Persecution of Protestants

Historical Context Note

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The decades after the death of Henry VIII were tumultuous ones for England's religious culture. He was first succeeded by his only son, Edward VI, who was crowned at only nine years old, and thus was heavily influenced by his Regency Council, led by reforming Protestant nobles. They passed various laws to enforce reformed religion on the population, including instituting a Book of Common Prayer for every church, and insisting on the removal of iconography.

By contrast, with Edward's death and the accession of his eldest sister, Mary I, a committed Roman Catholic, the pendulum swung the other way, and the population was forced to return to a strictly enforced Catholic orthodoxy. By this time, however, many people had adopted the teachings of Martin Luther, John Calvin and the other

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2012 Persecution of Protestants 2 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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