Religion as a Factor in Change of Royal Authority 1540-1640
- Submitted by: je55
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- Category: History: European
- Date Submitted: 11/18/2015 09:27 AM
- Pages: 8
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Throughout the period of 1540 and 1642, royal authority greatly changed over time and with each Monarch in power. For example, throughout Elizabeth I’s reign she had strong authority and was respected by her subjects, however throughout Charles I’s reign, royal authority was weakened and ultimately resulted in Charles’ execution. Religion was largely a factor in bringing about the multiple changes in the nature of royal authority. England was often subject to disruption from the subjects of the monarchy which proved to be, at times, due to the fact the monarchy was not trusted to be faithful to the religion followed by England at that given time. Religion, however, was not the only factor which brought about change in the nature of royal authority. Factors such as the relationship monarchs had with Parliament, and the strength of the monarch’s personality also provided contributions to the changes in royal authority. Overall, a dominating factor was that of the personality of the monarch; should the monarch of the time have a very strong personality, they were far more likely to be respected and therefore have authority, whereas a monarch such as Charles I, who was weak as a ruler consequently had very weak overall authority.
One factor which did greatly contribute to changes in the nature of royal authority was the religious changes which took place throughout the one-hundred year period. Religion was a very important aspect of most people’s lives, this is seen in Warren’s reference to how “every citizen was born into the Church through baptism, would be married by it, would attend its services on Sundays and receive its consolations before death.” The fact that religion constantly surrounded individuals both weekly and in major life events meant that if it were to change, for example for the people of England to be told they now had to change from Protestantism to Catholicism, there was a high risk of uprising due to the fact it would greatly change their...
One factor which did greatly contribute to changes in the nature of royal authority was the religious changes which took place throughout the one-hundred year period. Religion was a very important aspect of most people’s lives, this is seen in Warren’s reference to how “every citizen was born into the Church through baptism, would be married by it, would attend its services on Sundays and receive its consolations before death.” The fact that religion constantly surrounded individuals both weekly and in major life events meant that if it were to change, for example for the people of England to be told they now had to change from Protestantism to Catholicism, there was a high risk of uprising due to the fact it would greatly change their...