Religious Changes, 1509-88 (Edexcel A-Level History): Revision Notes
Puritanism
Introduction to Puritanism
Puritanism emerged as a significant religious movement during Elizabeth I's reign, representing a more radical form of Protestantism. The Puritans sought to live a pure or godly lifestyle and believed that the Elizabethan Religious Settlement of 1559 was merely a starting point for further reform, not a final solution. This fundamental disagreement with the queen's religious policies would create ongoing tension throughout Elizabeth's reign.
The origins of Puritanism can be traced to the reign of Mary I, when many English Protestants went into exile to escape religious persecution. While abroad, particularly in Geneva and other continental cities, these exiles were exposed to more extreme Protestant ideas, especially the teachings of John Calvin. When they returned to England after Elizabeth's accession in 1558, they brought these radical beliefs with them and began to push for more thorough reform of the English Church.
It is important to understand that the Puritans were not a single, unified group. Instead, they represented a spectrum of beliefs and approaches to reform. Some moderate Puritans were willing to work within the existing structure of the Church of England, accepting most of its practices while pushing for gradual change. Others, more radical in their views, actively tried to change the Settlement through parliamentary action or local initiatives. A small minority rejected the Elizabethan Settlement entirely, though they remained a fringe element within the broader Puritan movement.
Core beliefs and characteristics of Puritans
At the heart of Puritan belief was an emphasis on the Bible as the centre of faith. Puritans believed that scripture should be the ultimate authority in matters of religion, and they rejected any beliefs or practices that could not be justified by reference to the Bible. This biblical focus led them to question many traditional elements of Catholic worship that had been retained in the Elizabethan Settlement, such as certain vestments, church decorations, and ceremonial practices.
Puritans strongly favoured simplicity in worship and church decoration. They believed that elaborate ornamentation, statues, stained glass, and ceremonial objects were distractions from true worship and devotion to God. In their view, churches should be plain and unadorned, allowing worshippers to focus entirely on God's Word. This preference for simplicity extended to church services, which Puritans wanted to be straightforward and centred on Bible reading and preaching rather than ritual and ceremony.
The Puritans placed particular emphasis on preaching and the Word of God. They believed that listening to sermons based on scripture was essential for spiritual growth and salvation. This emphasis on preaching meant that Puritans strongly favoured better education for clergymen. They wanted ministers who could read and interpret the Bible in the original languages and deliver learned, inspiring sermons to their congregations. This focus on education led to the establishment of institutions like Emmanuel College, Cambridge, founded by Sir Walter Mildmay specifically to train Puritan ministers.
There were also important doctrinal disagreements among Puritans, particularly concerning the interpretation of the Communion service and what happened to the bread and wine during the ceremony. These theological debates reflected the influence of different Protestant thinkers and showed that Puritanism was far from monolithic in its beliefs.
The influence of John Calvin
John Calvin was a radical Protestant thinker whose ideas profoundly influenced Puritan thought. Calvin had established his version of reformed Christianity in the Swiss town of Geneva, creating a model that many Puritans admired and wished to replicate in England. Calvin's theology emphasised several key points that became central to Puritan belief.
First, Calvin stressed the importance of reading and studying the Bible as the foundation of Christian faith. Second, he supported the doctrine of justification by faith alone, the belief that salvation came through faith in God rather than through good works or church rituals. Third, Calvin promoted the controversial idea of predestination, which held that God had already decided who would be saved and who would be damned, regardless of a person's actions during their lifetime.
Perhaps most significantly for the Puritan challenge to Elizabeth's Settlement, Calvin rejected the traditional hierarchical structure of the Catholic Church, including the authority of bishops and archbishops. Instead, he favoured a system where individual congregations had more autonomy, guided by local elders and ministers. This rejection of episcopal authority would become a major point of conflict between Puritans and the Elizabethan Church.
Moderate versus radical Puritans
Moderate Puritans were those who, while desiring reform, were willing to work within the existing structure of the Church of England. They accepted the concept of adiaphora, the belief that some religious practices were not necessary for the salvation of the soul. This concept was interpreted in different ways. Elizabeth believed that adiaphora meant she could make decisions about matters like clerical vestments and church ornaments without harming anyone's soul. Some moderate Puritans, however, argued that if something was not vital for salvation, they should not be forced to do it.
