A Brief History of Religion in Englad - 884 Words

Before the Reformation, England was a Roman Catholic society that was led by the Pope in Rome. Religious life followed a very traditional and structured way of life and was very much ‘deeply embedded in the whole social and mental fabric of the country’ (Russell, 1996, p. 262). Roman Catholic’s were a very visual and ritual based religion and their churches were extremely lavish in design and contained highly decorated furnishings inside (Wolffe, 2008). England’s dissent from the Catholic Church began with King Henry VIII (1491-1547). After Catherine of Aragon failed to produce a male heir, Henry demanded a divorce from her. The Pope denied Henrys request which led to Henry dissolving all ties with the Roman Catholic Church and changed the direction of religion in England. Henrys VIII motives for change were for personal gain rather than changing religious beliefs (Christianity in Britain, 2011). A law was passed in 1534 allowing Henry VIII to declare himself the head of the new Church of England, this move allowed Henry VIII to divorce Catherine and marry Anne Boleyn – the second of six wives (Steele MacDonald, 2007). Edward VI (1537-1553), Henry’s son, who was only 9 when made king, was raised as Protestant. Under Edwards VI reign (1547-1553) his uncle Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset who was a devout Protestant, was made guardian and ruled in Edwards place. Somerset together with Archbishop Cranmer began to turn England into a Protestant country (Lambert,