England Becomes Protestant Unit 1: The Renaissance and Reformation ( )

King Henry VIII of England Henry VIII became king in He was a devout Catholic and in 1521 he attacked Luther’s ideas in a letter. The pope gave him the title “Defender of the Faith” as a reward.

Henry VIII Wants a Son He wanted a male heir to the throne because no woman had ever successfully claimed England’s throne & he feared civil war as his father had experienced before him. He and his wife Catherine of Aragon had one daughter, Mary. In 1527 she was 42 years old and Henry was convinced she could have no more children.

Henry VIII Wants a New Queen The Catholic Church excommunicated persons who obtained divorces. Henry asked pope for an annulment on the grounds that it was never legal start with. In 1527 the pope turned him down for political reasons – the powerful Holy Roman Emperor Charles V was Catherine’s nephew!

The Reformation Parliament In 1529 Henry called Parliament into session to pass a set of laws to end the pope’s power in England. In 1533 he secretly married Anne Boleyn, who was in her 20’s. In 1534 parliament granted his request and passed the Act of Supremacy which called on the people to honor his divorce from Catherine and recognize Henry, not the pope, as head of the new Protestant Church of England.

Opposition to the Act of Supremacy Thomas More (author of Utopia) refused to take the oath and was locked in the Tower of London. In 1535 he was found guilty of treason and executed along with many monks and nuns. In 1533 Anne Boleyn gives birth to a daughter, Elizabeth and fell out of the king’s favor. Anne was charged with treason, imprisoned in the tower, and beheaded in 1536!

More Marriages for Henry VIII In 1536 he married Jane Seymour and she had a son, Edward, in 1537 and died of natural causes 2 weeks later. Henry married 3 more times, but had no more children. Each of the 3 children would have a turn to rule England after Henry’s death in 1547.

Edward VI Becomes King Edward VI became king in 1547 when he was 9 years old. He was advised by Protestants because he was so young and sickly; they added many reforms to England’s Protestant church. Edward ruled only 6 years because he died young.

“Bloody Mary” Comes to Power In 1553 Mary, Catherine of Aragon’s daughter, took the throne. She was Catholic and returned the Church of England to the pope. She faced opposition by the Protestants and had 1000’s executed before her death in That is how she got her nickname.

Queen Elizabeth I Restores Protestantism She was Anne Boleyn’s daughter and the Renaissance Queen we talked about the other day. In 1559 she had Parliament establish the Anglican Church (Church of England), which is modeled after the Catholic Church to please both moderate Protestants and Catholics, but priests could marry. She would face challenges from extreme Catholics, her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots, and Phillip II of Spain, Charles V’s brother. She was tough and ruled England until 1603!

Bell Ringer: England Becomes Protestant 1.Why did Henry VIII want a divorce from Catherine of Aragon? a. he had a girlfriend b. she was sick c. he wanted a son 2.What fate did Anne Boleyn suffer after giving birth to another daughter? a.Life in prison b.Beheaded c.Hanged d.Deported to France 3. All of the following were Henry’s children except _________. a. William b. Mary c. Edward d. Elizabeth 4. As a result of Henry VIII’s and his youngest daughter’s actions, the official religion of England today is __________. a. Roman Catholic b. Protestantism c. Judaism