Historical Example: Edmund Grindal - The Moderate Approach
A key example of a moderate Puritan was Edmund Grindal, who became Archbishop of Canterbury in 1575. Grindal believed that reform should come from within the Church and that moderate Puritan practices like prophesyings could coexist with the Elizabethan Settlement. He was prepared to work within the system to improve clerical standards and encourage better preaching. However, even Grindal eventually found that Elizabeth demanded compromises he could not accept, leading to his suspension from office.
Radical Puritans took a much more confrontational approach. Some supported the Calvinist or Presbyterian system of church organisation, which would have fundamentally restructured the English Church. While these Presbyterians did not deny the role of the monarch as Supreme Governor, they believed there was no biblical precedent for the traditional structure of archbishops and bishops. Instead, they wanted individual congregations to be largely self-governing, led by presbyters (church elders and ministers). To prevent complete independence and potential disorder, they proposed a system of regional and national meetings called synods where representatives from each congregation would gather to impose discipline and maintain standards.
The development of Puritanism during Elizabeth's reign
The challenge through Convocation (1563)
The first significant Puritan challenge to the Elizabethan Settlement came through Convocation, the assembly of clergy that met alongside parliament. In 1563, discussions arose over the 39 Articles, a statement of doctrine for the Church of England. Puritan clergy attempted to introduce six articles that would have reformed the Church along more Protestant lines.
This Puritan initiative was narrowly defeated, showing how close the reformers came to achieving change through official Church channels. Elizabeth herself had to intervene to suppress Article 29, which dealt with the presence of Christ in the Communion service, although this suppression was only temporary. The close vote alarmed Elizabeth and her advisers, and from this point forward, the government became much more careful about controlling who was elected to sit in Convocation.
This meant that Puritans found it increasingly difficult to use this official Church forum to advance their agenda for reform.
The Vestments Controversy (1564-66)
Between 1564 and 1566, a significant controversy erupted over the issue of clerical vestments, the special clothing that priests were required to wear during services. While this might seem like a minor matter to modern observers, for many Puritans it represented a crucial principle. They argued that there was no biblical justification for special priestly garments, and that such vestments were remnants of Catholic practice that should be abandoned. To Puritans, vestments symbolised everything that was wrong with the Settlement: the retention of practices that had no scriptural basis and were therefore unbiblical.
Elizabeth, however, was determined to uphold the injunctions she had issued in 1559, which specified what clergymen should wear. The debate persisted, and in 1565 Elizabeth was forced to write personally to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Matthew Parker, complaining about bishops who permitted 'varieties, novelties and diversities' in clerical dress. This direct intervention from the queen shows how seriously she took challenges to her authority over the Church.
The Lambeth Palace Incident (1566)
Parker responded by ordering bishops to make their clergy conform to Elizabeth's requirements, but his orders had limited effect. The problem was particularly acute in London, where Puritan sentiment was strong. In 1566, Parker issued the 'Advertisements', a set of instructions ordering all clergy to wear the appropriate vestments. He then specifically targeted the London clergy, summoning 110 of them to appear at Lambeth Palace dressed in the correct clothing. When 37 refused to comply, they were suspended from their positions.
This episode demonstrated both Elizabeth's determination to maintain control over the Church and the strength of Puritan conviction.
While Elizabeth achieved her immediate aim of enforcing conformity, the underlying conflict remained unresolved, and Puritans continued their challenge through other means.
The Puritan challenge in parliament
Although the idea of a unified 'Puritan choir' in parliament (as proposed by historian J.E. Neale) is no longer accepted by scholars, there were certainly some MPs during Elizabeth's reign who attempted to advance the Puritan cause through parliamentary legislation. These MPs hoped to pass bills that would become Acts of Parliament, thus forcing Elizabeth to accept religious reforms.
The Alphabetical Bills (1571)
In 1571, moderate Puritan bishops attempted to introduce the Alphabetical Bills, so called because they were arranged and listed from A to F. These bills represented an attempt by moderate reformers to improve standards within the Church by addressing various abuses. The bishops particularly targeted pluralism, the practice of one clergyman holding multiple positions simultaneously, which often meant that parishes were neglected.
