RELIGION

Canterbury Tales- William Gaxton as editor*

1485 is an important date to remember bc its the end of the middle ages in the
history in Brit and its also the beginning, so to say, Early Modern Times. 1485 battle
between Henry Tudor n Richard the 3d Bosworth. Henry victorious, put an end to the
war of the Roses. He suppressed the half independent powers n private armies of
the barons. Duke of Ethel still has a private army today (Scotland)
The feudal system was one in which the gr8 landlords swore allegiance to the King
and their tenants swore allegiance to them and to their local legislation, which
means that bc of this feudal system, the medieval King could not command his
subjects directly; had to go through laws first.
With Henry the 7th this power diminished. His son and successor, Henry 8 th took over
after his brothers death and established central administration throughout the land
and married the widow of his brother, Catherine of Aragon. Henry the 8 th decided to
break away from the Church of Rome simply because the Pope refused to grant him
a divorce. The pope claimed authority over all Christians but Henry the 8 th
established a Church in England which claimed to be Roman Catholic in doctrine but
w/ authority from the King and not from the Pope. Time of the Reformation, all over
Europe and particularly, northern Europe and partly, England. Reformers were called
sacramentaries, today known as protestants. In France, uguenon. The protestants
read the Bible for themselves and interpreted it by themselves, not in Latin. From
the very beginning, there were several protestant confessions, with three main
branches
Lutherans- M Lutherans teachings
Jean Kalvins teachings- Reformed Protestants
Anglican Communion
From H the 8th onwards, the church in England gradually became the Church of
England, strictly protestant. Not as much as in Scotland though. In Scott, the
Presbyterian Kirk which also follows Kalvins teachings, is a radical protestant
church was founded by a certain Knox.
A part of the land remained roman catholic. The scotts who remained catholic and
anti-english were on the celtic speaking part of Scotland, in the Highlands.
There were attempts to impose Protestantism and English laws in Ireland, but this
usually led to rebellions. Many of the original settlers, the Normans, remained
catholic and so the joined the native Irish rebels.
H the 8ths reign started in 1509 and he died in 1547. The next person on the throne
of England was Edward the 6th, he was 9 yrs old. He died in 1553 but his reign was a
major turning point in British history bc it is during his reign that the Church of
England became officially established as a Protestant Church thanks to the effort of
the archbishop of Canterbury. Narrow escape under henry the 8 th bc he was
recognized as a protestant bc henry didnt like the protestants anymore. Founder of

a book, whose existence marks the birth of the Church of England The Book of
Common Prayer under Ed the 6th.
Succeeded by half sister, Mary Tudor, 1553. Remained in power for 5 yrs. Mary was
a militant devote of Roman Catholic. Besides, she came to the throne of England
with Spanish support. Under her reign, many protestants were persecuted and
burned at the stake as heretics. Some managed to escape abroad in exile.
She died childless in 1558 and her half-sister came to the throne, Elisabeth the 1 st.
she inherited the throne and the was a moderate protestant. The church became
definitely protestant under her and the style became known as Anglicanism. So long
as people conformed in behavior by church attendance, the Queen wanted no
questions asked about what they really believed. She managed to keep a via media.
Her popularity rose and created a form of patriotism. 588 defeat of the Spanish
armada would fuel the English pride. The Spanish armada was a desperate attempt
of the Spanish king to conquer England and restore the catholic faith.
The Queen of Scotland, Mary Stuart, a catholic and Scotland ultimately became
ultimately protestant so she fled down south to England, where her presence was
also unwelcomed. She could become heir to the throne of England, that was a
possibility somehow, so the English didnt want that. All that boils down to her
execution in 1587 in London, accused of treason and plotting against Elisabeth. M
Stewart became a popular legend in Scotland, a beautiful martyr Queen.
Nowadays, the Elizabethan period 1558-1603 is known for the development of
English language and theatre. Commerce: English seamen and privateers were
affirmed and feared throughout the world. Queen Elisabeth never married and had
no children and thus praised by poets as Gloriana or Virgin Queen.
She left no heir. the throne passed to her closest relative, James Stewart, the very
son of the executed queen, which had been brought up protestant. Two numbers
attached to his name, he was King of Scotland and then King of England, James the
6th of Scotland and James the 1st of England. From 1603 to 1625. Wars and conflicts
w England had been frequent, but England had never been able to occupy Scotland
permanently. These English endeavors probably created a response from the scotts,
in a form of patriotism.
The English were also intensely patriotic.
Scotts were not popular in England and their culture, their accent and their different
kind of language has been mocked in course of time and yet James the 6 th of
Scotland took the throne of England. He was accepted on the throne probably to
avoid the risk of civil war. Were he to be denied his inheritance, people wondered
whose property would be safe. A foreign ruler was acceptable if chosen by
parliament. to keep the kings peace.
James the 1st of EN and 6th of ST was his official title. Scotland remained an
independent kingdom with its own parliament and system of law. James though, for
his part, he wished to create a United Kingdom but the parliament would have none
of it. That eventually happened in 1707.
Most of the time James remained in England and during his absence in Scotland
there was a council of regency which governed Scotland.

A word ab Ireland
Keyword: plantation.
Catholic, overwhelmingly. Catholics excluded from Parliament. England began
invasions in 1170. Over the next 400 years, England succeeded only in occupying
permanently a little patch of land around Dublin. This place is called the Pale.
There were English men in Ireland and they married irish women and by the 16 th
century the irish men of English origin had adopted irish customs and spoke Gaelic,
and thus remained roman catholic.
1598 there was a rebellion, the leaders of which escaped capture and fled to Spain
Italy of France. This episode in Irish history is called the Flight of the Earls.
The lands were almost empty. James then decided on a policy of plantation, so to
say, colonization by force in Northern Ireland, Ulster. The idea was not simply to rule
over pleb catholic irish, but to replace them by Englishmen/scotts.
Commercial companies in London were given the land of dispossessed Irish catholic
rebels. Protestant settlers poured in and most of them came from Scotland. This
brought violence and trouble to Ireland for a long time.