As you come in…

Write the date and the title:

Why did Henry VIII break from Rome?

Starter

Write two separate definitions for:

• Christianity

• Catholicism

Extension: How many different denominations (branches) of Christianity can you think of?

Learning Objectives

• To know why Henry and the Pope fell out.

• To understand the reasons why Henry broke with Rome.

• To be able to explain whether Henry broke with Rome due to power, religion, money, or love.

Catholicism in Medieval England

In 1500 almost everyone in England was a Catholic. Some Catholic beliefs were:

• Churches should be highly decorated.

• The Bible and church services should be in Latin.

• The Pope is the head of the Church. The Pope and his bishops can forgive sins.

• Priests should wear special clothes to show their special status as a link between God and man.

• The altar in the church is very important. It should look spectacular.

The Protestant Way

In the 1500s some people started to feel that the Catholic Church had lost its way.

The Catholic Church is too rich. People give the Church lots of money, but the bishops and monks spend it on themselves

instead of helping the poor!

Some priests are lazy. Some of them do not even visit their parishes, and let someone else take their services!

It’s wrong for the Catholic services and Bible to still be in Latin. Most people don’t understand Latin. How can we feel close to

God if we don’t understand the Bible?

Rich people can pay a bishop or the Pope to have their sins forgiven. This isn’t fair! Only God can forgive sins!

The Protestant Way

Protestants believed:

• Churches should be simply decorated.

• The Bible and church services should be in English.

• Jesus Christ is the head of the Church. Only Jesus can forgive sins.

• Priests wear simple robes. They are ordinary people.

• The altar in the church should be replaced by a wooden table with no distracting ornaments.

In Medieval England…

• It was a crime to not be Catholic.

• Attending Church was compulsory. You could be fined if you didn’t go!

• Protestants were a bit rebellious and very brave. It was brave to have new ideas.

• The Church was where messages from the king were read out.

Catholicism vs. Protestantism

In one paragraph each, explain the views of Catholics and Protestants.

Catholics in Tudor England believed…

Protestants in Tudor England believed…

Henry VIII

Read the sheet about Henry and underline any reasons why Henry might fall out with the Pope.

Extension: Why did past kings fall out with the Pope? Think about Henry II and Thomas Becket!

Hint: Think about what Henry wanted versus what the Pope

might have wanted!

Look at the problems Henry faced on page 34 of the textbook.

Key question: Why might Henry

and the Pope fall out? Explain why in your book.

Now read Henry’s solutions on page 35. Make cards explaining the different reasons why Henry VIII broke from the Catholic Church using the following headings: • Power • Religion • Money • Love

You can use the same evidence for different cards as long as you explain how it fits!

You have a pot of 10 significance points. How will you distribute them?

Decide how many points each factor deserves. Which ones are more significant (important)? Which ones deserve more points than others?

Remember, you can only give 10 points overall!!

Which factor did you give the most significance points to?

Why is this factor more important than the others? Write a

paragraph in your book explaining the factor in full and why it is

more important than the other factors.

Why did Henry break from Rome?

Henry VIII

• Became king in 1509

• Henry was the first king to insist on being called ‘Your Majesty’ – no one had called English kings this before!

• The Pope called Henry ‘Defender of the Faith’ because he was such a good Roman Catholic.

Money and Power

• Henry badly needed money to pay for the wars he had been fighting in France.

• The monasteries of England were very rich.

• Protestants said that the Catholic Church was too rich and corrupt, and that Catholic priests were greedy.

• Some rulers in Germany had managed to end the Pope’s power over their people. Henry liked the sound of this. Why should the Pope, a foreign Church leader, have so much control over England?

Marriage to Catherine of Aragon.

• First wife: Catherine of Aragon, a Spanish princess.

• She had been married to Henry’s brother. The Bible says a man should not marry his brother’s widow, but the Pope gave permission for the marriage to go ahead.

• By 1526 the marriage had gone badly wrong. Henry needed a son to be his heir. Catherine had had one healthy child, a daughter called Mary. After Mary Catherine had a lot of miscarriages and still born children, or her children died young. Henry wanted a wife who would give him a son.

• In 1527 Henry asked the Pope to divorce Catherine but the Pope wouldn’t let him!

• Henry also wanted to divorce Catherine because he had fallen madly in love with Anne Boleyn, a young lady at his court.