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Reformation in Ireland
The Reformation in Ireland was a movement for the reform of religious life and institutions that was introduced into Ireland by the English Crown at the behest of King Henry VIII of England. His desire for an annulment of his marriage was known as the King's Great Matter. Ultimately Pope Clement VII refused the petition; consequently, in order to give legal effect to his wishes, it became necessary for the King to assert his lordship over the Catholic Church in his realm. In passing the Acts of Supremacy in 1534, the English Parliament confirmed the King's supremacy over the Church in the Kingdom of England. This challenge to Papal supremacy resulted in a breach with the Catholic Church. By 1541, the Irish Parliament had agreed to the change in status of the country from that of a Lordship to that of Kingdom of Ireland.
Unlike similar movements for religious reform on the continent of Europe, the various phases of the English Reformation as it developed in Ireland were largely driven by changes in government policy, to which public opinion in England gradually accommodated itself. In Ireland, however, the government's policy was not embraced by public opinion; the majority of the population continued to adhere to Catholicism.
The Reformation in Ireland faced significant challenges, resulting in limited success compared to other regions. A major factor was the scarcity of Protestant preachers throughout the sixteenth century, which hindered the spread of Reformation ideas and the establishment of indigenous support. This lack of local backing made it difficult to enforce and circulate Protestant reforms during Elizabeth I's reign. As the movement struggled to gain a foothold among the native population, it was often perceived as an extension of English colonization efforts, leading to resistance from both the Irish Gaelic and Old English communities, who viewed it as a threat to their cultural and religious identities.
Norman and English monarchs used the title "Lord of Ireland" to refer to their Irish conquests dating from the Norman invasion of Ireland. In passing the Crown of Ireland Act 1542, the Irish Parliament granted Henry, by his command, a new title – King of Ireland. The state was renamed the Kingdom of Ireland. The King desired this innovation because the Lordship of Ireland had been granted by the Papacy; technically, he held the Lordship in fief from the Pope. As Henry had been excommunicated in 1533 and again in 1538, he worried that his title could be withdrawn by his overlord, the Pope.
Henry also arranged for the Irish Parliament to declare him the head of the "Church in Ireland". The main instrument of state power in the establishment of the state church in the new Kingdom of Ireland was the Archbishop of Dublin, George Brown. He was appointed by the King upon the death of the incumbent, though without the approval of the Pope. The Archbishop arrived in Ireland in 1536. The reforms were continued by Henry's successor, Edward VI. The Church of Ireland claims Apostolic succession because of the continuity in the hierarchy; however this claim is disputed by the Catholic Church, which asserts, in Apostolicae curae, that Anglican orders are invalid.
Henry's sanctions on outspoken Catholics and Lutherans differed; Catholics loyal to the Holy See were to be prosecuted as traitors, while Lutherans, much rarer in Ireland, were to be burned at the stake as heretics. He promulgated the Six Articles Act in 1539.
Henry died in 1547. In his reign, prayers remained the same, with the Latin Breviary still used until the Book of Common Prayer (in English) was introduced from 1549. From 1548, for the first time, Irish Communicants were given wine and bread; the former Roman Rite of the Mass allowed a congregation to be given bread only, with wine taken by the priest.
The dissolutions in Ireland followed a very different course from those in England and Wales. There were around 400 religious houses in Ireland in 1530 – many more, relative to population and material wealth than in England and Wales. In marked distinction to the situation in England, in Ireland the houses of friars had flourished in the 15th century, attracting popular support and financial endowments, undertaking many ambitious building schemes, and maintaining a regular conventual and spiritual life. They constituted around half of the total number of religious houses. Irish monasteries, by contrast, had experienced a catastrophic decline in numbers, such that by the 16th century, it appears that only a minority maintained the daily religious observance of the Divine Office. Henry's direct authority, as Lord of Ireland, and from 1541 as King of Ireland, only extended to the area of the Pale immediately around Dublin. From the late 1530s, his administrators temporarily succeeded in persuading some clan chiefs to adopt his policy of surrender and regrant, including the adoption of his state religion.
