English Reformation Parliament facts for kids
The English Reformation Parliament was a very important meeting of English lawmakers that happened between 1529 and 1536. It created the legal rules for the English Reformation. This was a big change that led to England breaking away from the control of the Catholic Church in Rome. It also gave more power to the Church of England.
Under the leadership of King Henry VIII, this Parliament was the first in English history to make major laws about religion. Many of these changes were planned by people like the Boleyn family and Thomas Cromwell. These new laws moved many parts of English life from the Catholic Church's control to the control of the King and Queen (the Crown). This also made Parliament stronger and gave a lot of money from the Catholic Church to the English Crown.
Why the Parliament Met
In the mid-1520s, King Henry VIII really wanted a son to take over the throne after him. His wife, Catherine of Aragon, was getting older and Henry thought she couldn't have more children. He worried that if his only child, Mary I of England, became queen, it might cause problems for the country.
So, Henry decided he needed a divorce so he could marry Anne Boleyn. He sent his chief advisor, Cardinal Wolsey, to talk to Pope Clement VII about it.
Cardinal Wolsey couldn't convince the Pope to grant the divorce. Henry was very frustrated with Wolsey and the English church leaders. He then started to challenge the power and special benefits that the Catholic clergy (church officials) had in England. He hoped that putting pressure on the Church would make the Pope agree to his divorce. However, England wasn't powerful enough in Europe at that time for the Pope to pay much attention.
Henry then talked with his advisors, including Thomas Cromwell. They discussed how to reduce the influence of canonical law (church law) in England. Cromwell was very clever and planned many of the new laws. He also ran campaigns to get ordinary people in England to support the King's ideas. Because of all this, Henry called Parliament to meet in 1529.
Key Laws Passed
The English Reformation Parliament passed several important laws. Here are some of them:
Church Leaders and Courts (1529)
A new law was passed that changed how church leaders were treated in court. Before, they had their own special church courts. But now, they had to be tried in the same way as everyone else in England. They no longer received special treatment from the courts.
Challenging the Pope (1530)
In 1530, Thomas Cromwell surprised many people, even his old teacher Wolsey. He accused the English church leaders of a serious crime called praemunire. This basically meant they were accused of listening to a power outside of England (the Pope) instead of the King. It wasn't about one specific thing, but about the Pope's overall authority over English law.
The church leaders were charged with going against the King. But once they agreed that Henry was the head of the Church of England, the charges were dropped.
Money for Rome Reduced (1532)
In 1532, Parliament passed the first Act of Annates. Annates were like church taxes collected in England and sent to Rome. They were payments made to the Pope when a new bishop was chosen for a diocese (a church area). About one-third of the bishop's first year's income would go to Rome.
This new law allowed only 5% of this money to be sent to Rome. Parliament threatened that if Henry didn't get his annulment (a declaration that his marriage was never valid) within a year, all payments to Rome would stop. During this time, even more effort was made to get Pope Clement to agree to Henry's divorce. Another law, called the Supplication Against the Ordinaries, was also passed, which was against the power of the clergy.
King is Supreme (1533)
This law, called the Act in Restraint of Appeals, was very important. It said that the Pope had no power over the English King, English affairs, or English lands. The English King was now the highest authority. Henry argued that England was like an empire and didn't need to follow the Pope's rules.
Most importantly, this law made it legal for Henry to divorce Catherine and marry Anne Boleyn. It also set the stage for all the future changes to the English church and the King's power.
Ending Payments to Rome (1534)
This law stopped the payment of Peter's Pence to Rome. Peter's Pence was a yearly tax collected from households. The law also stopped "pluralism" among church leaders, which was the right to hold more than one church job at a time. It also made it illegal for English church leaders to attend religious meetings outside of England.
Who Would Be King or Queen (1534)
The First Succession Act (passed in 1534) declared that Henry VIII's marriage to Catherine of Aragon was not valid. This meant their daughter, Mary, was no longer considered a rightful heir to the throne. Instead, this law made Henry's daughter Elizabeth (who later became Elizabeth I) his official heir.
Laws Against Going Against the King (1534)
Henry wanted to stop anyone from speaking out against these big changes to the laws and the new line of succession. For example, some people like Elizabeth Barton were critical. So, Cromwell wrote a law to make sure that challenging the Act of Supremacy (which said the King was the head of the church) or the Act of Succession (which set the new heirs) would be considered a very serious crime against the King. This crime could lead to severe punishment.
King Takes Church Money (1534)
The second Act of Annates was passed, called the Act in Absolute Restraint of Annates. This law gave all the money from annates, along with control over the church in England, directly to the King. The King now received all the money charged for appointing bishops.
The Act of First Fruits and Tenths also moved taxes on church income from the Pope to the King. The Treasons Act 1534 made it a very serious crime, punishable by death, to deny the King's supreme power over the church. The first Act of Supremacy also started the process of closing down monasteries, beginning with smaller ones.
Closing Smaller Monasteries (1536)
This law ordered that smaller monasteries (religious houses for monks and nuns) with a yearly income of less than £200 would be closed down across England.
Thomas Cromwell said this was to deal with corruption among church leaders. But he also wanted to give the King more control over the church and take their money to help the King's treasury. This would also reduce the church leaders' power. In truth, the corruption might not have been as bad as Cromwell claimed, and most people seemed happy with their local churches.
Closing monasteries had been a goal for Cromwell for some time. By starting with smaller ones, he could avoid being accused of making monks and nuns homeless, as they could move to larger monasteries. It also helped avoid upsetting powerful people at court who supported those monasteries. Plus, closing them allowed the King to give these lands to loyal landowners, which helped gain their support. The abbots (leaders of monasteries) agreed, hoping the larger monasteries would be saved.
What Happened Next
These seven years of Parliament meetings started the separation of church law from government law in England. In the end, these laws moved control over many parts of life away from Rome and under the control of the English Parliament and the King. This made Parliament the highest authority over English law, without the Pope's interference.
As a result, a lot of wealth was also transferred from the English Roman Catholic Church to the King, which helped boost the English economy.
See also
- Scottish Reformation Parliament, which started in 1560
