A profile of the Marian Privy Council, 1553-1554

Abstract

Historians have tended to hold Mary Tudor solely responsible for the ills which befell her reign. However, the members of the Privy Council, by failing to provide her with impartial advice, must assume a large measure of guilt. Divided by jealousy, personal grudges, politics, and religion, the councillors cared more for their own advancement than for the safety of the realm. One faction, with Sir William Paget as its leader, actively sought moderation on religious issues and supported the candidacy of Philip of Spain as a husband for Nary. A second group, headed by Chancellor Stephen Gardiner, urged a precipitate restoration of Catholicism and tried to force the Queen to marry Edward Courtney instead. Because these men pursued such diametrically opposed aims, they denied Mary the sound guidance which she so desperately required. Without an examination of the councillors, therefore, it is impossible to achieve a balanced perspective.