"The Prince and His People": A Study of Edwardian Propaganda, 1547-1549

• Main Author: Cooper, Allison Claire
• Other Authors: Stater, Victor
• Format: Others
• Language: en
• Published: LSU 2011
• Subjects: History
• Online Access: http://etd.lsu.edu/docs/available/etd-04292011-100032/

One of the most important events of Edward VIs reign, the 1549 rebellions, has been intensely studied by historians of the period. However, most monographs of the rebellions pinpoint the enclosure commissions or Edward Seymours inability to govern effectively as the reasons behind the riots. What is ignored is the intimate relationship between the eastern rebels language in their petitions and the rhetoric employed in evangelical propaganda from Edwards accession in January 1547 to the outbreak of the rebellions in May 1549. My research in Edwardian propaganda during Somersets protectorate reveals a dialogue established between evangelicals and Catholics concerning doctrine and theological analysis based on the scriptures. Somersets regime used the London printing presses to appeal to the lower orders of society, the common people, for support of the Reformation. The rhetoric employed was designed to appeal positively to the people, emphasizing the commonwealth and universal good. It also linked the people with their king in governing the kingdom and breaking from the popes tyrannical authority. In addition, the regime used Henrician and Roman Catholic conversion narratives to disseminate evangelical doctrine, most notably through cleric Richard Smyths two forced recantations, which were printed and sold in Pauls Cross. Other works used include Stephen Gardiners defense of the Eucharist, John Hoopers response, and Robert Crowleys two confutations of Miles Hogarde, another Henrician Catholic, and Nicholas Shaxton, a former evangelical. The conclusion of this study draws direct parallels between the 1549 petitions and the rhetorical strategies used in the previous two years. The governments direct patronage of this propaganda and the language that drew the commons into a political partnership with their king helped to spark the rebellions, resulting in a crisis of leadership and legitimacy.