The Reformation by 1536

The Reformation Parliament

Change and continuity in Church organisation:There was little to no change in this area, with the Episcopal System of Authority being kept. The biggest organisational change was the redirection of funds previously going to Rome given to the King to fund his invasion of France. Cromwell enacted the Valor Ecclesiasticus to assess the wealth of the Church (suggested in this was the Dissolution of the Monasteries)

Degree of change and continuity in faith and belief: Despite Cromwell being an evangelical, he used his position as Vice-gerent to prevent calls of major change from Protestants and fellow evangelicals, instead reinforcing the power of Henry. The Order of the Preachers published in 1535 is an example of the restriction on changes. However, in 1536 Cromwell did enact change through a series of injunctions; one of these required every parish to have a Bible in English, allowing even the laity to read the Word of God

Political and doctrinal position of the Church: Henry VIII was now the confirmed leader of the English Church and he was determined to reform certain areas of the Church's doctrine, liturgy, and ceremonies, although this was not always done consistently. Overall, by 1536 few changes had really been made in this area apart from the reduced authority of the Pope

A new system of government had been established which meant that Parliament gave legitimacy to the King, not the Church, and as a result of this the King became most powerful when "in Parliament"

Pressures on the papacy

Legislation leading to the establishment of the Royal Supremacy

MPs and their grievances

Act for the Restraint of Appeals (1533): Forbade all appeals to the Pope in Rome for religious or other matters, making the King the final authority in all matters in England and Wales

Act forbidding papal dispensation and Payment of Peter's Pence (1534): Put all ecclesiastical powers in the hands of the King and restricted the right for Priests to hold more than one Parish

First Act of Succession (1534):* Made Henry and Catherine's marriage void and made Mary illegitimate. Also made it treason to deny the Act and required everyone to swear an oath for it (which More and Fisher refused to do and were executed for in 1535)

Act of Supremacy (1534): Stated that Henry ought to be the Supreme Head of the Church and gave him rights to reflect this, such as being able to collect first fruits and tenths, and it became treasonous to call the King a heretic. This was furthered in 1535 when he added the title "Supreme Head of the Church" to his name

Despite the Submission of the Clergy and the Supplication against the Ordinaries the Pope had not changed his mind. Henry only seemed to have his second option left. Matters were not helped by the Archbishop of Canterbury, William Warham, who maintained the Pope's line and refused to annul the marriage. when Warham died in 1532 Henry was able to replace him with his own man, Thomas Cranmer in 1533, who secretly married Henry and Anne in 1533

Act to remove the Annates (1532): This removed the chief source of revenue that Rome got from England, and although not a large sum, the payment had been criticised in Parliament. However, the Act was the first that did not receive full support in Parliament

Supplication against the Ordinaries (1532): This was a petition made by the MPs that complained that the clergy had excessive powers and control; some of those listed included mortuary fees, the number of Holy Days, and the way the Church gained money

Act for the Submission of the Clergy (1532): Formalised the previous understanding between the king and clergy

Henry VIII had two ways of pressuring the papcy in order to gain an annulment: weakening the Church so that they would not have the will to refuse (Submission of the Clergy) or taking legal control of the Church and removing the authority of the Pope. He could do this by using the anti-clericalism created by Wolsey and the Reformation Parliament

Many MPs were also lawyers, so the practice of Church Courts was also heavily criticised; it was thought that instead of being heard in a Church court many cases should be heard by the King's court (this would increase the amount of work that lawyers had)

Cardinal Wolsey faced the full brunt of the MPs anger as he embodied the problems with the Church; he was considered arrogant, held many fine palaces such as Hampton Court and committed simony, nepotism and pluralism as well as being the father of at least one child. For these reasons the MPs pushed for an Act of Attainder to be passed against Wolsey

It must be noted that initial criticisms were not made against doctrine or liturgy, because Henry was still hoping to convince the Pope to give him an annulment in 1529

It was during this time that Thomas Cromwell rose to power as he masterminded the MPs grievances that led to the Break with Rome