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Religious Development Under Cromwell - Coggle Diagram
Religious Development Under Cromwell
The spread of protestant ideas
From 1529, Henry had encouraged criticism of the Pope and the English clergy. This enabled reformers to speak openly like Thomas Cromwell. This allowed them to develop ideas as well as gain influence in government and the Church
Government propaganda and the reformation
The government actively promoted the reformation.
It did this by appealing to the Bible and the early history of the Church.
Stephen Gardiner, a conservative wrote a pamphlet which stressed the necessity of a hierarchy in society, whereby the King was the ultimate ruler.
He along with others, believed that the King would support their attempts to defend the church against Protestantism.
Doctrinal reforms
In the late 30s, Cromwell aimed to reform the teachings of the Church.
He worked with Crammer to introduce some elements of Protestant beliefs.
However
They had to be very careful as Henry's own beliefs were very conservative.
Cromwell issued Ten Articles of Faith in 1536, which included some Lutheran ideas but retained strong Catholic elements. The reforms were swift and significant as they created a climate that could not be easily reversed.
Attacks on traditional practices
Injunctions were introduced. They encouraged moral conduct as well as limiting the number of holy days.
In 1538, pilgrimages and veneration of relics and images were condemned as works devised by men's fantasies -- massive step away form Catholicism.
The English Bible
The first official translation was published in 1537.
Crammer persuaded Henry to sanction this and by 1538 it was ordered that a copy should be placed in every parish Church.
The emphasis was very Protestant.
Dissolution of the monasteries
A survey was set up by Cromwell in 1535 to discover how wealthy the Church was. This gave Cromwell an accurate indication of the resources that were available.
The people who carried out the investigation found evidence of weakness and corruption.
This meant
Cromwell has enough evidence to justify the dissolution of smaller monasteries in 1536 via the Act of Parliament.
They monasteries had an income of less than £200 per annum.
It was presented as a way to preserve and improve the quality of monasteries.
However...
The scope of dissolution widened after the Pilgrimage of Grace, as many heads of religious houses had been part of the rebellion and surrendered to the Crown.
An Act in 1539 was passed to dissolve all the remaining monasteries.
By March 1540, all remaining houses were gone.
Swing back to Catholicism 1538-40
There was a slight swing back in 1538-40. This was a result of Cromwell losing influence and the Catholic Howard family gaining; England having to convivence European allies that these changes were only moderate and the passing of the Six Articles in 1539 that had largely Catholic emphasis. D
Opposition to religious change
Sir Thomas Moore
He was a high profile opponent.
He replaced Wolsey as Chancellor but fell from royal favour after he showed reluctance to support Henry's plan to marry Anne.
More refused to swear an oath to accept that Henry marriage to Catharine was void.
A trial rigged by Cromwell sealed his fate, despite him trying to incriminate himself.
More did not accept Henry as Head of the Church and was executed.
Aragonese Faction
Within the nobility and court there was a personal following for Catharine.
This consisted of a small group of nobles that supported Catharine.
The growing influence of Anne and Cromwell silenced the majority of the Aragonese faction.
However
They remained hopeful that Mary would be recognised as Henry's heir. Mary exclusion from succession in 1536 led to some members supporting the rebellion known as the Pilgrim of Grace.
Monastic Resistance
The strongest clerical resistance came from monastic orders.
There were many monks who preached against divorce.
Monks of the Carthusian order refused to accept the divorce and to declare against the Pope.
The passing of the Treason Act saw many monks silenced.
Pilgrimage of Grace 1536
The pilgrimage of Grace started in Lincolnshire. The rebellion spread into the East Riding of Yorkshire to parts of the West Riding.
Causes
Huge resentment felt about the government that was pushing for fundamental religious change too quickly.
Dissolving of monasteries meant there was a loss of charitable and educational functions.
People lost parish churches that were monastic property.
There was a growing feeling that traditional religious practices were being attacked.
Secular motives
Ordinary rebels were generally more motivated by economic grievances than their leaders.
There were many supporters of Catharine who died the same year.
Wishes to restore Princess Mary as heir.
The suppression
The rebellion was most geographically widespread and most popular.
Though the Lincolnshire Rebellion collapsed quickly when faced with the forces of the Duke of Suffolk, the northern rebels occupied Hull and York and captured Pontefract Castle.
The King sent an army north under Norfolk who was hugely outnumbered.
What did Norfolk do
He sough to diffuse the rebellion by offering pardon and was given a list of demands to share with the King.
Henry had no intention of honouring these promises but rebels did disperse.
The rebellion did not make any long lasting impact as it did not slow down the pace of religious change.