Crime and Punishment / 1529-1537
Crime and Punishment: Henry VIII and Reformation
Henry VIII changed religion by breaking away from the Pope in Rome.
What To Remember
- Henry VIII separated the English Church from the Roman Catholic Church during the 1530s.
- The Act of Supremacy made Henry head of the Church of England and turned religious loyalty into political loyalty.
- The Dissolution of the Monasteries took wealth and land from religious houses and showed the power of the Tudor state.
Breaking with Rome
At the start of Henry's reign, England was Catholic and the Pope in Rome was the head of the Church.
Between 1529 and 1537 Henry separated the English Church from Rome because he wanted to end his marriage to Catherine of Aragon and secure a male heir.
The Reformation made religion a matter of obedience to the English monarch, not just belief.
Act of Supremacy
The Act of Supremacy made Henry the head of the Church of England.
This took authority away from the Pope and made the break with Rome official.
It also meant that rejecting Henry's religious authority could be treated as treason, because it challenged the king as well as the Church.
Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, 1536-1540, closed monasteries across England.
Henry's government took their wealth, land and religious books before many buildings were destroyed.
This weakened an old centre of Catholic power and made the monarchy much richer.
Impact on crime
The Reformation changed the definition of crime because religious disagreement could become political disobedience.
Heresy and treason became more closely linked, especially when people refused to accept the monarch's role in the Church.
Revision Prompt
How did Henry VIII turn the break with Rome into real change?