How is the Tudors option examined in AQA A-Level History?

The Tudors (option 1C, England 1485 to 1603) is a breadth study examined in Component 1, a 2 hour 30 minute paper worth 60 marks. It opens with a compulsory interpretations question on extracts from historians (30 marks, AO3), then two essays from a choice (25 marks each, AO1). As a breadth study it asks you to assess change and continuity across the whole Tudor century, not just one reign.

Why did Henry VIII break with Rome?

Henry VIII broke with Rome when Pope Clement VII refused to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, who had borne no surviving son. Wanting a male heir and to marry Anne Boleyn, Henry used statute, engineered largely by Thomas Cromwell, to make himself Supreme Head of the Church of England in the 1534 Act of Supremacy. The break was driven by the succession, the desire for power and the wealth of the monasteries, though Henry remained broadly Catholic in doctrine.

Was there a mid-Tudor crisis?

Historians debate whether the years 1547 to 1558, under Edward VI and Mary I, were a crisis. The case for stresses minority and female rule, sharp religious swings, rebellions (the Western, Kett's and Wyatt's risings) and economic distress. The case against notes that the crown survived two contested successions, government kept functioning, and Mary's regime had administrative strengths. It is a strong interpretations topic.

How did Elizabeth I govern and how stable was her reign?

Elizabeth governed through a small, able Privy Council dominated by William Cecil, managing Parliament and court faction while keeping the final decision herself. She refused to marry or name a successor, using both as diplomatic tools. The 1559 religious settlement was a moderate Protestant compromise that faced Catholic and Puritan challenges. The 1590s brought strain (faction, monopolies, war, bad harvests and the Essex Rebellion), debated as decline or skilful late management.

How should I revise the Tudors?

Organise material thematically across the century: government and the nobility, religion and the Reformation, foreign policy, and society and economy. Learn precise evidence (dates, names, Acts and figures) for each reign, and practise weighing change against continuity, because the breadth study rewards judgements across the whole period rather than narrative of a single reign.

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AQA A-Level History the Tudors 1485 to 1603: a complete overview of Henry VII to Elizabeth I

A deep-dive AQA A-Level History guide to the Tudors, England 1485 to 1603 (option 1C). Covers Henry VII's consolidation, Henry VIII and the Reformation, the mid-Tudor years, Elizabethan government, Elizabethan religion and foreign policy, and Tudor society and economy.

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Jump to a section

What the Tudors option demands
Establishing the dynasty
The Henrician Reformation
The mid-Tudor years
The Elizabethan settlement
Society and economy
How the Tudors is examined
Check your knowledge

What the Tudors option demands

The Tudors (option 1C, England 1485 to 1603) is a popular breadth study examined in Component 1. It runs from Henry VII's victory at Bosworth to the death of Elizabeth I, covering government, religion, foreign policy, society and economy across more than a century. Breadth means you assess change and continuity over the whole period, not a single reign.

This guide walks through the option in chronological order, then sets out the themes the exam rewards. Each part has a matching dot-point page; this overview ties them together.

Establishing the dynasty

Henry VII consolidated a usurped throne by defeating pretenders (Simnel and Warbeck), controlling the nobility through bonds and recognisances and Acts of Attainder, restoring crown finances and pursuing a cautious, dynastic foreign policy, dying solvent in 1509.

The Henrician Reformation

Henry VIII broke with Rome over the divorce, establishing the royal supremacy (1534) through Thomas Cromwell's statutes and dissolving the monasteries (1536 to 1540) for wealth and power, while staying broadly Catholic in doctrine.

The mid-Tudor years

Under Edward VI religion moved sharply Protestant (the Prayer Books of 1549 and 1552) amid the 1549 rebellions; under Mary I Catholicism was restored, with Protestant burnings, Wyatt's rebellion and the loss of Calais. Historians debate whether this was a mid-Tudor crisis.

The Elizabethan settlement

Elizabeth I governed through her Privy Council and the management of Parliament and faction. The 1559 religious settlement was a moderate Protestant compromise challenged by Catholics (plots, the 1570 excommunication) and Puritans. Foreign policy slid into war with Spain, climaxing in the Armada (1588).

Society and economy

Across the century, population doubled, fuelling inflation and poverty; enclosure and rural change displaced labourers; the gentry rose on former monastic land; and government moved towards organised relief in the Elizabethan Poor Laws (1598 and 1601).

How the Tudors is examined

The interpretations question (30 marks, AO3). Weigh historians' arguments about a Tudor issue, using your own knowledge.
The 25-mark essays (AO1). Argument-led answers assessing change, continuity or causation across the period.

Check your knowledge

A mix of recall and analysis questions covering the Tudors. Attempt them, then check against the solutions.

How did Henry VII control the nobility? (3 marks)
What did the 1534 Act of Supremacy establish? (2 marks)
Which two rebellions broke out in 1549? (2 marks)
Who dominated Elizabeth's Privy Council for forty years? (1 mark)
What were the two Acts of the 1559 religious settlement? (2 marks)
What did the 1570 papal bull do? (2 marks)
Name two causes of Tudor inflation. (2 marks)
What did the Elizabethan Poor Laws of 1598 and 1601 establish? (2 marks)

Sources & how we know this

AQA A-level History (7042) specification — AQA (2015)