King Henry VIII and Elizabeth I

King Henry VIII of England: An Unlikely Reformer

• In 1521, Martin Luther refused to recant his beliefs at the Diet of Worms.
• King Henry VIII responded by publishing "An Assertion of the Seven Sacraments Against Martin Luther".
• The message was that heresy would not be tolerated in England and heretics would be burned.
• The Pope rewarded Henry with the title "Defender of the Faith".

Catherine of Aragon

• Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII's first wife, also held the title "Defender of the Faith".
• She was the daughter of Isabella and Ferdinand of Spain, who completed the Reconquista and the Spanish Inquisition.
• The Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, was her nephew.
• She was very Catholic.

William Tyndale

• William Tyndale was an English scholar and Protestant who translated the Bible into English.
• In 1536, he was strangled and burned for heresy.
• However, in 1540, King Henry VIII approved the distribution of four different English translations of the Bible.

Why Henry VIII Challenged Papal Power

• Before marrying Henry, Catherine had been married to his brother, Arthur.
• Henry married Catherine after Arthur's death, requiring a special allowance from the Pope, because it went against Church law.
• The Pope didn't mind this because Catherine's family was a friend of the church.

Trouble in Paradise

• Henry and Catherine's marriage only produced a daughter, Mary.
• Henry wanted a son and heir but Catherine could not provide one.
• Henry wanted to divorce Catherine to marry someone else.
• Divorce goes against church teachings, so this was a problem.

Anne Boleyn

• Anne Boleyn caught the King's eye, but refused to have an affair with him, so Henry had to marry her.
• The problem was that his ring was already on Catherine's finger.
• Anne Boleyn gave Henry "The Obedience of a Christian Man" by William Tyndale.
• The book argued that the king's law is God's law and that the Bishop of Rome had no authority in England.

The Act of Supremacy

• Henry VIII had Parliament issue The Act of Supremacy.
• He enlisted Thomas Cranmer to help him pass it.
• The Act of Supremacy made the King the supreme head of the Church of England which was also called Anglicans Ecclesia.
• He could correct heresies and make changes to please God and preserve peace.

The English Reformation

• The Act of Supremacy named Henry and his heirs the head of the State and the new Anglican Church (The Church of England), beginning the English Reformation.
• Sir Thomas More and Cardinal Wolsey refused to acknowledge the Act of Supremacy and were charged with treason.
• More was executed.

Anglican Church Beliefs

• The Anglican Church was similar to Roman Catholicism.
• They believed in the presence of Christ in the Eucharist, priests could not marry, vows of chastity should be observed, private masses and confession should be retained.
• Some argue that Henry VIII did start another branch of Protestantism by creating the Anglican Church, since he made himself the head, thereby rejecting the Pope.
• Others argue that Anglican religious practice was basically the same as Roman Catholicism, since they still needed sacraments, priests still couldn’t marry and confession was still necessary.

Henry Marries Anne Boleyn

• Thomas Cranmer became the Archbishop of Canterbury and granted Henry a divorce.
• Catherine of Aragon and her daughter Mary were sent away, and Henry married Anne Boleyn.

Poor Anne

• Like Catherine, Anne failed to give Henry a son, only having one daughter, Elizabeth.
• Henry had Anne executed for treason, convinced she was having an affair (with her brother), though there was no evidence.

Six Wives of Henry VIII

• Henry married Jane Seymour 11 days after Anne Boleyn's execution.
• She birthed a son named Edward but died soon after.
• Henry married Anne of Cleves for alliances but divorced her immediately because he was repulsed by her, calling her the "Flanders Mare."
• Henry fell in love with Catherine Howard, Anne Boleyn's cousin, but she had an affair and was executed for treason.
• Henry then married Katherine Parr, who took care of him while he was sick.
• After his death, she immediately married another man.

Summary of Henry VIII

• Was Henry VIII good for England?
• What would the #MeToo movement think of him?

Qualities of Women Rulers

• What qualities do women need to be successful rulers?
• Are these qualities different from those that men need?

