| Valor Ecclesiasticus | |
|---|---|
| The National Archives, Kew, London | |
 Title page | |
| Date | 1535 |
The Valor Ecclesiasticus (Latin: "church valuation") was a survey of the finances of the church in England, Wales and English controlled parts of Ireland made in 1535 on the orders of Henry VIII. It was colloquially called the Kings books, a somewhat ambiguous term.
In 1534, King Henry parted with the Pope and the Catholic religion and by the Act of Supremacy made himself the supreme head of the church in his lands. One of his first actions in his new role was to impose taxes on the clergy. Taxes traditionally paid by clerics to the Pope were now to be given to him, and Henry also decided in late 1534 to create a new annual income tax of 10% on the income from all church lands and offices. To properly assess the new tax a survey of all church property and revenues had to be made.
In January 1535, the government appointed commissions throughout the country to conduct the survey. All clergymen, parish priests, heads of monasteries, colleges, hospitals and other institutions under church auspices were commanded to give sworn testimony before their local commissioners as to their income, the lands their establishments owned and the revenues they received from all other sources. The commissioners were to examine documents and account books and from these and the testimony provide a full financial statement for every religious institution. The work of collecting the information was ordered to be completed by 30 May 1535 and the results sent in to the Exchequer in London.
The commissioners were unpaid and untrained, mostly local gentry, mayors, magistrates, bishops and sheriffs, but they approached the vast task with speed and, by the summer of 1535, the government had in its hands a detailed accounting of the property and wealth of the church. Most of their work survives, preserved in 22 Latin volumes and three folders at The National Archives in Kew. Two of the volumes are illuminated manuscripts and seem to be a summary made for King Henry's personal use.