Clergy and rule on the Anglo-Scottish borders under the first Tudor monarch

The use of clergy in public administration was a tradition of medieval England, including in the counties bordering Scotland. The fi rst Tudor also engaged representatives of the clergy for diplomatic missions, participation in local government and even in the militaryadministrative sphere. Richard Fox, Bishop of Durham, was perhaps the most striking example of such participation of prelates in government. But Fox’s special role in the affairs of the Anglo-Scottish borderland was connected not so much with his spiritual rank as with his proximity to the monarch. Here we can trace the desire of Henry VII to control the provincial administration with the help of loyal individuals who were not associated with the elites of the region.