henry viii religion essay questions

Henry VIII Essay Questions

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Written by Micola Magdalena

Who is Henry VIII, the king mentioned in the play?

The name most likely refers to the King of England who ruled from 1950 until 1547. The King remained in the history of the British Empire as one of the most controversial rulers, mainly because of the large number of wives the King took, and killed. The King married six different wives, one of which was sentenced to death by the King himself. The King had his first marriage annulled by creating a new religion, the Church of England, and making himself head of the Church, in spite of the opposition from the Pope. The action presented in the play takes place during the time when King VIII decided to annulled his marriage to his first wife, Catherine, and marry the much younger woman, Anne Boleyn.

Who is the Cardinal in the play?

The Cardinal in the play is Thomas Wolsey, the man who served as cardinal under the rule of Henry VIII. He was first named Cardinal of the Catholic Church, meaning he was among the most powerful people in the state, holding the superior religious position. King Henry acquired the cardinal’s help when trying to divorce his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, and marry another woman named Anne Boleyn. The Cardinal did everything he could to secure an annulment from the Pope in Rome but was unsuccessful. Because of this, the Cardinal fell from the King’s graces and was stripped of his titles and of the lands he owned. Shortly before his death, the Cardinal was accused of treason by the King but he died before the King could order his execution. In the play, the cardinal is described as an extremely vain and power driven person. According to history, this representation may come close to the truth, Cardinal Wolsey being known for doing everything he could to secure his position and power in the British society of the time.

Why is the Cardinal accused of abusing the tax system in Act I, Scene I?

During his time as Cardinal, Wolsey changed the taxing system in England to such a way that those who has a great deal of wealth were forced to pay the bulk in taxes while the poor had to pay almost nothing at all. Until that point, the taxing system in England was the same for everyone, every person having to pay a fixed amount, no matter their social status. Wolsey introduced a new system which brought a lot more money for the crown, forcing the wealthy to pay taxes in accordance with the wealth they had. He also forced the nobility to grant loans for the Crown, a controversial move criticized by the ruling class. While it is unsure if Wolsey had any personal grains from the new taxing system, we can understand why the Queen, who had many relatives inside the court who were forced to pay a great amount of taxes were displeased with the new system.

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Henry VIII Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Henry VIII is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Study Guide for Henry VIII

Henry VIII study guide contains a biography of William Shakespeare, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About Henry VIII
• Henry VIII Summary
• Character List

Essays for Henry VIII

Henry VIII essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Henry VIII by William Shakespeare.

• Analysis of Cardinal Wolsey's Soliloquy
• Wolsey’s Complex Response

Wikipedia Entries for Henry VIII

• Introduction

Henry VIII & Religion

Henrician reformation.

Although Henry VIII was against the Pope, he didn’t agree much with Protestantism either. His ‘Reformation’ was not very Protestant and is often called the Henrician Reformation.

Theological to-ing and fro-ing

• Key theological issues were unresolved in the 1530s.
• In 1536, the Act of Ten Articles rejected four of the Catholics’ seven sacraments.
• But in 1537, the Bishops' Book was published. It gave advice and attacked abuses and Catholic superstitions. But it also restored the missing four sacraments.
• An English Bible was published. Its frontispiece showed God giving Henry VIII His word and Henry VIII handing it to the English people.

Theological resolution

• In 1539, the Act of the Six Articles confirmed key Roman Catholic beliefs including confession to priests and, most importantly, transubstantiation (the substance of the wine and bread in communion becomes Christ's body and blood).
• The Act banned Protestant beliefs like married clergy and giving the wine as well as bread at holy communion.
• In 1539, the Act for Dissolution of the Greater Monasteries made sure of the continuation of a vital source of revenue as Henry was fortifying southern England.

Dissolution of the monasteries

• Although there were political and economic reasons for the dissolution of the monasteries, there were religious ones too.
• As Vicar-General, Cromwell was against ‘superstitious’ Catholic practices, such as praying for souls of dead in Purgatory, saints’ relics and pilgrimages.
• In 1535, Cromwell sent out Visitations telling them to find evidence that monks and nuns were not living up to their vows.

