A Survey of Anglican History

Henry VIII (28 June 1491 – 28 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. After the Pope refused to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, Henry passed legislation that severed England and Ireland from the Roman Catholic Church and established the monarch as Supreme Head of the Church of England, initiating the English Reformation. He subsequently married five more times; two marriages were annulled, and two wives were executed. Henry was born in Greenwich as the second son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. His elder brother, Arthur, Prince of Wales, was heir apparent until he died in 1502, after which Henry succeeded him. Originally intended for an ecclesiastical career, he instead received an education suited to kingship. Of his six siblings, only Margaret and Mary survived into adulthood. Henry brought radical changes to the Constitution of England, expanding royal power and ushering in the theory of the divine right of kings in opposition to papal supremacy. He frequently used charges of treason and heresy to quell dissent, and those accused were often executed without a formal trial using bills of attainder. He achieved many of his political aims through his chief ministers, some of whom were banished or executed when they fell out of his favour. Thomas Wolsey, Thomas More, Thomas Cromwell, and Thomas Cranmer all figured prominently in his administration. Henry was an extravagant spender, using proceeds from the dissolution of the monasteries and acts of the Reformation Parliament. He converted money that was formerly paid to Rome into royal revenue. Despite the money from these sources, he was often on the verge of financial ruin due to personal extravagance and the costs of his largely unproductive wars with France and Scotland. He founded the Royal Navy, oversaw the annexation of Wales to England with the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542, and was the first English monarch to rule as King of Ireland following the Crown of Ireland Act 1542. Henry's contemporaries considered him an attractive, educated, and accomplished king. He has been described as "one of the most charismatic rulers to sit on the English throne" and his reign described as the "most important" in English history. He was an author and composer. As he aged, he became severely overweight and his health suffered, and he was frequently characterised in his later life as a lustful, egotistical, paranoid, and tyrannical monarch. He longed for a son and heir, which he finally received from his third marriage to Jane Seymour. Jane's son succeeded Henry as Edward VI. Nonetheless, his daughters by his first and second wives acceded to the throne in turn as Mary I and Elizabeth I. Episode artwork: Artist: After Hans Holbein the Younger. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_VIII), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

Lollardy was a proto-Protestant Christian religious movement that was active in England from the mid-14th century until the 16th-century English Reformation. It was initially led by John Wycliffe, a Catholic theologian who was later dismissed from the University of Oxford in 1381 for heresy. The Lollards' demands were primarily for reform of Western Christianity. They formulated their beliefs in the Twelve Conclusions of the Lollards. Episode artwork: Artist: William Frederick Yeames, 1835-1918. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lollardy), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

John Wycliffe (; also spelled Wyclif, Wickliffe, Wicklyf etc.; c. 1328 – 31 December 1384) was an English scholastic philosopher, Christian reformer, Catholic priest, and a theology professor at the University of Oxford. Wycliffe is traditionally believed to have advocated for or made a vernacular translation of the Vulgate Bible into Middle English, though more recent scholarship has minimised the extent of his advocacy or involvement for lack of direct contemporary evidence. He became an influential dissident within the Catholic priesthood during the 14th century and his ideas are often considered an important predecessor to Protestantism. His political-theological theory of dominion meant that the church was not allowed to own property or have ecclesiastic courts, and men in mortal sin were not entitled to exercise authority in the church or state, nor to own property. Wycliffe insisted on the radical poverty of all clergy. Wycliffe has been characterised as the "evening star" of scholasticism and as the "morning star" or stella matutina of the English Reformation. Certain of Wycliffe's later followers, derogatorily called Lollards by their orthodox contemporaries in the 15th and 16th centuries, adopted a number of the beliefs attributed to Wycliffe such as theological virtues, predestination, iconoclasm, and the notion of caesaropapism, with some questioning the veneration of saints, the sacraments, requiem masses, transubstantiation, monasticism, and the legitimacy or role of the Papacy. Wycliffe's writings in Latin greatly influenced the philosophy and teaching of the Czech reformer Jan Hus (c. 1369–1415). Episode artwork: Artist: Thomas Kirkby. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wycliffe), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

