Religious Changes, 1529-36 (Edexcel A-Level History): Revision Notes
Religious Changes, 1529-36
Understanding Catholic England before the changes
Before examining the religious changes of 1529-36, it is essential to understand the depth of Catholic belief in early Tudor England. This helps explain why religious reform was controversial and why some people resisted the changes.
Understanding the strength of Catholic belief in early Tudor England is crucial for appreciating why the religious changes of the 1530s were so controversial and faced significant resistance. The practices described below were not merely traditions—they were deeply held beliefs about salvation and the afterlife.
Catholic belief in salvation centred on the idea that the soul could be saved through God's grace (mercy). Catholics believed that after death, souls spent time in purgatory as punishment for earthly sins. However, this time could be reduced through actions taken during life.
How Catholics sought forgiveness
Catholics could seek forgiveness and reduce time in purgatory through several methods:
- Sacraments: baptism, attending Mass (the Eucharist), confessing sins and doing penance
- Indulgences: documents purchased from the pope or bishops that promised reduced time in purgatory
- Prayers for the dead: wealthy individuals left money in wills to build chantries where priests prayed for their souls; those with less wealth still paid priests to say Masses for them
- Prayer to saints: Catholics believed saints could intercede with God on behalf of sinners
- Pilgrimages: journeys to holy shrines where saints' relics were kept
Popular Pilgrimage Sites in Tudor England
The most important pilgrimage destinations included:
- Canterbury: shrine of St Thomas Becket
- Walsingham in Norfolk: shrine to the Virgin Mary
- Hailes Abbey in Gloucestershire: the Holy Blood of Jesus
These shrines attracted hundreds or thousands of pilgrims annually and were economically important to their regions, generating substantial income through offerings and supporting local trade.
The role of the Church in daily life
Catholicism dominated ordinary people's lives. Because sin was constant, seeking forgiveness was an ongoing process—some people attended Mass daily. Saints' days (holy days or 'holidays') marked the passage of the year, with celebrations of the Blessed Virgin Mary being particularly popular.
The Church was also adapting to meet people's needs. From the late 14th century, many parish churches built pulpits for preaching. This shows that sermons were becoming an increasingly important way of spreading Catholic teaching—ironically, a method later associated more with Protestantism.
This strong popular attachment to Catholic practices helps explain why there was resistance to religious change, such as the Pilgrimage of Grace, and why Catholicism survived throughout the Tudor period despite government attempts to suppress it.
The enforcement of the Royal Supremacy
Henry VIII's break with Rome in the 1530s initiated a top-down process of religious change that significantly altered the appearance, worship practices and beliefs of local churches.
The Supremacy Act and Treason Act, 1534
The first major changes came with the enforcement of Henry's position as Supreme Head of the English Church.
Under the Supremacy Act (1534) and Treason Act (1534), denying that Henry was Supreme Head became a crime punishable by death. All adult men had to take an Oath of Supremacy, administered by specially appointed commissioners. This oath required them to:
- Renounce the power of the pope
- Accept Henry as Supreme Head
- Accept Henry's marriage to Anne Boleyn
High-profile victims
High-Profile Executions Under the Acts
These Acts were used to eliminate opposition to the Supremacy and Henry's marriage to Anne Boleyn. Notable victims included:
- Sir Thomas More (former Lord Chancellor) - executed 1535
- Elizabeth Barton (the Holy Maid of Kent) - executed 1534
Elizabeth Barton had been a popular holy figure whose prophecies and preaching attracted large audiences. Opponents of the Supremacy encouraged her to prophesy an early death for Henry if he married Anne Boleyn, making her a threat to the king's authority.
Changes at parish level
Parish clergy faced significant requirements:
- Take an oath renouncing papal authority
- Remove all references to the pope from prayer books
- Participate in preaching campaigns supporting the Royal Supremacy and Henry's marriage
Evidence of Incomplete Compliance
Compliance was far from universal. In 1534, Thomas Cromwell (as the king's vicegerent - his deputy in religious matters) organised preaching campaigns in parish churches to reinforce that the Supremacy was legal. Yet in 1535, he had to order bishops and Justices of the Peace to arrest and imprison clergy who continued preaching in support of papal supremacy.
This reveals that not all clergy obeyed the new orders immediately and demonstrates the challenges of enforcing religious change from above.
Cromwell's reforms, 1535-36
As Henry's vicegerent, Cromwell continued attempts to transform the English Church throughout 1535-36, though his reforms would intensify further in 1538.
Attack on traditional Catholic practices
Indulgences were actively discouraged as unnecessary superstitions. They disappeared very rapidly during the 1530s. Similarly, belief in purgatory came under attack, particularly through the dissolution of the monasteries.
Relics had been criticised even before the break with Rome for being false. Cromwell's commissioners conducted a visitation (inspection) of monasteries in 1535 aimed at exposing such abuses. Many relics were subsequently destroyed in 1538.
The Act of Ten Articles and removal of feast days
The Act of Ten Articles (1536) enforced a moderate form of Protestantism on the English Church. Significantly, it allowed the interpretation of the Eucharist to remain ambiguous—neither clearly Catholic nor clearly Protestant.
Cromwell then pushed Convocation (the assembly of clergy) to pass an Act removing many traditional feast days (holy days), especially those falling during the harvest period (July to September). The official reason was that too many holidays damaged the economy, but this was clearly an attack on traditional Catholic practices and the rhythm of the Catholic year.