The moderate nature of these reforms might have succeeded, but a Puritan MP named William Strickland overreached by attempting to add his own version of the Book of Common Prayer to the Alphabetical Bills. If Strickland's addition had passed, it would have replaced the prayer book that had been established under the Act of Uniformity (1559), fundamentally altering the Elizabethan Settlement. Elizabeth could not allow this direct challenge to her religious settlement, and she used her royal veto to block both Strickland's proposal and the original Alphabetical Bills.
However, Elizabeth recognised that she needed Protestant support in parliament, particularly as the Catholic threat was growing in the late 1560s and early 1570s. As a concession to the moderates, she allowed the 39 Articles to become law in 1571, giving the Church of England's doctrinal position formal legal status.
The 'Bill and Book' (1584-87)
Puritan pressure on parliament continued in the 1580s with renewed attempts to establish a more Presbyterian system. In 1584, Puritans attempted to introduce a bill and book, which would have created a national Presbyterian Church structure and replaced the Elizabethan Book of Common Prayer with one based on the Geneva model used in Calvin's Switzerland.
The 1584 attempt was defeated largely through the intervention of Christopher Hatton, one of Elizabeth's trusted councillors, who made a powerful speech against the proposals. When Puritans tried again in 1586, Elizabeth responded even more harshly, having the MPs responsible sent to the Tower of London as a warning to others. This demonstrated her absolute determination that the 1559 Settlement should remain unchanged and showed the limits of what could be achieved through parliamentary action.
The Puritan challenge from below: grass-roots activities
While parliamentary attempts to reform the Church ultimately failed, Puritans also pursued change through local, grass-roots activities. These local initiatives were often supported by powerful patrons, making them difficult for the government to suppress entirely.
Prophesyings (1570s)
Prophesyings were informal meetings of clergy and their congregations designed to improve the quality of preaching. The format was relatively straightforward: clergy would deliver sermons in front of a mixed audience that included both ordinary church members and moderators (other clergy whose role was to provide feedback and guidance to the preacher). For moderate Puritans like Edmund Grindal, prophesyings were entirely compatible with membership of the Church of England and represented a valuable way to raise clerical standards.
Grindal, who became Archbishop of Canterbury in 1575, actively supported prophesyings because he believed there was a genuine need to improve the education and preaching ability of parish clergy. Many clergymen had limited theological training, and prophesyings offered a practical way to enhance their skills. However, Elizabeth saw these meetings as dangerous. She feared that prophesyings provided cover for the establishment of a Calvinist system and worried that it was impossible to control what was actually being discussed at these gatherings.
Elizabeth's concerns were not entirely unfounded. In some places, prophesyings did appear to be getting out of control. In the village of Southam in Warwickshire, for example, prophesyings were being held without the local bishop's knowledge, though they had the backing of local gentry. This showed how Puritan activities could bypass official Church oversight when they had powerful local support.
In 1576, Elizabeth demanded that Grindal put a stop to all prophesyings throughout England. When Grindal refused to obey this direct order, Elizabeth suspended him from office. He remained suspended until his death in 1583, serving as a stark example of what happened to those who defied the queen, even at the highest levels of the Church. In 1583, Elizabeth wrote to all her bishops ordering them to imprison anyone caught participating in prophesyings and send their names to the Privy Council. These harsh measures successfully suppressed the prophesyings, though Puritans simply found other ways to meet and continue their activities.
The Classes System (1580s)
In the 1580s, Puritan clergy developed the classes or classical system, informal meetings similar to (but not the same as) the Genevan model established by Calvin. These meetings involved clergy but not laymen, and there was no attempt to organise them on a national level. Representatives from local congregations would attend these classes for study and prayer.
A key promoter of this system was John Field, a radical Puritan clergyman who had already caused controversy in 1572 with his publication of the Admonitions to Parliament, a fierce attack on the bishops. Field followed this up with A View on the Popish Abuses Yet Remaining in the English Church, which specifically criticised the Book of Common Prayer. In this work, Field described the prayer book as 'an unperfect book, culled and picked out of that popish dunghill, the Mass book of all abominations'. Such inflammatory language shows the depth of Puritan hostility to elements of the Elizabethan Settlement.
