University of Algiers II 1stYear (LMD)

Faculty of Letters and Languages Anglophone Cultures

The Reformation of the Roman Catholic Church

 Overview
While the previous Reformations were based on an intellectual fight, the English Reformation was based
on a quarrel between the King and the Pope. The English Reformation started in the reign of Henry
Tudor VIII and had far reaching consequences in Tudor England than any other part of Europe. Henry
VIII decided to rid himself of his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, after she had failed to produce a male
heir to the throne. Henry and Catherine had only one living child, Mary Tudor. As Catherine grew older,
Henry feared she could not have any more children. Moreover, he had fallen under the charms of Ann
Boleyn (the daughter of a respectable diplomat). However, a divorce was a very complicated issue at that
time. The Roman Catholic Church believed in marriage for life. It did not recognize, let alone support,
divorce. Husbands and wives could not simply decide that their marriage was not working, get a divorce
and then re-marry.
This put Henry VIII in a difficult position. If he went ahead and announced that as king of England
he was allowing himself a divorce, the Pope could excommunicate him (this meant that under the
Catholic Church law, his souls would never reach heaven). The threat of excommunication engendered a
real fear in medieval times, and the church used it to keep people under control.
 The Papal Dispensation
Another approach Henry used was to make a special appeal to the Pope so that he might get a
special “Papal Dispensation.” This meant that the Pope would agree to Henry’s request for a divorce
purely because he was King of England and that it would not affect the way the Catholic Church banned
divorce for others. The Pope refused to grant Henry this and by 1533 his anger was such that he ordered
the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer - the most important church leader in England, to grant
him a divorce so that he could marry Ann Boleyn. Under the pressure of the King, the Archbishop
granted him a divorce against the wishes of the Pope.
Henry then married Anne Boleyn, who gave him one child, a daughter named Elizabeth. A few
years later, Henry had Anne executed for treason. He then married Jane Seymour, who died shortly after
giving him the son he wanted, Edward VI. King Henry went on to marry three more time after that,
becoming famously known as ‘the King with the six wives.’
 The Breakup from the Roman Catholic Church
The divorce granted by the Archbishop effectively led to England breaking away from the Roman
Catholic Church. Thus, Henry placed himself as Head of the Church, and in that sense, in his eyes, his
divorce was perfectly legal. In 1533, few were brave enough to tell him otherwise.
 How did the people of England react?
In fact, the majority of the people were very angry at the way the Roman Catholic Church had used them
as a source of money. Therefore, there were no great protests throughout the land as many felt that Henry
would ease up on taking money from them. Henry knew of the Catholic Church’s unpopularity and used
this to his advantage. Henry was made Supreme Head of the Church by an Act of Parliament in 1534.
The country was still Catholic but the Pope’s power had been terminated.
 The Dissolution of Monasteries
The wealthiest Catholics in England were the monasteries where monks lived. They were also the most
loyal supporters of the Pope. This made them a threat to Henry.
By the time of Henry’s reign, many monks had grown fat and lazy. They did not help the
community as they were meant to do. All they seemed to do was take money from the poor. Moreover,
some monasteries were huge and owned vast areas of land. This was against the principle of humility and
humbleness they ought to stand for. Henry decided to shut down the monasteries of England. The
monasteries were to disappear like sugar dissolves into hot liquid. This is why Henry’s attack on the
monasteries is called the Dissolution.
Henry wanted to make the Dissolution appear lawful and legal. He sent round government officials
to check up on what the monks were doing. This was organized by his chief minister, Thomas
Cromwell. The officials knew what the King wanted in their reports – any information that could
discredit the monks. One report sent to Cromwell commented on how the monks were “corrupt” and “full
of vice.” The report claimed that the monks had eight to ten girlfriends each. This was all that Cromwell
needed to end the lives of the monasteries.
Some monastery buildings were reduced to ruins as the local population was allowed to take what
they wanted as long as the silver and gold went to the Crown. This meant that the expensive building
bricks, properties, etc. could be acquired for free. This alone made the Dissolution popular with the
majority of the people who tended to dislike the lazy monks.
To reform means to change. This is why this event is called the English Reformation as it did
change the way the Church was run throughout England. However, the death of Henry in 1547 did not see
an end the complicated religious problems in England.
 From Catholic to Protestant England
When Henry VIII died, his nine-year old son became King Edward VI. Since Edward was too
young and sick to rule, a council of nobles governed England for him. Most of the council members were
Protestants, and they brought Protestant doctrines into the English Church. Thomas Cranmer supported
the council. He wanted the people to have an orderly form of Protestant worship. To help achieve this, he
wrote worship service in English called the Book of Common Prayer. It was used in all the churches in
England. The English people stated to shift to a Protestant doctrine and lifestyle.
When Edward died in 1553, the council of nobles tried to bring a Protestant noblewoman to the
throne. Their attempt failed, however, because the people of England refused to accept any ruler who was
not a Tudor. They wanted Henry’s daughter, Mary, as their monarch. Mary was a fierce Catholic. As soon
as she became queen, she accepted the Pope as head of the English Church. She then insisted that all
English people return to the Roman Catholic Church. Many Protestants refused and were persecuted.
More than 300 of them, including Cranmer, were burned at the stake for heresy. The people turned
against their queen, calling her “Bloody Mary.” The people decided that England would remain free only
if it became a Protestant country. For this reason, they wanted a Protestant ruler.
 Queen Elizabeth I and the Anglican Church
Queen Mary died in 1558 without a child to succeed her. Thus, her half-sister, Elizabeth, became queen.
Elizabeth I was Protestant. With the help of Parliament, she ended the Pope’s authority in the English
Church. Elizabeth was very popular with her subjects. She worked to set up the Church in a form that
would appeal to as many people as possible. Elizabeth and Parliament decided that the Church
should be Protestant. However, the Church would keep some Catholic features. The monarch would
be head of the Church, which would use Cranmer’s prayer book and teach Protestant beliefs. The ending
result of this combination was entitled the Anglican Church.
Most of the English people were pleased with the mix of Protestant belief and Catholic practice
since many Catholic rituals remained. Those who were not pleased stayed outside the Church. Some
Protestants also did not like Elizabeth’s Church, but they did not leave it. Because these people wanted to
purify the English Church of Catholic ways, they became known as Puritans.
Queen Elizabeth I brought some stability with the creation of the Anglican Church, and her reign
was famously known as the ‘golden age’, as it had its share in adding to the glamour of the Renaissance.
However, the battle of religious beliefs continued to be at the centre of England’s most heated troubles
through many years to come.