Cromwell's first injunctions, 1536
Cromwell published his first set of injunctions to the clergy in 1536. These ordered:
Teaching requirements:
- All clergymen must preach the Supremacy
- Follow the doctrine in the Ten Articles
- Children should learn the Lord's Prayer and Ten Commandments in English, not Latin
The English Bible:
- Every priest must purchase a copy of the English and Latin Bible
- This Bible must be placed in the parish church for anyone to read
Attack on 'superstitions':
- Pilgrimages were discouraged
- Worship of images was condemned
This represented a significant shift from traditional Catholic practices where the Bible was in Latin and ordinary people relied on priests to interpret scripture. The emphasis on English language in religious instruction was a fundamental change that would have long-term implications for popular religious understanding.
The dissolution of the smaller monasteries, 1536
The most important change to popular religion was the dissolution of the smaller monasteries in 1536. The Act ordered the closure of all monasteries making less than £200 per year, affecting 372 monasteries in England (though some obtained exemptions).
Why monasteries were targeted:
Reformers' Objections to Monasteries
For reformers like Cromwell, monasteries represented problematic aspects of Catholic belief:
- They encouraged what he saw as superstition—worship of saints and images rather than God
- They were centres of pilgrimage (e.g., Hailes Abbey)
- Their main purpose included praying for souls of the dead, which reinforced belief in purgatory
- They had links with foreign Catholic powers and the pope, threatening Henry's supremacy
- Some had been found corrupt (Cardinal Wolsey had already closed some corrupt smaller monasteries)
The Pilgrimage of Grace
The popular reaction was swift and serious. In Lincolnshire and Yorkshire, a rebellion known as the Pilgrimage of Grace broke out. This was the largest rebellion of Henry's reign.
The Pilgrimage of Grace: Evidence of Popular Religious Commitment
The rebels' demands included:
- Return of traditional Catholic religion
- Restoration of papal supremacy
- Reinstatement of the monasteries
Significantly, the rebels called their uprising a 'pilgrimage'—demonstrating their commitment to traditional worship practices. Though the rebellion was eventually suppressed and did not prevent the later dissolution of larger monasteries, it provides strong evidence of popular anger at attacks on Catholic religious practices up to 1536.
The effectiveness and limitations of change by 1536
By 1536, some permanent changes had been made to the English Church, but the extent of actual religious transformation remained limited.
Successful changes
Permanent alterations included:
- Indulgences had largely disappeared
- Traditional concepts (purgatory, saint worship, pilgrimages) were under official attack
- Smaller monasteries had been closed
- A moderately Protestant form of worship had been introduced
Evidence of limited impact
However, Catholicism had not disappeared, and Cromwell struggled to eliminate popular practices that had existed for centuries.
Resistance from clergy:
- The Bishop of London openly preached at St Paul's in defence of prayers for the dead, opposing Cromwell's campaign against purgatory (1535-36)
- Cromwell had to issue a second set of injunctions in 1538, suggesting the first had not achieved the desired effect
The English Bible campaign:
- Cromwell's requirement that every church have an English Bible only became properly effective in 1539 when the Great Bible was authorised by Henry VIII
- Before that, clergy had been told to purchase copies themselves, but copies were not readily available
Evidence from Wills: Continued Catholic Belief
Wills reveal strong continued belief in traditional Catholic doctrine, especially concerning the soul's fate after death:
- Even in London, where Protestantism took root more quickly, 85% of wills made in the 1530s used traditional references to saints and prayers for the soul
- For example, Joan Brytten's will (1540) requested that her soul be entrusted to "almighty God and unto our Blessed Lady" and that a priest should "sing for my soul, my master Milard's soul, his wife's soul, and all Christian souls"
- These traditional references would gradually decline during the rest of the Tudor period, but in the 1530s they provide strong evidence that religious change remained limited
Why change was difficult to enforce
Factors Limiting the Impact of Religious Reform
Several factors explain the limited impact of changes by 1536:
- Catholic practices had been embedded in English culture for centuries
- Many people genuinely believed in traditional Catholic doctrine
- The changes were imposed from above rather than arising from popular demand
- Distance from London made enforcement difficult in some regions
- Many clergy were reluctant to abandon beliefs they had held throughout their careers
Remember!
Key Points to Remember:
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The break with Rome began a top-down process of change in the 1530s that altered church appearance, worship practices and doctrine, but Catholic belief remained strong among ordinary people.
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The Royal Supremacy was enforced through oaths and executions from 1534, with high-profile victims like Thomas More and Elizabeth Barton, but some clergy continued to resist by preaching in support of the pope.
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Cromwell's reforms (1535-36) attacked key Catholic practices: indulgences disappeared, purgatory and saint worship were condemned, the Act of Ten Articles introduced moderate Protestantism, traditional feast days were removed, and the first injunctions required English prayers and Bibles in churches.
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The dissolution of smaller monasteries (1536) was the most significant popular change, targeting 372 religious houses and provoking the Pilgrimage of Grace—the largest rebellion of Henry's reign—showing strong attachment to traditional religion.
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By 1536, changes were incomplete and faced resistance: Cromwell needed second injunctions in 1538, the English Bible campaign struggled until 1639, and evidence from wills shows 85% of Londoners still used traditional Catholic language in the 1530s, indicating that genuine religious transformation would take much longer.