ELIZABETH I RELIGION Flashcards
WHO were Anglicans?
The Protestant majority who accepted the Elizabethan religious settlement
WHAT was the state of religion in 1563?
Broadly positive, however there were some in the Church who believed it hadn’t been reformed enough (growth of Puritanism), and Catholics found it difficult to practise their faith in public
WHAT did Puritans believe in?
The eradication of ‘popish superstitions’ and further reform of the Church
WHAT was the Vestiarian Controversy?
An incident where several figures in the Church decided they couldn’t obey the rules on clerical dress from the Act of Uniformity.
WHEN was the Vestiarian Controversy?
The early 1560s (after the Act of Uniformity)
HOW did Elizabeth respond to the Vestiarian Controversy?
- She sacked key figures from their positions if they refused to wear required vestments
- Archbishop Parker’s ‘Advertisements’ (1566) confirmed uniformity of sacraments and dress
WHEN were the ‘Advertisements’ issued?
1566
WHAT were the ‘Advertisements’?
Issued by Archbishop Parker, confirming uniformity of sacraments and dress, dealing with the Vestiarian Controversy
WHO were Presbytarians?
A group of Puritans who believed that the Church of England should be reformed further. They believed in a non-heirarchical structure for the Church, and the abolition of bishops.
WHAT were the ‘Admonitions’?
Presbytarian pamphlets, criticising the Elizabethan Church of England.
* The first attacked the Book of Common Prayer and called for the abolition of bishops
* The other described the Presbytarian system of Church government
WHO were two opposing figures during the Presbytarian movement under Elizabeth?
1) Cartwright (Cambridge academic), who believed the 1559 settlement should be modified
2) Whitgift (Vice Chancellor of Cambridge, and later Archbishop of Canterbury), who believed that the Presbytarians were destructive
WHAT high-ranking support did the Presbytarians have?
The Earl of Leicester and Burghley both defended Presbytarian clergymen. However, both Presbytarian attempts to make change with Parliament failed.
WHAT were Whitgift’s Three Articles?
Attacked Presbytarians, saying everyone must:
1) Acknowledge royal supremacy
2) Accept the Prayer Book as God’s Word (later changed to just acceptance of it)
3) Acceptance of the Thirty Nine Articles
WHY did Whitgifts Three Articles have to be changed?
Many in the Church (not just Presbytarians) thought some aspects of the Prayer Book lacked scriptural justification, not believing it was God’s word. The articles were changed from accepting the book as God’s word to just accepting it.
HOW MUCH of a threat were the Presbytarians?
- Geographically narrow (only the South East: London, Essex and Cambridge university)
- Declined after the 1580s as most didn’t want to break from the Church
- However, in the 1580s, it did have some high ranking support (e.g. Leicester and Cecil)
WHO were the Separatists?
A small, extremist Puritan sect which wanted to separate entirely from the established Church.
WHAT did the Separatists critique the Church of England for?
- They believed it was incapable of reforming itself enough to remove all ‘popish’ (Catholic) practices
- They opposed Elizabeth as Supreme Governer
WHO were some key Separatists?
- Robert Brown, a leader in Norwich who went into exile in the Netherlands
- Barrow and Greenwood who led small Separatist movements in London
WHAT was the Act Against Seditious Sectaries?
A law passed in 1593 to attack religious sects that opposed the government (Separatists, primarily). It led to the execution of key Separatist leaders Barrow and Greenwood.
WHEN was the Act Against Seditious Sectaries passed?
1593
HOW did the government respond to the Separatist movement?
- Passed the Act Against Seditious Sectaries in 1593
- Had very harsh measures for such a numerically insignificant movement
HOW MUCH of a threat was the Separatist movement?
Very small. They had extremely limited numbers, and Elizabeth’s harsh measures ultimately destroyed the movement. However Robert Brown, a key leader, did have some protection as he was a relative of Burghley
WHAT was the difference between the Presbytarians and the Separatists?
The Presbytarians wanted to work WITH the established Church of England while the Separatists wanted to separate entirely from it.
WHAT influenced the decline of Puritanism?
- The death of political supporters of Puritanism (Leicester, Mildmay and Walsignham)
- Reduced Catholic threat after the defeat of the Spanish Armada
- Decline of Presbytarianism and Separatism meant less radical/institutional forms of Puritanism could be more easily accepted
HOW were Catholics treated at the start of Elizabeth’s reign?
- Most English Catholics were ‘church papists’ (outwardly conformed)
- Some Catholics went into exile
- Some became private chaplains to Catholic nobles.
- Official law was directed mostly against Catholic images
- Laws against recusancy were rarely enforced
WHAT was a ‘church papist’?
A Catholic who outwardly conformed and obeyed the law, attending Anglican services
WHEN did Elizabeth’s response to practicing Catholics change?
- After the Northern rebellion (1569)
- And, after the Pope had excommunicated her in 1570, making English Catholics pick between their loyalty to the Queen or their religion
WHAT was the Act to Retain the Queen’s Majesty’s Subjects in their Due Obedience?
A penal law against Catholics:
* Non-allegiance to the Queen or Church of England was treasonous
* Harsher fines for saying mass or not attending church
* Some higher profile priests were executed, but laity less so
WHEN was the Act to Retain the Queen’s Majesty’s Subjects in their Due Obedience passed?
1581
WHAT was the Act Against Jesuits and Seminary Priests?
A penal law against Catholics which made it treasonable for priests ordained under the pope’s authority to enter England (making courts more able to convict)
WHEN was the Act Against Jesuits and Seminary Priests passed?
1585
HOW MANY Catholic priests were executed from 1586 to 1603?
123
WHAT were the two penal laws against Catholics passed under Elizabeth?
1) The 1581 Act to Retain the Queen’s Majesty’s Subjects in their Due Obedience
2) The 1585 Act Against Jesuits and Seminary Priests
WHAT was recusancy?
Not attending Church services
HOW MUCH was the fine for recusancy?
- £20 per month from 1581
- By 1587, refusal to pay the fine meant that a large portion of their estate was seized by the Exchequer.
WHAT was the ‘Bond of Association’?
An oath, drafted by Burghley and Walsingham, where those who took it were required to execute summarily (murder) anyone who attempted to usurp the Crown or make an attempt on Elizabeth’s life
WHEN was the ‘Bond of Association’ made?
1584, as a response to the Throckmorton Plot
WHAT was a ‘seminary priest’?
A Catholic priest who had been trained in the Spanish Netherlands and sent to England to keep Catholicism alive and convert people.
WHO were Jesuits/the Society of Jesus?
A Catholic sect, who were highly intelligent and dedicated to the restoration of Catholicism. They were sent to England from 1580 onwards
WHAT were the limits of Catholic resistance under Elizabeth?
- Limited to the gentry and aristocratic elite. Catholicism became more of a ‘country house’ religion.
- Less effot put into conversion
- Divides among priests over leadership
- Focus on the south-east, and not the north where the Catholic population was larger.
