerned and their poor financial status.
- The monasteries that were closed were those with an annual income that was less than 200 pounds, for example, Dorchester Abbey. This resulted in the closure of 399 monasteries while the other 67 paid large fines to survive.
- The priors, abbots, and senior monks of the closed-down monasteries were given pensions. The remaining people who lived there were left with the choice of giving up their calling or moving to a bigger monastery.
- This policy and series of monastery closings gained support and opposition from people of different statuses.
- Those who supported it were some nobles that wanted to take over part of the monasteries’ lands and wealth. The common people were also in favor of removing some of the greedy and corrupt monks and priests from their places. While others just followed the directions of the authorities and didn’t care much.
- The Pilgrimage of Grace was conducted in opposition to this policy. It was a series of rebellions and the worst uprising under Henry VIII’s reign. It consisted of 40,000 protestors including nobles, monks, clergy, and commoners who took control of Pontefract Castle and York.
- The protesters’ main concerns were religious matters, but they also had other complaints, like the corrupt low-class ministers, new taxes, rise in prices, land enclosures, and more. They also wanted to make Princess Mary a legitimate heir and return to a good relationship with the Pope.
- To resolve the issue, King Henry sent the Duke of Norfolk with 8,000 men to convince the protestors to disperse by promising full pardons and reforms. This uprising reached its third outbreak, following which the King executed almost 200 leaders of the Pilgrimage of Grace including the abbots of Whalley, Kirkstead, and Jervaulx.
- The larger and remaining monasteries were also closed due to Henry VIII’s persistence. He first took care of those who opposed his policies, like the abbot and monks of Sawley; he hung them.
- Through the 1539 Act of Parliament, all monasteries, regardless of income or size, were closed. Those who resisted were executed, like the abbots of Glastonbury, Colchester, Reading, etc. In March 1540 CE, Waltham Abbey in Essex (the last monastery) was closed.
Some of the Survived and Ruined Monasteries
- Some of the monasteries that survived are Chester Cathedral, Ely Cathedral, and Forde Abbey.
- Chester Cathedral founded originally as Benedictine Abbey was built by the Romans after the Norman Conquest in the year 1092. It survived during the dissolution as it was handed to the city.
- Ely Cathedral was in the middle of a Benedictine monastery. During the dissolution, many of its buildings were destroyed, but even after the monks had left, it survived and continued with a bishop and dean.
- Forde Abbey was leased to one of the courtiers of Henry VIII. After the negligence of hundreds of years, a supporter of Oliver Cromwell’s made it a country home. Some things were added, like beautiful ceilings, state apartments, and paneling.
- Some monasteries still in ruins are Glastonbury and Hailes Abbey.
- Glastonbury Abbey was the burial spot of King Arthur and Guinevere. Its abbey, Richard Whiting, was rumored to be hung, and its treasures were given directly to Henry VIII.
- Hailes Abbey contained a shrine home to the Holy Blood of Hailes (supposedly the actual Blood of Christ – but later disproven). This religious house came to an end on Christmas Eve in 1539. It was sold by Henry VIII, destroyed, and continued as housing for courtiers but fell into disrepair.
Effects of the Dissolution of Monasteries
- There had been an increase in state income of about 1.3 million pounds (over 500 million today), but the monastery lands were sold cheaply to the nobles, and most of the money was wasted on wars and royal building projects.
- Monks, nuns, and other monastery residents, numbering about 7,000, were left to find other work and homes. Only the laymen were left to govern, so the monasteries were ruined, and the libraries and treasures were stripped.
- Many educational resources, artifacts, and books mainly from Old Medieval times were lost. Out of the 600 books in Worcester Priory (or Cathedral), only six survived. While of the 646 volumes in a library at the abbey of Augustinian Friars, only three survived.
- Many religious hospitals like those for the aged were closed. There was also an increase in crime and social instability due to the loss of charity work and alms for the poor. The levels of charitable giving in England before the dissolution only returned in 1580.
- Some large monasteries became cathedrals, while the smaller ones were bought by their community to be parish churches.
Dissolution of Monasteries Worksheets
This is a fantastic bundle that includes everything you need to know about the Dissolution of Monasteries across 30 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use worksheets that are perfect for teaching kids about the Dissolution of Monasteries, which was the confiscation and closure of monasteries in England during the reign of Henry VIII.
Complete List of Included Worksheets
Below is a list of all the worksheets included in this document.
- Dissolution of Monasteries Facts
- Inside the King’s Mind
- Am I Related?
- Complete the Events
- Where Do We Belong?
- Do I Survive?
- Trace the Letter
- Remove the Impostor
- What’s that Gibberish?
- Is it Just?
- The Impact
Frequently Asked Questions
What caused the dissolution of monasteries?
The dissolution of the monasteries was a policy introduced in 1536 by Henry VIII of England to close down monasteries and take their money and land.
What was the impact of the dissolution of the monasteries?
In the 16th century, the end of monastic charity caused an increase in poverty. Only 2% of religious houses’ income was given to the poor, as stated by Valor Ecclesiasticus. This would lead one to believe that it didn’t make much difference.
Did any monasteries survive the dissolution?
While some monasteries were destroyed during the dissolution, most of England’s religious properties stayed intact. Only a small number of these buildings were dissolved.
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