The Western Schism, also known as the Great Divide, the Great Occidental Schism, the Schism of 1378, or the Great Western Schism (Latin: Magnum schisma occidentale, Ecclesiae occidentalis schisma), was a split within the Catholic Church lasting from 20 September 1378 to 11 November 1417, in which bishops residing in Rome and Avignon simultaneously claimed to be the true pope, and were eventually joined by a line of Pisan claimants in 1409. The event was driven by international rivalries, personalities and political allegiances, with the Avignon Papacy in particular being closely tied to the French monarchy. The papacy had resided in Avignon since 1309, but Pope Gregory XI returned to Rome in 1377. The Catholic Church split in September 1378, when, following Gregory XI's death and Urban VI's subsequent election, a group of French cardinals declared his election invalid due to intimidation and violence and, in the presence of three Italian cardinals, elected Clement VII, who claimed to be the true pope. As Roman claimant, Urban VI was succeeded by Boniface IX, Innocent VII and Gregory XII. Clement VII was succeeded as Avignon claimant by Benedict XIII. Following several attempts at reconciliation, the Council of Pisa (1409) declared that both Gregory XII and Benedict XIII were heretical and schismatic, and elected another pope, Alexander V. The schism was finally resolved when Alexander V's successor as Pisan claimant, Antipope John XXIII, called the Council of Constance (1414–1418). The Council arranged for the renunciation of both Roman pope Gregory XII and Pisan antipope John XXIII. The Avignon antipope Benedict XIII was excommunicated, while Pope Martin V was elected and reigned from Rome. The split is sometimes referred to as the 'Great Schism', although this term is usually reserved for the East–West Schism of 1054 between the churches remaining in communion with the See of Rome and those remaining with the See of Constantinople. Episode artwork: Artist: Unknown. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western%20Schism), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

The Avignon Papacy was the period from 1309 to 1376 during which seven successive popes resided in Avignon (at the time within the Kingdom of Arles, part of the Holy Roman Empire, now part of France) rather than in Rome. The situation arose from the conflict between the papacy and the French crown, culminating in the death of Pope Boniface VIII after his arrest and maltreatment by agents of ... Episode artwork: Artist: Jean-Marc Rosier (www.rosier.pro). License: CC BY-SA 3.0. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avignon_Papacy), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

Thomas Becket , also known as Saint Thomas of Canterbury, Thomas of London and later Thomas à Becket who lived from 1119 to 1170, was an English cleric and statesman who served as Lord Chancellor from 1155 to 1162, and then as Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his death in 1170. He is known for his conflict with King Henry II over the rights and privileges of the Church and was murdered ... Episode artwork: Artist: Unknown Miniaturist, English (active 1170s in Cirencester). License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Becket), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

Anselm of Canterbury , who lived from 1033 to 1109,, also known as Anselm of Aosta after his birthplace and Anselm of Bec after his monastery, was an Italian Benedictine monk, abbot, philosopher, and theologian of the Catholic Church, who served as Archbishop of Canterbury from 1093 to 1109. As Archbishop of Canterbury, he defended the church's interests in England amid the Investiture Contro... Episode artwork: Artist: Unknown. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anselm_of_Canterbury), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

Lanfrank , born around 1010 and died 24 May 1089, was an Italian-born English churchman, monk and scholar. Born in Italy, he moved to Normandy to become a Benedictine monk at Bec. He served successively as prior of Bec Abbey and abbot of Saint Stephen's Abbey in Caen, Normandy and then as Archbishop of Canterbury in England, following its conquest by William the Conqueror. He is also variously... Episode artwork: Artist: Ealdgyth. License: CC BY-SA 3.0. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lanfranc), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

The Norman Conquest of England (or the Conquest) was an 11th-century invasion by an army made up of thousands of Norman, French, Flemish, and Breton troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conqueror. William's claim to the English throne derived from his familial relationship with the childless Anglo-Saxon king Edward the Confessor who may have encouraged William's hop... Episode artwork: Artist: Unknown. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Conquest), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