The Tudors: Succession

• Before Henry VIII died, he established a line of succession: Edward VI, Mary I, Elizabeth I.

King Edward VI (1537-1553)

• Edward VI, son of Henry and Jane Seymour, was the first English monarch raised Protestant.
• He came to the throne at 10 and died by 16.
• He died with no heir.

Thomas Cranmer and The Book of Common Prayer

• Edward VI had Thomas Cranmer write The English Book of Common Prayer, a collection of Anglican prayers to replace Catholic prayers.
• Cranmer also moved the Anglican Church towards more Protestant beliefs.

Mary I (1516-1558)

• Henry VIII’s daughter by Catherine of Aragon, Mary Tudor, became Queen of England.
• She was raised Catholic.
• She reconciled England with Rome and outlawed The Church of England.

Mary and Protestants

• Queen Mary I promised to allow Protestants to practice their faith, but returned Church lands seized under her father and brother.
• Only Catholics could have power during her reign.

Bloody Mary

• Mary had 280 Protestant dissenters burned at the stake.

The Burning of Thomas Cranmer

• Thomas Cranmer was a target because:
  • He helped Henry divorce her mother.
  • He educated Edward VI in Protestantism.
  • He wrote The English Book of Common Prayer.

Mary Dies with no Heir

• Mary did not want her half-sister Elizabeth to become Queen because she was Protestant, but her advisors refused to have Elizabeth killed.
• The people of England welcomed Elizabeth.

Queen Elizabeth

• Elizabeth became queen at 25.
• Her coronation parade suggested her intent to manage the rift between Protestants and Catholics.

Problems Facing Elizabeth

• Religious tension and violence between Protestants and Catholics.
• Foreign powers tried to kill her because they felt she was illegitimate and wanted to control England (especially Spain).
• Spain, a Catholic nation, wanted to eliminate a Protestant queen and supported The Inquisition.

The Elizabethan Settlement

• The Anglican Church kept Catholic rituals and hierarchy, but the monarch remained head of the church.
• The Book of Common Prayer (Protestant doctrine) was allowed and sermons were in English.
• This reversed what Queen Mary had imposed.

Challenges to Elizabeth's Rule

• There was immense pressure for her to marry so a man would help rule and there would be an heir.

Elizabeth: The Virgin Queen

• She refused to marry because she was afraid that any potential husband would threaten her power.
• Her (perceived) lack of sexuality became a symbol of power (she doesn’t need a man!).

Mary Queen of Scots

• Her cousin, Mary, a French Catholic, ruled Scotland.
• Elizabeth feared her ambitions for the throne of England.
• Elizabeth captured Mary.
• After a Catholic invasion from Scotland, Mary Queen of Scots was executed.

The Spanish Armada

• Spain wanted to overthrow Elizabeth.
• Elizabeth told her explorers they could pirate Spanish ships, so Spain retaliated.
• Spain sent an armada of war ships to England in 1588.

Queen Elizabeth I's Speech to the English Troops at Tilbury, 1588

• Elizabeth used religion as a unifying force.
• She used a tone that was loving and genuine.
• She showed faith in her soldiers and people, willing to fight alongside them.
• She acknowledged her own weaknesses and her position as royalty without putting them down.
• She demonstrated leadership.
• She invoked the nation of England.

Defeat of the Spanish Armada

• Elizabeth’s defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 solidifies her power and England’s dominance in Europe.
• England was now secure in its Protestantism.

The Elizabethan Era

• The Elizabethan era was a golden age.

Elizabeth Summarized

• Elizabeth mainly used Parliament to grant her taxes.
• Elizabeth closed (prorogued) Parliament at any time, Parliament only met 13 times during her reign, Elizabeth made sure her Privy Councillors sat in Parliament to control proceedings.

Legacy:

• Shakespeare wrote for her.
• She established colonies in North America.
• Virginia is named after her cult-like status as “The Virgin Queen.”

Death

• Elizabeth died on March 24, 1603, at Richmond Palace.

Summary Questions

• Why was Elizabeth considered to be a successful monarch?
• She ruled for 45 years.