• The Henrician Reformation is often called 'Catholicism without the Pope'.

Historical Assessment

• Richard Morrison, a humanist with connections to Thomas Cromwell, said: 'Of all the miracles and wonders of our time, I take the change of our sovereign lord’s opinion on matters concerning religion to be even the greatest.'
• Referring to this quote, historian Richard Rex (1997), a professor of the Reformation says that 'Henry’s change of opinion has challenged historians ever since.'

Change in 1547 During Henry VIII's Reign

Between 1536 and 1547, England's religious landscape changed dramatically. But the Reformation was not irreversible.

Protestant reformers

• Hardline Protestants such as Hugh Latimer and Thomas Cranmer were spreading Protestant beliefs through their preaching and prominence in government.
• Cromwell was pushing for doctrinal reform, as demonstrated in the Ten Articles of Faith. This was a compromise between Lutheran and traditional Catholic ideas.

Internal divisions

• Historian Peter Marshall describes the 'kaleidoscopic diversity' of Protestants in Tudor England.
• This reminds us that there were considerable divisions amongst Protestant reformers. They couldn't agree at all about what the future of the Church looked like.

Impact of the vernacular scripture

• Perhaps the most noticeable changes in the Church, to an ordinary layman, was the use of vernacular scripture (an English Bible).
• A contemporary, called Becon, describes the impact of this change: 'the restoration of Scripture was the foremost reason to praise God and the king'.

The future of the Church of England?

• Following Henry VIII's death in 1547, Edward VI came to the throne.
• But Edward VI was only nine years old and dependent on a regency government. Edward VI's advisors and ministers would become very influential in shaping the Church of England.
• The future of the English nation and the religious settlement was very uncertain.

Continuity of Religion in 1547

During the 1540s, many Catholic beliefs were reinforced by the government. Evidence from parish records shows that the majority of English people did not like radical religious change.

Henry's conservatism

• Henry VIII was undoubtedly conservative in his religious views.
• In reaction to the changes between 1535 and 1538, he had a conservative backlash. This is seen in the tone of the Six Articles of 1539.

Opposition to change

• There was still resistance to religious change at Court.
• Key figures refused to take the oath accepting Henry's divorce. Examples included the Chancellor, Thomas More and the Bishop of Rochester, John Fisher. Both were executed.

The experience of the laity

• Although reformers were obsessed with the theological details, most of the laity were not concerned with this.
• By and large, the experience of the laity did not change hugely during the Henrician Reformation.

Historical debate on the Catholic Church

• It is too simplistic to say that the Catholic Church was doomed after Henry VIII's break from Rome.
• In the 16th century and thereafter, Protestants created the myth that the transition from Catholicism to Protestantism was easy.
• Historians, such as Duffy, have argued that the Catholic Church still had a rich religious culture and was popular in the mid-1500s.

Historical assessment

• Ethan Shagan (2002) 'The reformation was "popular" in that people played an important role in deciding what sort of reformation they experienced and constructing the meanings in their communities.' 'English Reformation was not done _to_ people, it was done with them.'
• Christopher Haigh (1993) 'The Protestant Reformation was far less effective than the political reformations had been: legislative destruction proved easier than evangelical construction.'
• Davis (1997) 'Although some Lollards were anti-papal there were few reformers in the years 1531-33 who shared their views...'