Field was imprisoned for a year as punishment, but this did not silence him. He continued to promote Presbyterian structures through the classes system throughout the 1580s. However, the impact of the classes was limited, partly because of government action against them and partly because they never achieved the national organisation that would have made them truly effective.
Key figures in the Puritan movement
Edmund Grindal (Archbishop of Canterbury, 1575-83)
Edmund Grindal exemplified the moderate Puritan position. He had been an exile during Mary I's reign and returned to England with more radical Protestant ideas, but he remained committed to working within the Church of England structure. As Archbishop of Canterbury from 1575, Grindal attempted to balance his Puritan sympathies with his duties to the queen and the Church.
Grindal's defence of prophesyings brought him into direct conflict with Elizabeth. He genuinely believed that these meetings were valuable for improving clerical standards and saw no conflict between prophesyings and the Elizabethan Settlement. When Elizabeth ordered him to suppress all prophesyings in 1576, Grindal faced an impossible choice: obey his monarch or follow his conscience. He chose conscience and refused the queen's order, resulting in his suspension from office.
Grindal's case shows the dilemma faced by moderate Puritans. They wanted to reform the Church from within, but Elizabeth was unwilling to permit changes that she saw as challenges to her authority. Even an archbishop, the highest-ranking churchman in England, could not convince Elizabeth to compromise on matters she considered fundamental to the Settlement.
Thomas Cartwright (1535-1603)
Thomas Cartwright was an important Puritan theologian who influenced many through his teaching and writing. In 1570, while at the University of Cambridge, Cartwright gave a series of lectures openly supporting a Calvinist system of church organisation. These lectures caused considerable controversy and Cartwright lost his university position as a result. He spent much of his life in exile abroad, where he continued to write in support of Presbyterian church structures.
Despite the government's disapproval, Cartwright enjoyed powerful protection. The Earl of Leicester, one of Elizabeth's closest advisers and a secret Puritan sympathiser, protected Cartwright by making him Master of the Lord Leicester Hospital in Warwick in 1585. This appointment gave Cartwright both income and a degree of safety from prosecution. Cartwright also publicly supported John Field's attacks on the bishops, though he was careful to distance himself from the most extreme Puritan publications, such as the Martin Marprelate Tracts.
John Field (c.1545-88)
John Field represented the more radical wing of Puritanism. A clergyman by profession, Field was not content to work quietly within the Church of England but instead launched public attacks on the bishops and the Elizabethan Settlement. His Admonitions to Parliament (1572) was a vicious assault on the episcopal system, arguing that bishops had no biblical justification and should be abolished.
Field's follow-up work, A View on the Popish Abuses Yet Remaining in the English Church, was equally inflammatory. He was imprisoned for a year as punishment, but upon his release, he continued his campaign to establish a Presbyterian structure in England. In the 1580s, Field actively encouraged the growth of the classes system, seeing it as a way to create an alternative church structure that could eventually replace the bishops.
Field's career demonstrates the determination of radical Puritans and also reveals the limits of government power. Despite imprisonment and official disapproval, Field continued his activities for years, protected by sympathetic patrons and the difficulty of controlling what happened at a local level. His death in 1588, along with the deaths of other key Puritan supporters like the Earl of Leicester, marked a turning point in the Puritan movement, as the loss of these leaders and protectors weakened the challenge to Elizabeth's Settlement.
Government response to the Puritan challenge
Elizabeth's personal opposition
Elizabeth I was absolutely determined that the 1559 Religious Settlement should not be altered. This determination stemmed from several factors. First, the Settlement represented her own religious preferences—a middle way between Catholicism and radical Protestantism. Second, Elizabeth believed that stability required religious uniformity, and any changes to the Settlement might encourage further demands for reform, potentially destabilising her reign. Third, she saw challenges to the Settlement as challenges to her own authority as Supreme Governor of the Church.
