The Reformation (1530s)

The English Reformation began in the 1530s when King Henry VIII sought to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, who had not produced a male heir. When Pope Clement VII refused to grant the annulment, Henry broke with Rome entirely. Through a series of Acts of Parliament, Henry made himself the Supreme Head of the Church of England, separating it from papal authority.

Henry then dissolved the monasteries — religious houses across England and Wales — seizing their lands and wealth for the Crown. This was one of the largest transfers of property in English history and permanently altered the landscape, both literally and socially.

After Henry VIII's death, his son Edward VI continued the Reformation in a more thoroughgoing Protestant direction, introducing Protestant doctrine and an English-language prayer book. However, Edward died young and was succeeded by his half-sister Mary I, a devout Catholic who restored papal authority and persecuted Protestants — earning her the nickname "Bloody Mary."

Mary's reign was short, and after her death in 1558, her Protestant half-sister Elizabeth I became queen. Elizabeth I re-established the Church of England and created a religious settlement that steered a middle course between Catholicism and extreme Protestantism. England became firmly Protestant under her reign.