1 Consolidation of the Tudor Dynasty 1485-1547

1.1 Henry VII 1485-1509

1.1.1 Henry VII's Consolidation of Power

1.1.2 Henry VII & Succession

1.1.3 Henry VII's Councils & Parliament

1.1.4 End of Topic Test - Henry VII Part 1

1.1.5 Henry VII & Justice, Finance & Policies

1.1.6 Henry VII's Relationship with Foreign Powers

1.1.7 Henry VII & Society

1.1.8 End of Topic Test - Henry VII Part 2

1.1.9 Henry VII & Regional Issues

1.1.10 Henry VII & Economic Development

1.1.11 Henry VII & Cultural Development

1.1.12 End of Topic Test - Henry VII Part 3

1.2 Henry VIII 1509-1547

1.2.1 Henry VIII's Consolidation of Power

1.2.2 Henry VIII & His Government

1.2.3 Henry VIII & His Government 2

1.2.4 End of Topic Test - Henry VIII Part 1

1.2.5 Henry VIII & Succession

1.2.6 Henry VIII's Relationship with Foreign Powers

1.2.7 Henry VIII & Society

1.2.8 End of Topic Test -Henry VIII Part 2

1.2.9 Henry VIII & Society 2

1.2.10 Henry VIII & Economic Development

1.2.11 Henry VIII & Religion

1.2.12 End of Topic Test - Henry VIII Part 3

2 England: Turmoil & Triumph 1547-1603

2.1 Instability & Consolidation 1547-1563

2.1.1 Edward VI, Somerset & Northumberland

2.1.2 Edward VI & Authority

2.1.3 Edward VI & Relations with Foreign Powers

2.1.4 End of Topic Test - Edward VI Part 1

2.1.5 Edward VI & Rebellions

2.1.6 Social Impact of Religious & Economic Changes

2.1.7 Edward VI & Cultural Developments

2.1.8 End of Topic Test - Edward VI Part 2

2.1.9 Mary I & Her Rule

2.1.10 Mary I & Relations with Foreign Powers

2.1.11 The Social Impact of Religious & Economic Change

2.1.12 End of Topic Test - Mary Part 1

2.1.13 Elizabeth I & Her Rule

2.1.14 Elizabeth I & Relations With Foreign Powers

2.1.15 Impact of Economic, Social & Religious Change

2.1.16 End of Topic Test - Elizabeth I Part 1

2.2 The Triumph of Elizabeth 1563-1603

2.2.1 Elizabeth I & Court

2.2.2 Elizabeth & Government

2.2.3 Elizabeth I & Succession

2.2.4 End of Topic Test - Elizabeth I Part 2

2.2.5 Mary Queen of Scots

2.2.6 Relations with Spain

2.2.7 End of Topic Test - Elizabeth I Part 3

2.2.8 Elizabeth I & Society

2.2.9 Elizabeth I & Rebellion

2.2.10 Elizabeth & Economic Development

2.2.11 End of Topic Test - Elizabeth I Part 4

2.2.12 Elizabeth I & Religious Developments

2.2.13 The English Renaissance

2.2.14 Elizabeth's Last Years

2.2.15 End of Topic Test - Elizabeth I Part 5

Jump to other topics

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Henry VIII & Economic Development

End of Topic Test - Henry VIII Part 3

Henry VIII and the Reformation

Professor susan doran discusses henry viii and the reformation, looking at the catholic devotional texts that were owned by the king, his break with the catholic church and the development of the english bible following the reformation..

Henry VIII was brought up a devout Catholic. Before he became king, he had in his possession a prayer scroll containing illuminations of the Trinity, the crucified Christ, the Instruments of the Passion and several martyred saints. Latin prayers were placed on each side of the images, together with English rubrics (instructions) that explained how the prayers could offer protection from earthly dangers or the remission of time in Purgatory. Sacred texts of this kind were common as part of the devotional practices of late-medieval England. Owners of the scrolls recited the prayers, contemplated the images and touched the material object so as to become closer to the divine and earn heavenly reward in the afterlife. Henry’s inscription on the prayer scroll suggests that he used it for these holy purposes and accepted the theological teachings that lay behind them.