Elizabeth employed various tactics to suppress Puritan initiatives. She used her royal veto to block parliamentary bills that threatened the Settlement, such as the Alphabetical Bills in 1571. She suppressed or postponed elements of the 39 Articles that she found problematic, such as Article 29 on the real presence of Christ in Communion. She suspended her own Archbishop of Canterbury, Edmund Grindal, when he refused to obey her orders regarding prophesyings. She even had MPs sent to the Tower of London when they attempted to introduce the 'bill and book' in 1586.
However, Elizabeth's opposition was not purely reactive. She also recognised when she needed to make tactical concessions to maintain broader Protestant support, particularly as the Catholic threat increased in the 1560s and 1570s. This explains why she eventually allowed the 39 Articles to become law in 1571, even though she had reservations about some of their content. She understood that she needed committed Protestants on her side to defend against potential Catholic rebellion or foreign invasion.
The role of the Archbishops of Canterbury
Matthew Parker (1559-75)
Matthew Parker served as Elizabeth's first Archbishop of Canterbury and was generally supportive of the queen's religious policies. In 1566, Parker issued the Advertisements, instructions to all clergy regarding proper vestments and behaviour, directly following Elizabeth's orders. This document was Parker's response to the queen's complaints about the 'varieties, novelties and diversities' in clerical dress that were becoming increasingly common, particularly in London.
Parker took direct action to enforce conformity, summoning 110 London clergy to appear at Lambeth Palace dressed in the appropriate vestments. When 37 refused, he suspended them from their positions. Parker also used Convocation to control who could preach, introducing a system where all clergy had to subscribe (formally agree) to the 39 Articles before their licences to preach could be renewed. He summoned radical preachers like John Field personally, requiring them to swear to uphold not just the Articles but also the prayer book and to wear proper vestments. When Field refused, Parker suspended him from preaching.
Parker's actions showed that Elizabeth had a reliable ally in her fight against Puritan challenges. However, Parker's methods were not always fully effective, as many Puritan clergy found ways to continue their activities despite official disapproval.
John Whitgift (1583-1603)
John Whitgift, who became Archbishop of Canterbury in 1583 following Grindal's death, proved even more determined than Parker to suppress Puritan activity. Like Elizabeth, Whitgift was deeply unsympathetic to Puritan aims and fully supported the 1559 Settlement as it stood. Under Whitgift, the campaign against Puritanism intensified significantly.
In 1583, Whitgift introduced the Three Articles, which required all clergy to take an oath subscribing to three key principles: support for the Royal Supremacy (the monarch's position as head of the Church), acceptance of the Book of Common Prayer, and agreement with the 39 Articles. Most controversially, clergy also had to subscribe to the view that there was nothing in any of these documents that contradicted the Word of God. This last requirement was particularly problematic for Puritans, who believed that various elements of the Settlement had no biblical justification.
Whitgift went even further by ordering that any clergyman suspected of Puritan activity should take an ex officio oath. This oath required the accused to swear to answer all questions truthfully before they knew what the questions would be. This was an extremely harsh measure that placed clergy in an impossible position—they had to potentially incriminate themselves without knowing what they would be asked. The result was dramatic: 300 clergymen in the diocese of Canterbury alone were suspended for refusing to take the oath.
Whitgift's aggressive campaign significantly weakened the Puritan challenge. The classes system declined, and attempts to create a Presbyterian structure through parliament ceased after 1587. While Whitgift did not completely eliminate Puritanism, he succeeded in bringing the movement under much greater control and ensuring that most clergy conformed, at least outwardly, to the requirements of the Settlement.
The role of the Privy Council and Parliament
Elizabeth also received support from members of her Privy Council, though not all councillors shared her hostility to Puritanism. Christopher Hatton served as Elizabeth's voice in parliament, giving the speech that defeated the 'bill and book' proposal in 1584. His intervention shows how the government could use its influence in parliament to block measures that threatened the Settlement.
However, the situation was complicated by the fact that some powerful councillors were actually sympathetic to the Puritan cause. Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, and his brother Ambrose Dudley, Earl of Warwick, both protected Puritan clergy and theologians. Leicester's patronage of Thomas Cartwright and his support for Puritan preachers show that even within Elizabeth's inner circle, there was no consensus about how to handle the Puritan challenge.
