After his death, his successors, Edward VI, Mary I, and Elizabeth I, implemented varying religious policies that affected the separatists. Under Edward VI's Protestant rule, the separatists faced persecution, leading some to flee to the Netherlands (Continental Europe), seeking religious freedom. However, when Mary I ascended to the throne and reinstated Catholicism, the situation became even more hostile for the separatists, prompting them to continue seeking refuge abroad. With the ascension of Elizabeth I, who followed a more moderate approach, the separatists faced an atmosphere of relative tolerance.
The ongoing disagreements and pressures from the established Church led some separatists to seek a clean break from England and establish their own religious communities. This quest of religious freedom ultimately caused some separatists, like the Pilgrims, to immigrate to the New World.
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