The English Reformation

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Term Paper Title	The English Reformation
# of Words	917
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	3.67

The English Reformation

[Category]:

History

[Paper Title]:

The English Reformation: Religion, Politics, and Culture

[Text]:

The Protestant Reformation played an extraordinary part in European faith,
culture, and politics. Even though the Reformation began in Germany in 1517 and
spread throughout Europe very quickly, England remained Catholic for more than
15 years before crossing over to Protestantism. Henry VIII’s desire for a male
heir precipitated the Protestant Reformation in England in 1527.

In 1509 Henry married his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. She bore their
first and only child, Princess Mary. Henry’s disappointment led to his affair
with Anne Boleyn, who was a Protestant. He tried to get out of his marriage to
Catherine on several occasions. He first claimed that his marriage was invalid
due to the fact that Catherine was the widow of his brother Arthur, Prince of
Wales. Henry sent Cardinal Thomas Wosley to Rome to argue his claim. Pope
Clement VII threw out that claim because he had given Henry special dispensation
to marry Catherine. Henry then replaced Wosley with Sir Thomas More, but the
Pope’s ruling stayed the same. The Pope was deeply influenced by Charles V,
Holy Roman Emperor, the Catholic nephew of Catherine of Aragon. He would not
tolerate a divorce, and the Pope was not going to take sides against him.

With no cooperation, Henry decided to use Parliament to pressure Pope Clement
VII into annulling his marriage. Parliament passed laws that permitted Henry to
appoint bishops in his jurisdiction. He appointed Thomas Cranmer as Archbishop
of York, a friend of Anne Boleyn. In 1532 she became pregnant and Henry was
severely pressured into breaking with the Catholic Church. Because of the
situation, Parliament passed a law ending the pope’s authority over marriage
in England. Therefore, Archbishop Cranmer annulled Henry’s marriage to
Catherine, letting him marry Anne Boleyn, who bore a

daughter, Princess Elizabeth. Pope Clement VII then excommunicated Henry and
the entire nation of England. With the break in the Catholic Church, Parliament
passed the Act of Supremacy, making Henry the head of the church in England,
hence the Anglican Church.

Henry was losing interest in Anne. She never produced a male heir, so he had
her arrested and eventually beheaded for adultery and treason. Months after Anne’s
death, Henry married Jane Seymour, who bore a male heir, Edward. She died in
childbirth and Henry quickly married again. He had th...

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