The Tudor Constitution: Documents and Commentary

"This is the book to help you understand the structure of the state. The book is broken down into chapters on the Crown, the Council, financial administration, the courts, Parliament, the Church and local government. That may sound a bit boring, but actually this is very well put together and extremely accessible. Each chapter comprises a selection of original documents with a very helpful—and short!— introduction by the doyen of Tudor constitutional historians, Geoffrey Elton. It isn’t a great read in the way the MacCulloch book on Thomas Cromwell is. But Cromwell was a brilliant politician because he mastered the machinery of British government. If you’re going to understand his historical importance you have to go some way to mastering that machinery yourself. I think the other thing I’d say about the way this book is structured, is that the documents are easy to read, and their relevance is always highlighted in Elton’s introductory commentary, so you don’t have to work that hard. Also, reading extracts of the original documents brings the politics and government of the age vividly to life. You get a great sense of just what a grind it was getting anything done. And, of course, that in itself gives one a greater appreciation of the achievements of someone like Cromwell."