When prophesyings in Warwickshire got out of control, it was Leicester who attempted to calm the situation, though he continued to protect Puritan clergy. This division at the heart of government made it difficult for Elizabeth to completely suppress Puritanism. Local gentry who controlled appointments to parish clergy on their estates could appoint and protect 'godly' ministers, creating pockets of Puritan influence that were hard for the central government to eliminate. The Earl of Warwick attempted to calm down the problematic prophesyings in Warwickshire rather than simply suppressing them, showing how even government officials sometimes tried to accommodate moderate Puritan activity.
The significance of Puritanism
Limited success in changing the Settlement
In terms of their stated goal—fundamentally reforming the Elizabethan Religious Settlement—the Puritans failed. Despite multiple attempts through Convocation, parliament, and local grass-roots activities, they did not succeed in changing any major aspect of the 1559 Settlement. The Book of Common Prayer remained in use, bishops retained their authority, clerical vestments continued to be required, and the basic structure of the Church of England remained intact.
Several factors explain this failure. First and foremost was Elizabeth's determined opposition. The queen saw the Settlement as her creation and refused to permit alterations that might undermine her authority or destabilise her realm. She was prepared to use all the powers at her disposal—vetoing parliamentary bills, suspending archbishops, imprisoning MPs—to defend the Settlement.
Second, the Puritans remained a minority, even within the Protestant community. While they were vocal and determined, most English people were either Catholic or moderate Protestant, and many were simply 'confused and uncertain, acquiescent in any lead from above' as historian Penry Williams argued. The Puritans lacked the popular support necessary to force change through mass pressure.
Third, after 1587, parliamentary attempts to create a Presbyterian national church ceased. The failure of the 'bill and book' proposals, combined with Elizabeth's harsh response to those who promoted them, convinced most Puritan MPs that this approach would not succeed. Without a parliamentary route to reform, the Puritan challenge lost much of its effectiveness.
Finally, by 1589, many leading supporters and protectors of Puritanism had died, including Walsingham and the Earls of Leicester and Warwick. This meant there was less protection for Puritan preachers and less support for their cause within the government. The publication of the Martin Marprelate Tracts (1588-89) also damaged the Puritan movement significantly.
The Martin Marprelate Tracts (1588-89)
The Martin Marprelate Tracts were a series of anonymous pamphlets that launched vicious, foul-mouthed attacks on the English Church and its bishops. Written in a crude, satirical style, these tracts appeared at a particularly unfortunate time for the Puritan movement—just after England's victory over the Spanish Armada in 1588, when many people believed that God had shown favour to Elizabeth and the English Church.
The tracts were seen as close to treason because they attacked the Church at a moment of national triumph. Even committed Puritans like Thomas Cartwright quickly distanced themselves from the publications, claiming they had nothing to do with them. The Martin Marprelate controversy revealed significant divisions within the Puritan movement—they did not agree on methods or even on core beliefs. Some Puritans were horrified by the crude attacks on bishops, while others may have secretly supported the sentiments expressed.
The tracts damaged the Puritan cause by making the movement seem extreme and disloyal. They gave Elizabeth and her supporters justification for cracking down harder on Puritan activities and made it more difficult for moderate Puritans to argue that their reforms were compatible with loyalty to the queen and the established Church.
Regional variations in Puritan support
Puritanism's impact varied significantly by region. The movement was strongest in London and the South East, where Protestant ideas had been established for longer and where there was a higher concentration of educated clergy and gentry sympathetic to reform. When Whitgift attempted to enforce the Three Articles, he received protests and petitions from southern gentry. Thirty-eight landowners from Kent sent letters complaining about the lack of good preaching in their county, showing genuine concern about clerical standards.
In counties like Suffolk, Norfolk, Essex, and Northampton, leading members of the gentry had converted to a more Puritan approach. As landowners, they controlled appointments to parish clergy on their estates, which meant they could appoint and protect 'godly' clergy who shared their views. This created networks of Puritan influence at the local level that were very difficult for the central government to eliminate. Even when bishops tried to discipline Puritan clergy, these ministers could often find protection from local gentry patrons.