Henry VIII’s prayer scroll. Measuring over three metres in length, this roll contains prayers in Latin and English and fourteen illuminated images, which include martyred saints, St George slaying the dragon, and Christ’s Passion. Prayer-roll of Henry VIII, c. 1485–1509, parchment roll, 335.5 x 12 cm ( The British Library )

Henry’s Catholic worship was typical of the era. Along with the prayer scroll, he also held fast to the belief that purchasing papal indulgences could pardon sin and shorten time in Purgatory; a popular practice at the time. In 1521 he and Katherine of Aragon received a ‘plenary indulgence’ from Pope Clement VII, which was tied to them carrying out an annual pilgrimage to a major shrine. When Martin Luther’s protest against the sale of indulgences sparked off the German Reformation, Henry defended the practice in his rebuttal, ‘Defence of the Seven Sacraments’.

The British Library also holds another text that shines a light on Henry’s piety; a Book of Hours that has secret messages exchanged between Henry and Anne Boleyn written in the margins. Books of Hours were common sacred texts for laypeople’s use. As compendia of prayers and devotional texts, the books had at their core the ‘Office of the Virgin Mary’, set prayers addressed to the Mother of Christ and recited daily at eight fixed hours. Mary, it was hoped, would act as an intercessor between the owner and God. The pages were often beautifully illustrated by the best artists of the day. Those for the nobility were richly illuminated with precious gold leaf and lapis lazuli. But, at some time around 1528, Anne and Henry employed his book for less spiritual purposes. At the foot of the folio showing the Man of Sorrows, Henry inscribed a lover’s message for Anne in French: ‘If you remember my love in your prayers as strongly as I adore you, I shall hardly be forgotten, for I am yours. Henry R. forever.’ Anne chose to pen her response on a page which showed the Annunciation, so suggesting her wish and power to give the king a son. She wrote in English: ‘Be daly prove you shalle me fynde to be to you bothe lovynge and kynde’.

Book of Hours once belonged to Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII’s second wife. With unique historical importance, this manuscript is a rare example of lovers using a religious book to exchange flirtatious messages. Book of Hours, Use of Sarum (”Anne Boleyn”s Book of Hours”), c. 1500, parchment, 13.5 x 19.5 cm ( The British Library)

The prayers in these late-medieval sacred books and scrolls were often in Latin to signify that all Western Christians were part of the Roman Catholic Church. However, Henry formally broke with the Pope and the Roman Church after Pope Clement VII refused to grant him an annulment of his marriage to Katherine of Aragon so that he could wed Anne. His appeal for an annulment was on the grounds that their union contravened the scriptures, citing Leviticus 20. 21, which prohibits a man from marrying his brother’s widow.

In 1533 the English Parliament passed the Act in Restraint of Appeals, which denied papal jurisdiction in England and ended appeals of court cases to Rome. The 1534 Act of Supremacy then recognised the king as the Supreme Head of the Church in England with ‘full power and authority’ to ‘reform’ the institution and ‘amend’ all errors and heresies. Henry and his newly-appointed ‘Vice Gerent in Spiritual Affairs’, Thomas Cromwell, immediately embarked upon a programme of reform. Cromwell’s Injunctions of 1536, and 1538 attacked idolatry, pilgrimages and other ‘superstitions’. The lesser monasteries were closed in 1536 and the remaining monasteries were dissolved over the next few years. Those men and women who resisted the closures were imprisoned or hanged.

Although Henry rejected Martin Luther’s theology of justification by faith alone, he did accept the German reformer’s insistence upon the supremacy of Scripture. After all, the ‘Word of God’ (Leviticus 20.21) had justified the annulment of his first marriage. Consequently, encouraged by Cromwell and Archbishop Thomas Cranmer of Canterbury, Henry authorised an English Bible that could be read by the laity as well as the clergy. At this time the best printed translation of the  New Testament in English  was by William Tyndale, who was a Lutheran burned in Antwerp in 1536. However, the king and his more conservative bishops refused to entertain the thought of publishing any work of the convicted heretic. Instead, two other Bibles received a royal licence.

