Taxation was an important cause of unrest throughout the period and most notably in the early years of the Tudor dynasty. There were multiple objections to increased and innovative taxation demands due to their consequences; namely increase in central government control and their cost to familial life. Fiscal rebellions occurred during the reigns of Henry VII, Henry VIII, Edward VI and also Elizabeth I, although during her reign it was not a major threat. However there were other causes of rebellion that were more prominent such as religion, faction, proximity to London, regionality and social-economic tensions.

The most fiscal rebellion in the entire Tudor period was The Amicable Grant in 1525 during the reign of Henry VIII. It followed a period of heavy taxation as England was at war with France. The specific "amicable grant" tax was the spark triggering the people to rise up in rebellion to a tax and a general fiscal policy that they resented. For this reason it can be argued that the Amicable Grant was the only purely fiscal rebellion that ever occurred during the period as both high and low born resented these taxes and were united with the sole aim of defeating the policy, a phenomenon that made this rebellion very dangerous. It seems there was no subsequent agenda, even for the nobles who had a track record during the period of having ulterior motives and exploiting the peoples' rebellions. The rebellion was one of only a few that was successful as the tax was abandoned. Its success was owed to the unity of "high and low politics." This characteristic can be seen in other powerful rebellions during the period such as The Yorkshire Rebellion, The Cornish Rebellion, The Pilgrimage of Grace and The Western Rebellion which coincidently all had fiscal roots.

Similarly to The Amicable Grant, the successful Yorkshire Rebellion of 1489 came about due to increased taxes in order to aid Henry VII's struggles in Brittany. However their reason for rebellion was that the war did not concern them, due to their location, and they already "footed the bill" for the defence of the Northern borders. This suggests underlying grievances towards London's power imposition on the regions. Although this rebellion had overtly similar causes to The Amicable Grant it is clear there were other reasons for the rising and the new tax was an opportunity to finally express these grievances. Therefore this rebellion was not completely fiscal. The underlying cause was regionality and the imposition of authority from far away in London. The taxes and poor economic situation in the North were mere opportunities for the Northerners to voice their complaints. This scenario is typical of the period. Many rebellions such as Pilgrimage of Grace and the Western Rebellion were marketed as fiscal rebellions when they had other more important causes, i.e. religion, faction, regionality and the local economy.

As in Yorkshire, the Cornish objected to paying for wars that did not concern them, this time against the Scots and Perkin Warbeck. But unlike the Yorkshire rebellion and Amicable Grant, this rebellion in 1497 did not have great backing from lords and nobles, which impacted negatively on its severity as it was seen as "just a rebellion over tax" (despite other motives) and not an attempt to overthrow the monarch, allowing it to progress further than it should have. The Cornish were aggrieved by the new tax but it was not enough to start a rebellion. The rebellion was a result of the continual imposition of authority from London through taxes and laws that they could not even understand due to the language barrier. The Cornish and Yorkshire rebellions are almost identical in causation and they were not caused by tax, rather they were uprisings over the lack of self-determination in the regions far from London.

The Pilgrimage of Grace of 1536 and the Western Rebellion of 1549 are similar regarding causation. Fiscal issues were minor causes of both, instead they were both factional, religious and economical uprisings. Only one of the rebels' Articles in the Pilgrimage of Grace concerned taxation, in particular the abandoning of the Subsidy Act of 1534. The same act was the sole fiscal grievance of the West Country rebels who opposed the act which aimed to raise money on sheep and woollen cloth. The abolition of this tax registered better with the Western rebels than the pilgrims as it had direct consequences for West Country farmers. A major cause of both rebellions was religion. The Pilgrimage of Grace was sparked by the closure of the monasteries which also had social and economic consequences. Nine of their twenty-four demands were of religious grievances and they brandished the Five Wounds of Christ banner and chanted the Pilgrims' ballad. The Western Rebellion seemed to be a reaction to the changes brought about by the Edwardian reformation, particularly the 1549 Prayer Book. Thirteen of their demands were of a religious nature furthering the point that this rebellion was not of fiscal origin. Both rebellions also had factional and political motives however they were not as explicit as the religious. These subsequent motives were also more in line with the aims of the nobles and lords who exploited the rebellions through "elite conspiracies," however religion was the overall cause of both rebellions.

Finally, the Oxfordshire Rebellion in 1596 under the reign of Elizabeth I was the last rebellion to have any fiscal connotations. Taxation was high in order to finance the war with Spain adding to their main grievance of enclosure. However, it is difficult to call four men on top of Enslow Hill a rebellion therefore, the causes of this upset cannot shed light on the issue in question, whether taxation was the main cause of rebellion or not as this cannot be classified as a rebellion.

To conclude, it is true that tax played a part in rebellions during the Tudor period. However, after 1525 it was rarely the primary cause, more the excuse that allowed a rebellion to continue further than it should have. The Amicable Grant, the Yorkshire Rebellion and The Cornish Rebellion were clearly fiscal rebellions but even then, there were underlying problems that exacerbated the ill-feeling that tax increases or innovations may have created. The Pilgrimage of Grace and Western Rebellion were predominantly religious uprisings that incorporated fiscal issues as a way to either generate further support for their causes or as a motive for the leaders of such rebellions who often had their own agendas. Therefore, taxation was the main cause of unrest in revolts in 1489, 1497 and 1525 but played a smaller part in 1536 and 1549. After 1549 there were no rebellions concerning tax and so it can be inferred that taxation was not the main cause of rebellion throughout the entire Tudor period, only during the reign of Henry VII and to a certain degree Henry VIII.