The English Benedictine Reform or Monastic Reform of the English church in the late tenth century was a religious and intellectual movement in the later Anglo-Saxon period. In the mid-tenth century almost all monasteries were staffed by secular clergy who were often married. The reformers sought to replace them with celibate contemplative monks following the Rule of Saint Benedict. The movement... Episode artwork: Artist: Unknown. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Benedictine_Reform), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

Viking activity in the British Isles occurred during the Early Middle Ages, the 8th to the 11th centuries , when Scandinavians travelled to the British Isles to raid, conquer, settle, and trade. They are generally referred to as Vikings, but some scholars debate whether the term Viking represented all Scandinavian settlers or just those who used violence. At the start of the early medieval peri... Episode artwork: Artist: Peter Nicolai Arbo. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viking_activity_in_the_British_Isles, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danelaw), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

Alfred the Great was King of the West Saxons from 871 to 886, and King of the Anglo-Saxons from 886 until his death in 899. He was the youngest son of King Ethelwulf and Ethelwulf's first wife Osburh who both died when Alfred was young. Three of Alfred's brothers — Ethelbald, Ethelbert and Ethelred — reigned in turn before him. Under Alfred's rule considerable administrative and military reform... Episode artwork: Artist: Samuel Woodforde (attributed). License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_the_Great), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

The Ecclesiastical History of the English People (Latin: Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum), written by Bede in about 731is a history of the Christian Churches in England, and of England generally; its main focus is on the growth of Christianity. It was composed in Latin and is believed to have been completed in 731 when Bede was approximately 59 years old. It is considered one of the most... Episode artwork: Artist: Bede. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecclesiastical_History_of_the_English_People), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

This episode covers two towering figures of the early English church. Theodore of Tarsus (602-690) was Archbishop of Canterbury from 668 to 690. Born in the Greek-speaking east, he fled the Persian and Muslim conquests before eventually being appointed archbishop by Pope Vitalian. Theodore reformed the English church, established a renowned school at Canterbury, and organized the first synods. The Venerable Bede (672-735) was an English monk, author, and scholar at the monastery of Monkwearmouth-Jarrow. His most famous work, the Ecclesiastical History of the English People, earned him the title "The Father of English History." Bede also helped popularize the Anno Domini dating system and was declared a Doctor of the Church in 1899. Episode artwork: Artist: Unknown. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodore_of_Tarsus, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bede), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

The Synod of Whitby was a Christian administrative gathering held in Northumbria in 664, wherein King Ozweeoo ruled that his kingdom would calculate Easter and observe the monastic tonsure according to the customs of Rome rather than the customs practised by Irish monks at Iona and its satellite institutions. The synod was summoned at Hilda's double monastery of Streneshalk later called Whitby ... Episode artwork: Artist: Bede. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synod_of_Whitby), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

Augustine of Canterbury — early 6th century to most likely 26 May 604 — was a Christian monk who became the first archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597. Episode artwork: Artist: Anonymous, Scriptorium of Wearmouth-Jarrow Abbey. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustine_of_Canterbury), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

The Gregorian mission or Augustinian mission was a Christian mission sent by Pope Gregory the Great to England in 596 to convert the Anglo-Saxons. The mission was headed by Augustine of Canterbury. By the time of the death of the last missionary in 653 the mission had established Christianity among the southern Anglo-Saxons. Along with the Irish and Frankish missions it converted Anglo-Saxons i... Episode artwork: Artist: Unknown. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregorian_mission), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

Celtic Christianity is a form of Christianity that was common — or held to be common — across the Celtic-speaking world during the Early Middle Ages. The term Celtic Church is deprecated by many historians as it implies a unified and identifiable entity entirely separate from that of mainstream Western Christendom. For this reason Brown notes a preference for the term Insular Christianity. As P... Episode artwork: Artist: Sebd. License: CC BY-SA 3.0. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celtic_Christianity), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.

Christianity was present in Roman Britain from at least the third century until the end of the Roman imperial administration in the early fifth century, and continued in western Britain. Episode artwork: Artist: Unknown. License: Public domain. Content adapted from Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_Roman_Britain), used under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.