A 1535 copy of Miles Coverdale’s translation of the Bible, a large lectern size Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments as well as the Apocrypha. Miles Coverdale [translator], Biblia. The Bible, tha[t] is, the holy Scripture of t[he] Olde and New Testament, faithfully and truly translated out of Douche and Latyn in to Englishe [by Miles Coverdale, afterwards Bishop of Exeter. With woodcuts]. B.L. , October 4, 1535 ( The British Library )

A 1537 copy of ‘Matthew’s Bible’, printed in Antwerp. The Byble, which is all the holy Scripture: in whych are contayned the Olde and Newe Testament truly and purely translated into Englysh by Thomas Matthew. , 1537, printed book ( The British Library )

Neither Bible was thought entirely satisfactory. So in 1538 Cranmer and Cromwell commissioned Coverdale to revise the ‘Matthew Bible’ and produce a better translation. The new work was intended to be the realm’s single authoritative Bible. In accordance with Cromwell’s 1538 Injunctions, it was ordered to be chained to lecterns in every cathedral and parish church for communal and public reading by clergy and parishioners alike. Because of its large size, the book became known as the ‘Great Bible’. Its woodcut title page visually communicated the royal supremacy. Receiving the Word directly from God, the enthroned king at the top of the page passes the sacred text of the Bible to his spiritual lords on his right and lay lords on his left. From there, the  verbum dei  (‘Word of God’) descends to be read to the local parish congregation and even to reach prisoners in jail.

Henry VIII’s ‘Great Bible’, based on an earlier version begun illegally by William Tyndale and adapted by Miles Coverdale in 1535. Thomas Cranmer, The Byble in Englyshe, that is to saye the contēt of al the holy scrypture … with a prologe therinto, made by … Thomas [Cranmer] archbysshop of Cantorbury, This is the Byble apoynted to the vse of the churches. [With woodcuts.] B.L. , 1540 ( The British Library )

New Bible, old doctrines

The Great Bible was printed in 1539. That same year Henry clarified the beliefs of his Church in ‘An Act Abolishing Diversity in Opinions’, better known as ‘The Act of Six Articles’. This statute laid down Henry’s position on some of the key issues dividing conservatives and evangelicals in England. Although he tried to find a path between the extremes of Roman Catholicism and Lutheranism by following what he saw as a policy of balance, the king took up a conservative position on virtually all of the controversial points. On the Mass, the Act affirmed transubstantiation, elucidating that ‘after the consecration, there remaineth no substance of bread or wine, nor any other substance, but the substance of Christ, God and man’. Other clauses denied that communion in both kinds was necessary, upheld clerical celibacy, permitted private Masses (those celebrated by a priest alone) and deemed auricular confession necessary. A few years later Henry shifted his position somewhat. The 1543 ‘Necessary Doctrine and Erudition for Any Christian Man’, known as the ‘King’s Book’ (another formulary of faith), instructed his subjects ‘to abstain from the name of Purgatory’ and questioned the efficacy of prayers for the dead. Nonetheless, the book unambiguously rejected justification by faith alone and reaffirmed transubstantiation, two positions which contradicted Luther’s teachings. When the king died in January 1547 England was therefore doctrinally Catholic despite the rejection of papal supremacy. As for Henry’s personal convictions, he remained conventionally pious. He continued his private devotions in Latin; in fact one of the last books he commissioned was a beautiful Latin psalter, written and illuminated by the French émigré Jean Mallard. Four illuminations depict Henry; one of them showed him reading the book in his bedchamber while another showed him as David playing the harp (as in I Samuel 16.14-23). Evidently, he identified with the Old Testament theocratic king. As was his wont, Henry scribbled notes in the book. Some of them explored themes such as the contrast between the blessed and the wicked, divine judgement, kingship and the vanity of worldly goods.