Reformation in Ireland
The Reformation in Ireland was a movement for the reform of religious life and institutions that was introduced into Ireland by the English Crown at the behest of King Henry VIII of England. His desire for an annulment of his marriage was known as the King's Great Matter. Ultimately Pope Clement VII refused the petition; consequently, in order to give legal effect to his wishes, it became necessary for the King to assert his lordship over the Catholic Church in his realm. In passing the Acts of Supremacy in 1534, the English Parliament confirmed the King's supremacy over the Church in the Kingdom of England. This challenge to Papal supremacy resulted in a breach with the Catholic Church. By 1541, the Irish Parliament had agreed to the change in status of the country from that of a Lordship to that of Kingdom of Ireland.
Unlike similar movements for religious reform on the continent of Europe, the various phases of the English Reformation as it developed in Ireland were largely driven by changes in government policy, to which public opinion in England gradually accommodated itself. In Ireland, however, the government's policy was not embraced by public opinion; the majority of the population continued to adhere to Catholicism.
The Reformation in Ireland faced significant challenges, resulting in limited success compared to other regions. A major factor was the scarcity of Protestant preachers throughout the sixteenth century, which hindered the spread of Reformation ideas and the establishment of indigenous support. This lack of local backing made it difficult to enforce and circulate Protestant reforms during Elizabeth I's reign. As the movement struggled to gain a foothold among the native population, it was often perceived as an extension of English colonization efforts, leading to resistance from both the Irish Gaelic and Old English communities, who viewed it as a threat to their cultural and religious identities.
Norman and English monarchs used the title "Lord of Ireland" to refer to their Irish conquests dating from the Norman invasion of Ireland. In passing the Crown of Ireland Act 1542, the Irish Parliament granted Henry, by his command, a new title – King of Ireland. The state was renamed the Kingdom of Ireland. The King desired this innovation because the Lordship of Ireland had been granted by the Papacy; technically, he held the Lordship in fief from the Pope. As Henry had been excommunicated in 1533 and again in 1538, he worried that his title could be withdrawn by his overlord, the Pope.
Henry also arranged for the Irish Parliament to declare him the head of the "Church in Ireland". The main instrument of state power in the establishment of the state church in the new Kingdom of Ireland was the Archbishop of Dublin, George Brown. He was appointed by the King upon the death of the incumbent, though without the approval of the Pope. The Archbishop arrived in Ireland in 1536. The reforms were continued by Henry's successor, Edward VI. The Church of Ireland claims Apostolic succession because of the continuity in the hierarchy; however this claim is disputed by the Catholic Church, which asserts, in Apostolicae curae, that Anglican orders are invalid.
Henry's sanctions on outspoken Catholics and Lutherans differed; Catholics loyal to the Holy See were to be prosecuted as traitors, while Lutherans, much rarer in Ireland, were to be burned at the stake as heretics. He promulgated the Six Articles Act in 1539.
Henry died in 1547. In his reign, prayers remained the same, with the Latin Breviary still used until the Book of Common Prayer (in English) was introduced from 1549. From 1548, for the first time, Irish Communicants were given wine and bread; the former Roman Rite of the Mass allowed a congregation to be given bread only, with wine taken by the priest.
The dissolutions in Ireland followed a very different course from those in England and Wales. There were around 400 religious houses in Ireland in 1530 – many more, relative to population and material wealth than in England and Wales. In marked distinction to the situation in England, in Ireland the houses of friars had flourished in the 15th century, attracting popular support and financial endowments, undertaking many ambitious building schemes, and maintaining a regular conventual and spiritual life. They constituted around half of the total number of religious houses. Irish monasteries, by contrast, had experienced a catastrophic decline in numbers, such that by the 16th century, it appears that only a minority maintained the daily religious observance of the Divine Office. Henry's direct authority, as Lord of Ireland, and from 1541 as King of Ireland, only extended to the area of the Pale immediately around Dublin. From the late 1530s, his administrators temporarily succeeded in persuading some clan chiefs to adopt his policy of surrender and regrant, including the adoption of his state religion.