The 1552 Act for the Provision and Relief of the Poor was a statute passed by the
Parliament of England
The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the great council of bishops and peers that advised ...
during the reign of King
Edward VI
Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...
. It is a part of the
Tudor Poor Laws
The Tudor Poor Laws were the laws regarding poor relief in the Kingdom of England around the time of the Tudor period (1485–1603). The Tudor Poor Laws ended with the passing of the Elizabethan Poor Law in 1601, two years before the end of th ...
and reaffirms previous poor laws enacted in
1536
__NOTOC__
Year 1536 ( MDXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–June
* January – King Henry VIII of England suffers a leg injury during a jou ...
,
1547
Year 1547 ( MDXLVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events January–June
* January 8 – The first Lithuanian-language book, a ''Catechism'' (, Simple Words ...
, and 1549 which focused primarily on the punishment of vagabonds.
The Poor Act of 1552 designated a new position, "collector of alms," in each
parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...
. Local authorities and residents elected two alms collectors to request, record, and distribute charitable donations for poor relief. It further provided that each parish would keep a register of all its “impotent, aged, and needy persons” and the aid they received. Parish authorities were directed to “gently exhort” any person that could contribute but would not, referring them to the Bishop of the Diocese if they continued to refuse. Punishment for neglecting poor relief obligations was adopted in
1563
Year 1563 ( MDLXIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
January–June
* February 1 – Sarsa Dengel succeeds his father Menas as Emperor of Ethiopia.
* Jan ...
and reliance on charity was replaced by a system of taxation in
1597
Events
January–June
* January 24 – Battle of Turnhout: Maurice of Nassau defeats a Spanish force under Jean de Rie of Varas, in the Netherlands.
* February – Bali is discovered, by Dutch explorer Cornelis Houtman.
* February 5 � ...
. Under the assumption that all poor would be cared for, begging openly was now forbidden. Licensed begging would be reinstated by the Marian Parliament of 1555 with the requirement that legal beggars wear badges.
Social context
During the
Tudor period
The Tudor period occurred between 1485 and 1603 in England and Wales and includes the Elizabethan period during the reign of Elizabeth I until 1603. The Tudor period coincides with the dynasty of the House of Tudor in England that began wit ...
, cultural perceptions began to shift away from the
medieval theological belief that poverty was a virtue. The philosophical influence of
Renaissance humanism
Renaissance humanism was a revival in the study of classical antiquity, at first in Italy and then spreading across Western Europe in the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries. During the period, the term ''humanist'' ( it, umanista) referred to teache ...
and the emergence of a
Protestant work ethic and
rogue literature contributed to views encouraging industriousness and the stewardship of wealth and vilifying idleness, begging, and vagrancy. As poverty rates and the costs of poor relief rose, communities attempted to define and limit who qualified for aid, restricting support by locality and moral conduct.
Economic context
The rise of poverty rates during the Tudor period can be attributed to a confluence of factors.
Rebellions in 1549 hampered harvest efforts and crop shortages in the following years contributed to price inflation. A series of
coin debasements between 1544-1551 undermined economic confidence. Rapid population growth and the effects of
Tudor enclosure policies led to the supply of labor exceeding demand and agricultural and industrial wages falling sharply. High birth-rates also meant a large percentage of the population were too young to contribute economically. Additionally, the
dissolution of the monasteries removed all Catholic Church-operated charities, religious guilds, and lay fraternities that provided formal and informal aid and confiscated parish lands and livestock which had also been used to provide poor relief. The process of replacing these institutions was often slow and uneven.
[; McIntosh 2005; Beier 1983, p. 19-23]
References
{{Poor Law
English Poor Laws
Tudor England
1552 in law
1552 in England