Commissioned by King Henry VIII, this Psalter (Book of Psalms) gives an insight into the king’s self-assurance as divine ruler of England. Jean Maillart (or Mallard), Psalter (‘The Psalter of Henry VIII’), c. 1540–1541, parchment codex, 20.5 x 14 cm ( The British Library )

English devotional manuscripts

While Henry continued, it seems, to prefer Latin for his sacred texts, some of his subjects were turning to works in English for their devotions. In 1539 an English edition of Wolfgang Capito’s  Precationes Christianæ ad Imitationem Psalmorum  was printed in London. The translator was Richard Taverner, who was working for Cromwell during the 1530s and translating works of both Erasmus and Lutherans. A manuscript containing a selection of psalms and prayers from the translated  Precationes  was owned by Anne, Countess of Hertford, who was the second wife of Henry’s brother-in-law Edward Seymour (to be created 1st Duke of Somerset and Lord Protector on Henry’s death). Known as ‘Taverner’s prayer book’, the small book is richly decorated on each page with a full-page border in colours and gold, while small illuminated initials mark the start of each prayer and psalm. Extracts from Taverner’s translation were also put together in a manuscript prayer-book owned by Henry’s great niece, Lady Jane Grey, who became noted for her Protestant piety during the next reign. The prayers, however, do not assert any particular confessional position. Some traditionalist prayers are included, but in none of them is there any reference to Purgatory.

This tiny, richly decorated book of Psalms and prayers in English was most likely made for the noblewoman and literary patron Anne Seymour (née Stanhope), Countess of Hertford and later Duchess of Somerset (c. 1510–1587). Richard Taverner [translator], Prayer book (‘The Taverner Prayer Book’), c. 1540, parchment, 7.0 x 5.2 cm ( The British Library )

This tiny Book of Prayers, written in English, is probably that used by Lady Jane Grey on the scaffold at her execution in 1554. Prayer book (‘Lady Jane Grey’s Prayer book), c. 1539–44, parchment codex, 8.5 x 7.0 cm ( The British Library )

Henry’s last wife, Katherine Parr, shared the reformist tendencies of her friend, the Countess of Hertford. She almost certainly had a spiritual influence on both the king’s younger daughter Elizabeth and Lady Jane Grey when they each spent time in her household. Katherine wrote several devotional works while queen. Her reworking of Thomas à Kempis’  De Imitatione Christi  (from an English edition) was printed in 1545 under her own name (the first book printed under the name of a woman in English). To compliment her stepmother, the twelve-year-old Elizabeth gave the king her own trilingual translation (Latin, French and Italian) of the work as a New Year’s Day gift for 1546.

In December 1545, King Henry VIII was presented with this carefully embroidered volume as a New Year’s gift. The prayer-book had been assembled by his twelve-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, who would herself ascend to the throne in 1558. Queen Elizabeth I, Prayers and meditations (the ‘Prayerbook of Princess Elizabeth’), 1545, parchment codex, 14 x 10 cm ( The British Library )

Paving the way for Protestantism

Henry VIII’s Reformation had begun an attack on sacred objects, such as saints’ relics and shrines. Some sacred texts were also defaced or destroyed, especially those which venerated popes or  St Thomas Becket , who had stood up to King Henry II. Many manuscripts and books in monastic libraries were trashed or dispersed during the dissolutions, although the antiquarian John Leland managed to collect and conserve a large number for the king. Despite this, sacred texts remained an important part of English religious culture. Indeed more of them began to appear in English, and of course several English Bibles came into circulation. However, for those who were evangelical or Protestants, the works contained no mention of purgatory and were not be handled as holy objects in themselves. The ground was being laid for the full-blown Protestantism introduced on Henry’s death by Archbishop Cranmer and Lord Protector Somerset.

Written by Susan Doran

Susan Doran FRHS is Professor of Early Modern History at the University of Oxford and Senior Research Fellow at Jesus College, Oxford, and St Benet’s Hall, Oxford. She specialises in the high politics, religion and culture of the 16th and early-17th centuries. She edited the catalogue of the British Library exhibition  Henry VIII: Man and Monarch  in 2009, and her book  Elizabeth I and her Circle  first appeared in 2015. Since then she has been working on the early years of James I’s reign.

The text in this article is available under the  Creative Commons License.

Originally published by The British Library.

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A level History, Tudors: essay plan on reasons for changes in religion under Henry VIII

Subject: History

Age range: 16+

Resource type: Other

Last updated

22 February 2018

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