However, other parts of England remained largely untouched by Puritanism. The north of England, particularly Lancashire, remained predominantly Catholic throughout Elizabeth's reign. In these regions, Puritan ideas made little headway, and the local clergy showed no interest in reform. This regional variation in religious belief would remain a feature of English religion for generations to come.
Cultural and social impact
Despite their failure to change the Settlement, the Puritans had a significant cultural and social impact on Elizabethan England. Their emphasis on evangelism (spreading God's word) through preaching meant that they actively sought to reach ordinary people with their message. This focus on popular religion, rather than just elite theology, helped spread Protestant ideas more widely than might otherwise have been the case.
The Puritan impact on printing and publishing was particularly important. The English Bible published in 1560 went through 130 editions during Elizabeth's reign, an extraordinary number that shows the growing appetite for scripture in English. For those who could not afford a complete Bible, there were cheaper alternatives. Protestant catechisms—simplified teaching aids that used questions and answers to explain religious doctrine—became very popular. About 100 catechisms were published during Elizabeth's reign, making Protestant teaching accessible to a wide audience.
Puritan printers also produced pamphlets and religious tracts that promoted Protestant propaganda. These publications were increasingly linked to national pride and the emerging idea that Englishmen were God's chosen people. Many pamphlets were both anti-papal (hostile to the Pope and Catholicism) and xenophobic (hostile to foreigners), combining religious and nationalistic themes. Some included pictures and songs set to popular tunes, making them memorable and accessible even to those with limited literacy.
The Puritan emphasis on education had lasting effects. Their belief that clergymen needed to be properly educated to read and interpret scripture led to the foundation of institutions like Emmanuel College, Cambridge, established by Sir Walter Mildmay specifically to train Puritan ministers. This focus on clerical education gradually raised standards throughout the Church of England, even among non-Puritan clergy who recognised the value of better training.
Long-term significance
Perhaps the most significant aspect of Puritanism was that, apart from a few radicals, most Puritans found ways to remain within the Elizabethan Church of England rather than breaking away from it. This meant that reform-minded Protestants continued to work from within the established Church, pushing for gradual improvements rather than complete separation. This accommodationist approach would have important consequences for the development of English religion in subsequent decades.
Some historians have overemphasised the importance of Puritanism by looking for long-term explanations for the 17th-century English Civil Wars, when Charles I went to war against Puritan opponents in parliament. However, this approach risks reading later conflicts back into Elizabeth's reign. During Elizabeth's lifetime, most Puritans remained loyal subjects who shared the queen's Protestant faith, even when they disagreed with her about specific practices or policies.
The Puritans succeeded in keeping alive the possibility of further reform. While Elizabeth was adamant that the 1559 Settlement was final, Puritans maintained that it was just a starting point. This ongoing debate about the proper form of English Protestantism would continue long after Elizabeth's death, shaping religious controversies throughout the 17th century. In this sense, even though the Puritans failed to achieve their immediate goals, they established an enduring tradition of Protestant reform that would influence English religion for generations to come.
Remember!
Key Points to Remember:
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Puritans were Protestants who wanted to 'purify' the Church of England by removing all traces of Catholic practice and establishing a simpler, more biblical form of worship. They were not a unified group but ranged from moderate reformers to radical Presbyterians.
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Puritans challenged Elizabeth's Religious Settlement through multiple methods: through Convocation (1563), through the Vestments Controversy (1564-66), through parliamentary bills (1571, 1584-87), and through local grass-roots activities like prophesyings and the classes system.
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Elizabeth was absolutely determined to defend her 1559 Settlement and refused to permit any significant changes. She used her royal powers to veto bills, suspend archbishops (including Edmund Grindal), imprison MPs, and suppress prophesyings.
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The government response included harsh measures by Archbishop John Whitgift, who introduced the Three Articles (1583) and the ex officio oath, resulting in 300 clergymen being suspended in Canterbury alone. These actions significantly weakened the Puritan challenge by the late 1580s.
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Despite failing to change the Settlement, Puritanism had lasting cultural and social impact through its emphasis on preaching, education, printing, and evangelism. Most importantly, apart from a few radicals, Puritans remained within the Church of England, continuing to push for reform from within rather than breaking away entirely.