Civi séance 5
Elizabeth was raised a Protestant Under Mary, she retained an English Bible, but accepted the Latin liturgy
Later, she kept a silver crucifix and candles and employed Catholic musicians
2 April 1559: The Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis signed with France
France recognized Elizabeth as the rightful Queen of England
Religious changes in England (1534-1563)
1534-1539: Away from Rome
1540-1547: Away from Luther
1547-1553: Towards Calvinism
1553-1558: Back to Catholicism
1558-1563: Towards Anglicanism
Elizabethan Privy Council
Two Protestant tendencies in the Privy Council:
moderate: Cambridge circle around William Cecil
radical: Marian exiles from Geneva, Zurich, Strasbourg,Frankfurt and Basel
The Religious Settlement: Supremacy
April 1559: second Act of Supremacy
- the Queen was named ‘supreme governor’ of the Church
- royal control over religion was restored “by the authority of this present Parliament”.
Followed by the Oath of Supremacy for whoever wished to hold a public or ecclesiastical office
All but one Marian bishops resigned Matthew Parker
17 out of 25 new bishops were radical protestants opposed to episcopacy
(= threefold order of bishops, priests and deacons) wished to promote a presbyterian church
Matthew Parker, who had remained in England under Mary, appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
The Religious Settlement: Uniformity
April 1559: Act of Uniformity
- all subjects must conform to the established religion
- service compulsory on Sundays and holy days (otherwise a fine of one shilling (12d)
new offence of recusancy (refusal to attend service)
The service was based on the Second Book of Common Prayer of 1552
- closer to Lutheran position than Calvinist one
- communion modified to make ambiguous and open to interpretation (either true presence or memorial function)
- use of “ornaments of the Church and of ministers thereof”
July 1559: royal injunctions to be enforced by teams of royal commissioners
church interiors were to be stripped of all marks of Catholic worship: images, statues of the Virgin or of the saints, wall-paintings, candlesticks, and the altars
Thirty Nine Articles
Jan. 1563: Parker summoned a Convocation of the Church to revise the 42 articles (1553)
39 articles retained
article 29 removed to avoid offending Catholics: “Of the wicked which eat not the
body of Christ in the use of the Lord ’s Supper” predestination affirmed but double 1563 predestination left ambiguous article 35 imposed the Book of
Homilies (1547 expanded 1563)
Radical Protestants’ Reservations
- episcopacy (=ecclesiastical hierarchy) had no scriptural justification
- vestments (alb, cope and surplice) should not be an article of faith
- organs should be removed
- holy days (except Sundays) and celebration of Saints’ days should be suppressed
- no kneeling during communion cope
- no sign of the cross in baptism alb surplice
These demands were rejected by 59 votes to 58. The settlement was final.
The Rise of the Puritans
Most radical protestants => Calvinists from Geneva
Calvin’s theology:
• double predestination (God chooses some to be saved and some to be damned)
• presbyterian organisation
• salvation by faith alone (sola fide)
• truth in the Bible only (sola Scriptura).
referred to themselves as ‘the godly’ but were called ‘puritans’ because they wanted to purify the Church.
ex: “the Puritans of our country, … the zealous gospellers of Geneva.”
(T. Stapleton, Fortresse of Faith, 1565)
Matthew Parker and the Vestments Controversy
1565: Parker published the Book of Advertisements – a list of requirements for the clergy
34 London ministers refused to wear the vestments and were suspended;
14 were dismissed – they organised an underground church
1567: investigation led by the Bishop of London, Edmund Grindal, but no action was taken
1570: Thomas Cartwright questioned Royal supremacy and promoted presbyterianism
1571: Subscription Act required all clergy to subscribe to the 39 Articles
1573: Royal proclamation added that anyone defaming the Book of Common Prayer would be imprisoned
Edmund Grindal and the Crisis of Prophesying
1575: Edmund Grindal was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Grindal kept a blind eye on prophesying (inspired by Zwingli’s practice in Zurich) => meetings in groups to discuss Biblical passages
December 1576: Elizabeth ordered Grindal to stop prophesyings, but he refused arguing that he had to obey God before the Queen
1577: Grindal was suspended and put on house arrest
John Whitgift and the Martin Marprelate tracts
1583: John Whitgift was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
He focused on improving the educational standards of the clergy and on fighting pluralism
He started a ruthless campaign of conformity=> angered Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester
October 1586: The puritan members of the Commons petitioned for the establishment of a presbyterian system
Peter Wentworth spoke in favour of the freedom of speech, but was imprisoned on the Queen’s order
1588: series of tracts signed Martin Marprelate “swinish rabble”
Investigation revealed an underground presbyterian “petty antichrists” network “enemies of the February 1593: Act Against Seditious sectaries gospel” => exile for those who would not attend church
Elizabeth’s religious policy
At first, Elizabeth proposed a via media between Catholicism and Protestantism: ‘I shall open no windows into my subjects’ souls’. Then she took a harder line when Puritans questioned the biblical foundation of episcopacy and royal supremacy.
The repression also concerned the Catholics who showed loyalty to Rome. As her reign continued, the repression of the two forms of Christianity present in the realm intensified.