Religion

• Like many changes in history, the English Reformation was a series of events that took place over the years in the 16th century.
• During this time, England had broken away from the Catholic Church and the authority of the Pope in Rome and formed the Protestant Church of England.
• This change did not happen in isolation
  • The Protestant Reformation was taking place in other parts of Europe
  • This was underpinned by the decline of feudalism in the wake of the Black Death, a rise in nationalism, Renaissance ideas, the advent of the printing press, which disseminated knowledge and ideas like never before, and increasing frustration at the corruption and indulgences of the Catholic Church.

Protestant Influences in England

A 19th-century illustration showing reformer John Wycliffe giving the Bible translation to his followers, Lollards

In the mid-14th century, English Lollards, pre-Protestant Christians who followed the teachings of reformed John Wycliffe, demanded reform in the Church but were neither powerful nor numerous enough to bring about change. They believed in religion being taught from the Bible in vernacular and opposed many of the practices of Catholicism. This included transubstantiation, baptism, confession, idolatry and fasting. Lollards preferred consubstantiation.

William Tyndale

Tyndale also wrote The Obedience of a Christian Man, which suggested a king should be head of the Church and country. Henry VIII used this to justify his break with Rome in 1534. Tyndale was executed in Europe for heresy. The Great Bible, the Bishop's Bible and later the King James Bible authorised by the Church of England were largely based on Tyndale's Bible.

William Tyndale (1494-1536) and the Gospel of John from the Tyndale Bible

Reformation in England

• Humanist scholars argued against papal primacy and suggested the Pope had power that rightfully belonged to kings.
• Nevertheless, English Protestants would remain in the minority in the early 1500s until politics intervened.

Catherine watching Henry jousting in her honour after giving birth to a son, who died after only 52 days

Henry VIII married his brother's widow, Catherine of Aragon. Considered a sin to lie with your brother's wife/widow, Henry believed this was the reason Catherine could not give him a male heir, though not for lack of multiple pregnancies. The need for an heir drove his desire to divorce and remarry.

How Henry VIII broke with Rome

A 17th-century line engraving of the reign of Henry VIII

Between 1532 and 1534, a series of acts were passed by Parliament, including the 1534 Act of Supremacy, which made Henry VIII, not the Pope, the head of the Church of England. The King had the final say in matters concerning legal disputes and doctrine. This meant he could grant his annulment. Henry VIII stemmed the flow of money to the Catholic Church. He had the final say in who were appointed bishops. He required his court to take the Oath of Supremacy - that he was head of the English Church and State. He later dissolved the monasteries.

Religious Legislation and Key Changes

1. 1529 The Benefit of the clergy removed prevented the clergy from getting special treatment through Church courts.
2. 1530 Praemunire charges reinstated this meant people could not appeal to other powers, like the Pope.
3. 1532 Rome deprived of a portion of Annates normally remitted this diverted a portion of money paid to Rome back to England.
4. 1533 All appeals to Rome, religious or otherwise forbidden this enhanced praemunire laws.
5. 1534 Act Concerning Peter's Pence & Dispensations a household tax owed to Rome was banned.
6. 1534 Act of Succession Henry and Catherine's marriage was deemed invalid, making Mary illegitimate.
7. 1534 Act of Supremacy Henry VIII became supreme head of the Church of England.
8. 1534 Annates reserved to the English Crown More Church money diverted to the crown.
9. 1534 Cromwell appointed to Viceregency in Spirituals Cromwell became second only to the king.
10. 1536 Act to dissolve the smaller monasteries with income under £200 per annum.
11. 1536 First set of royal injunctions Pilgrimages and observation of holy days were restricted.
12. 1536 Ten Articles A doctrinal change that reasserted Catholic doctrine.
13. 1539 Act for Dissolution of the Greater Monasteries
14. 1539 First edition of the Great Bible in English Bible could be read in English in church services.
15. 1543 Act for the Advancement of True Religion restricted the public reading of the Bible to upper-class males.
16. 1543 The King's Book the Bishop's Book was revised, but with more emphasis on Lutheran elements.

The Significance of Anne Boleyn

Anne Boleyn's sister, Mary, was also one of the Queen's court ladies and became one of the King's mistresses. Upon being swept away by Anne's charms, the King pursued her. However, Anne refused to become his mistress. Her insistence on a marriage with Henry VIII and a promise of a male heir drove the King to do whatever he could to make their union possible. In 1533, they secretly wed at the cost of rejecting the papal supremacy and England's breaking with Rome.

Her failure to provide a male heir led to the king's decision to end their marriage. Cromwell aided Henry VIII by plotting against Anne and accusing her of adultery, witchcraft, incest and conspiracy against the king. Anne denied all the charges but was found guilty and condemned to death. She was publicly beheaded on 19 May 1536.

After Anne Boleyn's execution, Henry VIII married Jane Seymour. After his third marriage, he went on and married three more women.