Act of Supremacy
(Redirected from Act of Supremacy 1536)
Categories: English laws | English Reformation | 1534 in law | Religion and politics
First Act of Supremacy 1534
The Act of Supremacy 1534 (26 Hen. 8, c. 1) was an Act of Parliament under King Henry VIII of England that declared that he was 'the only supreme head in earth of the Church in England' and that the English crown shall enjoy "all honours, dignities, preeminences, jurisdictions, privileges, authorities, immunities, profits, and commodities to the said dignity".
Henry, who had been declared "Defender of the Faith" (Fidei Defensor) for his pamphlet accusing Martin Luther of heresy, was now confirmed as head of the Church in England. This made official the English Reformation that had been brewing since 1527, along with a rather long-lasting distrust between England and the Catholic Church. The act was a result of Henry's desire for an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon; however, Pope Clement VII had refused to grant it. The Act of Supremacy caused any act of allegiance to the Pope (or any other non-Episcopalian religion, for that matter) to be considered treason. This act was repealed in 1554 by Henry's daughter, Queen Mary I, who was a staunch Catholic.
Second Act of Supremacy 1559
- Main article: Act of Supremacy 1559
The second Act of Supremacy was the reinstatement of the original Act of Supremacy 1534. The English monarch was again the head of the Church of England, above the authority of the Pope. This was enacted by Queen Elizabeth I, the Protestant monarch after the Catholic Mary I. Anyone who took public or church office was forced to take the Oath of Supremacy, and there were penalties for violating that oath. However, Elizabeth, who was a politique, did not prosecute nonconformists, or those who did not follow the established rules of the Church of England, unless their actions directly undermined the authority of the English monarch, as was prone to being the case, as in the vestments controversy.
As established by the Tudors, the consolidation of church and state in the Royal Supremacy instigated political and religious strife that would eventually lead to the separation of these domains.
cs:Act of Supremacy de:Suprematsakte ja:首長令 nl:Act of SupremacyCatgeory:Anglicanism