Religious settlement Flashcards
What was the middle way?
Elizabeth made England more Protestant, however she still allowed some level of tolerance for Catholics in order to gain support from both sides
Why did she choose the middle way?
To avoid religious divide between people, following previous reigns
To decrease the chance of Catholic takeovers
To increase her popularity to strengthen her position as monarch
What was the Act of Uniformity?
Protestant Prayer book used in all churches
Bible and church services in English not Latin
Transubstantiation removed
Ornaments and deco still allowed in churches (Catholic)
Clergy could marry and had to wear vestments
Had to attend church on Sunday, fined if not
What was the Act of Supremacy?
Elizabeth made head of the Church not Pope
Important judges had to take oath of Supremacy (declaring them loyal), if refused 3 times then executed
Bishops govern the church
Marian Heresy laws repealed
Royal injunctions
Enforced new acts Ordered clergy to: Condemn some Catholic practises Fine people for not attending church Wear vestments Practise uniformity at church Teach royal supremacy
Royal visitations
152 commissioners were appointed to tour the country and make clergy take Oath of Supremacy. Judges whether Acts were being practised.
Reactions to religious settlement in England
Most people accepted this
Only 250 out of 9000 priests refused to accept the
changes and left
Reactions were muted and fines were not
strictly enforced
Few Catholic plots occurred only later in the 70s and 80s following Mary’s arrival
Reactions to religious settlement abroad
The reaction was limited at the beginning
France was distracted by a civil war.
King Phillip II of Spain initially wanted friendship
with England.
The Pope was not critical as hoped changes
would be reversed overtime.
But by 1570’s and 1580’s attitudes had
hardened and both Spain and the Pope were involved in plots
