Editing Thomas Cromwell (section)

==Historical significance==

Until the 1950s, historians discounted Cromwell's role, stating he was little more than the agent of the despotic King Henry VIII. The 1911 ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]'' article (written by [[Albert Pollard]]) states "his power has been overrated."<ref>{{cite EB1911|wstitle=Cromwell, Thomas, Earl of Essex |last1= Pollard |first1= Albert Frederick |author1-link= Albert Pollard | pages=499—511|short=1}}</ref> [[Geoffrey Elton]], however, in ''The Tudor Revolution'' (1953), featured him as the central figure in the Tudor revolution in government, the presiding genius, much more so than the King, in handling the break with Rome and in creating the laws and administrative procedures that reshaped post-Reformation England. Elton wrote that Cromwell had been responsible for translating royal supremacy into parliamentary terms, creating powerful new organs of government to take charge of Church lands, and largely removing the medieval features of central government.{{sfn|Elton|1953|p=414}}

Subsequent historians have agreed with Elton as to Cromwell's importance, though not with his claims of "revolution".{{sfn|Bernard|1998|pp=587–607 Bernard argues Elton exaggerated Cromwell's role}}{{sfn|Coby|2009|p=197}}{{sfn|Kenyon|1983|p=210}} Leithead (2004) wrote, "Against significant opposition he secured acceptance of the king's new powers, created a more united and more easily governable kingdom, and provided the crown, at least temporarily, with a very significant landed endowment."{{sfn|Leithead|2008}} [[Diarmaid MacCulloch]] credits the advancement of the most significant politicians and administrators of the reign of Queen [[Elizabeth I|Elizabeth]], including [[William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley|William Cecil]] and [[Nicholas Bacon (Lord Keeper)|Nicholas Bacon]], to the influence and guidance of Thomas Cromwell at the start of their careers.{{sfn|MacCulloch|2018|pp=550–551}}

During Cromwell's years in power, he skilfully managed Crown finances and extended royal authority. In 1536, he established the [[Court of Augmentations]] to handle the massive windfall to the royal coffers from the Dissolution of the Monasteries. Two other important financial institutions, the [[Court of Wards and Liveries|Court of Wards]] and the [[Court of First Fruits and Tenths]], owed their existence to him, although they were not set up until after his death. He strengthened royal authority in the north of England, through reform of the [[Council of the North]], extended royal power and introduced Protestantism in Ireland, and was the architect of the [[Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542]], which promoted stability and gained acceptance for the royal supremacy in Wales.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Jones |first1=J. Graham |title=The history of Wales |date=2014 |publisher=University of Wales |location=Cardiff, Wales |isbn=9781783161690 |page=58 |edition=Third}}</ref> He also introduced important social and economic reforms in England in the 1530s, including action against [[enclosure]]s, the promotion of English cloth exports and the [[Vagabonds Act 1536|poor relief]] legislation of 1536.{{sfn|Angus|2022|p=135, p. 140}}{{sfn|Leithead|2008}}