- •1. Ancient people on the territory of the British Isles. The Celts.
- •2. The Roman Conquest
- •3. The Anglo-Saxon Conquest.
- •The Vikings
- •5. The Norman Conquest and the establishment of feudalism in England.
- •6. Henry II and his reign. Richard the Lionhearted.
- •7. King John Lackland and the historical significance of Magna Carta.
- •8. The peasants’ uprising of Wat Tyler.
- •9. The work of John Wyckliffe
- •10. The Wars of Roses
- •11. The early Tudor England. Henry VII
- •12. Henry VII and his reign. The Reformation.
- •17. Britain in the Napoleonic Wars.
- •18. The 1832 Reform Bill. Chartism.
- •19. The Victorian Age
- •20. The First World War and Britain
- •21.The Second War and Britain
- •22. National entity. The population of Gr. Br.: historical background, migration, density (плотность) and distribution, social structure, languages, religions.
- •23. Scotland
- •24. Wales
- •25. Northern Ireland
- •26. Constitutional Monarchy. Powers and responsibilities. Public image.
- •27. Houses of Parliament
- •29. The House of Lords
- •30. British Government. The Cabinet. Local Authorities
- •31. Political Parties. Electoral system.
- •32. British economy. Chief industries. Trade Unions.
- •33. Agriculture in contemporary Britain. British trade. Britain and Europe.
- •34. The Legal System. The legal profession
- •35. State education
- •36. Private education
- •37. Mass Media: newspapers.
- •38. Radio and tv
8. The peasants’ uprising of Wat Tyler.
It is surprising that the English never rebelled against Edward III. He was an expensive king at a time when many people were miserably poor and sick with plagues. At the time of the Black Death he was busy with expensive wars against France and Scotland. The demands he made on merchants and peasants were enormous, but Edward III handled these people with skill.
Edward's grandson, Richard, was less fortunate. He became king on his grandfather's death in 1377 because his father, the Black Prince, had died a few months earlier. Richard II inherited the problems of discontent but had neither the diplomatic skill of , his grandfather, nor the popularity of his father. Added to this he became king when he was only eleven, and so others governed for him. In the year he became king, these advisers introduced a tax payment for every person over the age of fifteen. Two years later, this tax was enforced again. The people paid.
But in 1381 this tax was enforced for a third time and also increased to three times the previous amount. There was an immediate revolt in East Anglia and in Kent, two of the richer parts of the country. The poorer parts of the country, the north and northwest, did not rebel. This suggests that in the richer areas ordinary people had become more aware and confident of their rights and their power.
The new tax had led to revolt, but there were also other reasons for discontent. The landlords had been trying for some time to force the peasants bad into serfdom, because serf labour was cheaper than paid labour. The leader of the revolt, Wat Tyler, was the first to call for fair treatment of England's poor people: "We are men formed in Christ's likeness," he claimed, "and we are kept like animals." The people sang a revolutionary rhyme suggesting that when God created man he had not made one man master over another:
When Adam delved, and Eve span, Who was then the gentleman?
The idea that God had created all people equal called for an end to feudalism and respect for honest labour. During that period the peasants took control of much of London. In fact the revolt was not only by peasants from the countryside: a number of poorer townspeople also revolted, suggesting that the discontent went beyond the question of feudal service.
In June, rebels from Essex and Kent marched toward London. On the 13th the Kentish men, under Wat Tyler entered London, where they massacred some Flemish merchants and razed the palace of the king’s uncle, the unpopular John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster. The government was compelled to negotiate. On the 14th, Richard met the men of Essex outside London at Mile End, where he promised cheap land, free trade, and the abolition of serfdom and forced labour. During the king’s absence the Kentish rebels in the city forced the surrender of the Tower f London; the chancellor, archbishop Simon of Sudbury, and the treasurer, Sir Robert Hales, both of whom were held responsible for the poll tax, were beheaded, The king met Tyler and the Kentishmen at Smithfield on the following day. Tyler was treacherously cut down in Richard’s presence by the enraged mayor of London. The king, with great presence of mind, appealed to the rebels as their sovereign and, after promising reforms, persuaded them to disperse. The crisis in London was over, but in the provinces the rebellion reached its climax in the following weeks. It was finally ended when the rebels in East Anglia were crushed on about 25 June. The rebellion lasted less then a month and failed completely as a social revolution. King Richard’s promises at Mile End and Smith field were promptly forgotten, and manorial discontent continued to find expression in local riots. "Serfs you are," he said, "and serfs you shall remain."The rebellion succeeded, however, as a protest against the taxation of poorer classes insofar as it prevented further levying of the poll tax.
When Wat Tyler was killed, Richard II skillfully quietened the angry crowd. He promised to meet all the people's demands, including an end to serfdom, and the people peacefully went home.