The Reign Of Edward Vi :: essays research papers fc

The Reign of Edward VIThe reign of Edward VI saw great religious upheaval from a Protestantreligion that was Catholic in nature to a more clearly defined and radicalquasi-Calvinism. In that sense religious policy hardened. scarcely the policies andideal never became deeply entrenched and accepted throughout the country andoften only existed to serve the interests of those who enacted them, and not thefuture stance of the church. Under summersault the changes involved merely creatinga Protestant facelift, and only low Northumberland did sweeping radicalchanges emerge. However, policy never hardened enough, or became accepted enough,to prevent it world disintegrated when Mary came to power in 1553.The religious situation was highly unstable at the time of Edwardsascendance. Although Henry had allowed Protestant leaning clerics to predominatein the after year of his reign, most religious statutes remained orthodox, andconservative. But under Somerset Protestants who had previously fled to Europeafter the six articles, such as Hooper, Becon, and Turner, all returned. Manywere writers criminalise under Henry VIII, along with Luther and other EuropeanProtestants. Guy points out that 159 out of 394 new books printed during theProtectorate were written by Protestant reformers.Reformers predominated the Privy council under Somerset, and reform waspopular amongst the gentry of the time. But outside London and East AngliaProtestantism was not a major force. In terms of religious hardening, it isunlikely that the mint of Protestantism had any particular long term impactoutside these areas. It was only in these areas that violent iconoclasm tookplace. Elsewhere far more moderate reforms such as vernacular Bibles andservices were introduced.The legislation of the Somerset era also did little to aid a definitehardening of religious policy. The Privy council remained reluctant to figure out anyradical moves. The Council, parliament, and the convocation all wanted refor m,but not of the type that would firmly thrust the country into radicalProtestantism. Moderate leanings were all that was desired, and this wasreflected in the two major pieces of legislation, the Chantries Act and theTreason Act, which both did little to resolve doctrinal uncertainties. The newbook of common prayer also trod a deliberate path between Protestantism andCatholicism.Jordan states that These years ... were characterised by patience withthe bishops, almost half of whom were conservative in their views and Catholicin their doctrinal sympathies, though all, trained as they were in the reign ofHenry VIII, lent complete support to the Act Supremacy in all its constitutionaland political implications ... the lesser clergy and the laity were with fewer