Assessing the extent to which religious division was responsible for creating challenge to royal authority in the period 1485-1588.

During the period 1485-1588, a variety of factors, including religious division, were responsible for creating challenge to royal authority. Religion was the biggest cause of challenge for monarchs such as Mary, with her Protestant burnings, and Elizabeth, when she finally had to go through with the Religious Settlement. However, various different issues were more important to other monarchs, such as individuals with claims to the throne for Henry VII, foreign policy for Henry VIII and the government for Edward VI. Alongside these, the factor of economics was always present and caused many a challenge to royal authority, almost as much as, and sometimes more so, than religious division. Therefore, the extent to which religious division was responsible for creating challenge to royal authority varied not only with each monarch, but also at different times during their individual reigns.

The extent to which religious division created challenge to royal authority cannot be exaggerated. One of the monarchs with whom religion was an unquestionable challenge was Mary Tudor, or ‘Bloody’ Mary. She not only turned back to Catholicism after her father specifically broke with Rome and began to persecute Protestants by burning them, but also changed the religion of an entire nation alongside it. This religious turbulence for the country incited anger and confusion, resulting in challenge to royal authority. One of the best examples of this during Mary’s reign would be Wyatt’s rebellion. Traditionally it was believed that the rebellion rose out of concern about Mary’s marriage to Phillip II of Spain, unpopular with the English due to their fear of being overrun by strangers. D.M Loades is also partial to the origins of the rebellion being of political considerations. He contends that apart from William Thomas, the Protestant enthusiast, ‘all had conformed without protest under Edward, and those still alive were to do so again under Elizabeth, but throughout the period of the rebellion and trials which followed it, all protested their loyalty to the Catholic Church.’ In opposition, Conrad Russell expressed doubts over the ‘conformist’ attitudes of the rebels, stating that many other besides Thomas were deeply anti-catholic and that ‘it is hard to prove that their Protestantism was unconnected with the rebellion.’ But the fact that the origins of the rebellion have remained in debate due to its religious elements proves in itself that religion had been an undercurrent within this rebellion and was the biggest challenge to Mary’s authority.

Elizabeth also had to endure her share of challenge to royal authority due to religious division. She was a known Protestant like her mother, who suffice to say wasn’t very popular especially during Mary’s reign. When Elizabeth came to the throne however, the country’s religion had to be changed once again to reflect that of the monarchy, alienating quite a bit of the Catholic government that had served Mary, as well as the general Catholic population, Rome and Spain. It seemed a game of anticipating the next religious monarch to see who would be more in power, the Catholics or the Protestants. Like her father and brother, it was necessary for Elizabeth to restore the Church of England and therefore the Elizabethan Religious Settlement was created, comprising of two acts; the Act of Supremacy, and the Act of Uniformity. This did not come without repercussions however. During her time, Elizabeth faced three major rebellions; the Rising of the North, the Ridolfi Plot and the Desmond Rebellions. While the Desmond Rebellions were primarily due to feudal lords wanting to regain independence from the monarchy, it also had an element of religious antagonism. The Rising of the North and the Ridolfi Plot were both created to replace Elizabeth with her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots, a staunch Catholic. While many would argue that it was Mary Queen of Scots herself that was the biggest threat and cause of rebellion during Elizabeth’s reign, it would seem that it was in fact the religious division between the two women that was the threat. If Elizabeth had been Catholic, or Mary Protestant, they may even have been allies rather than foes. Therefore, religious division was the greatest cause of challenge to Elizabeth’s royal authority.

Another monarch that had challenges to his monarchy due to religious division was Henry VIII. This was only during and after the English Reformation however. His main cause of challenge was foreign policy and power in foreign lands, and it could be argued that the English Reformation and the subsequent religious divisions were because of the challenges he faced in these, not despite them. The reformation therefore could be seen as an outset of foreign political dispute, rather then a theological one. Rome’s interference with England was becoming increasingly unbearable to Henry VIII, not to mention the tax that went to the Pope. Along with this, Henry had bad relations with Spain, due to his want of divorce from Catherine of Aragon, which he wouldn’t be allowed under Catholicism, and was waging war with France as well. One of the main reasons for the reformation has been argued to be Henry’s want of power over his own country rather than actual religious differences with Rome because in reality, Henry kept many of the Catholic beliefs and it was essentially only the name of the religion and the Church in England that changed. The 1536 uprising, the Pilgrimage of Grace, was to contest England’s break with Rome, the Dissolution of the Monasteries and the death of Anne Boleyn, due to the ‘assumption that, with her death, Henry’s split with Rome was now no longer necessary and could be reversed’¹°. Protestant reformers saw her as the figure-head of the revolution and her death frightened them due to their precarious position within the society of a temperamental king. The split could not be reversed though, it was far too late. Henry had broken all relation with Rome and mostly with Spain and to reverse that would be accepting defeat, which the king was too proud to do. These religious grievances however, were only part of the cause of the pilgrimage of grace. The other reasons included Economics and high food prices, and political issues, such as Henry ‘casting off’ Catherine of Aragon, which the rebels wanted the King to cater to just as much as the religious elements. Therefore, the challenges to Henry VIII’s authority could be seen as a combination of religious division and division in views on foreign policy.

At different times during this period, other factors have also challenged royal authority. One of these would be individuals with claims to the throne, as is most evident during the reign of Henry VII. As Henry followed mainstream Catholicism, there was no cause for debate in terms of religion. England had always had a Catholic ruler before this point and Henry VII was no different. The reason for challenges to his authority lay in the fact that he won the crown at the battle of Bosworth and not through heritage, therefore his claim to the throne was always questioned and he had to put up with many other individuals with their own, often stronger, claims. The Stafford and Lovell Rebellion was the first armed uprising against Henry, the rebels believing that they would be in a better position by restoring the Yorkists. The uprising itself was a disaster, with the rebels fleeing before Henry even got to them but it reflected the most common rebellious attitude of the time; that of differing claims to the throne, and not religious division.