Edmund Dudley
Edmund Dudley was born around 1462 or perhaps in 1471. His father Sir John Dudley lived at Atherington in West Sussex. The boy grew up as the grandson of John Sutton, the first Baron Dudley. He studied at Oxford University before moving to Gray's Inn to learn law. By age 23 he had caught the eye of King Henry VII. This young man became a Privy Councillor while still in his early twenties. He helped negotiate the Peace of Etaples with France in 1492. Soon after that treaty he assisted the king in checking baronial lawlessness.
Dudley and his colleague Sir Richard Empson ran the Council Learned in the Law. This special tribunal collected debts owed directly to the king. They requested bonds as surety from wealthy subjects. Financial instruments were employed against high-born individuals who owed money. Henry VII closely supervised the accounts of these two men. The king took a strong interest in every procedure they used. Dudley amassed great wealth for himself through these collections. He acquired estates in Sussex, Dorset, and Lincolnshire. An inventory of his house on Candelwykstrete in London appeared in 1509. That document gave the earliest reference to window curtains in an English home.
Dudley wrote The Tree of Commonwealth while imprisoned in the Tower. This treatise sought to gain favor with King Henry VIII by supporting absolute monarchy. It may have never reached the king himself. Several manuscript editions survive from that era. The earliest version was possibly commissioned by Dudley's son John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland. A second oldest copy was made by John Stow in 1563. That copy was created specifically for Dudley's grandson Robert Dudley. The work stands as a political document written under threat of death.
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Common questions
When was Edmund Dudley born and where did he live?
Edmund Dudley was born around 1462 or perhaps in 1471. His father Sir John Dudley lived at Atherington in West Sussex.
What role did Edmund Dudley hold under King Henry VII?
Edmund Dudley became a Privy Councillor while still in his early twenties. He helped negotiate the Peace of Etaples with France in 1492 and assisted the king in checking baronial lawlessness.
How did Edmund Dudley and Sir Richard Empson collect money for the crown?
Dudley and his colleague Sir Richard Empson ran the Council Learned in the Law to collect debts owed directly to the king. They requested bonds as surety from wealthy subjects and employed financial instruments against high-born individuals who owed money.
Where can one find an inventory of Edmund Dudley's house on Candelwykstrete?
An inventory of his house on Candelwykstrete in London appeared in 1509. That document gave the earliest reference to window curtains in an English home.
Why did Edmund Dudley write The Tree of Commonwealth while imprisoned in the Tower?
Edmund Dudley wrote The Tree of Commonwealth while imprisoned in the Tower to gain favor with King Henry VIII by supporting absolute monarchy. The work stands as a political document written under threat of death.