Thomas Cranmer served as the first Protestant Archbishop of Canterbury from 1533 to 1555 and was one of the prime architects of the English Reformation during the reigns of Henry VIII of England (r. 1509-1547) and Edward VI of England (r. 1547-1553). Cranmer oversaw such reforms as conducting services in English instead of Latin, removing altars and iconography from churches, and closing down the monasteries. The archbishop also wrote and introduced a new and influential Book of Common Prayer. When Catholic Mary I of England (r. 1553-1558) then swept back the Reformation and restored Catholicism, Cranmer was one of her principal victims and was burned at the stake in Oxford in 1556.
More about: Thomas CranmerDefinition
Timeline
-
1489Thomas Cranmer, future Archbishop of Canterbury, is born in Nottinghamshire.
-
1529Thomas Cranmer serves as the chaplain to Thomas Boleyn, Earl of Wiltshire.
-
1530Henry VIII of England appoints Thomas Cranmer as ambassador to the court of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.
-
1531Thomas Cranmer serves as the personal chaplain of Henry VIII of England.
-
1533 - 1555Thomas Cranmer serves as the Archbishop of Canterbury.
-
25 Jan 1533Henry VIII of England marries his second wife, Anne Boleyn, in secret.
-
30 Mar 1533Henry VIII of England appoints Thomas Cranmer as the Archbishop of Canterbury.
-
23 May 1533Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury formally annuls Henry VIII of England’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon.
-
30 Apr 1534Parliament passes the Act of Succession which declares Henry VIII of England's daughter Mary (with Catherine of Aragon) illegitimate.
-
28 Nov 1534The Act of Supremacy declares Henry VIII of England the head of the Church in England and not the Pope.
-
6 Jul 1535Sir Thomas More is executed for refusing to acknowledge Henry VIII of England as the head of the Church in England.
-
1536Henry VIII of England and Thomas Cromwell push a bill through Parliament which begins the Dissolution of the Monasteries in England and Wales.
-
17 May 1536Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, formally annuls the marriage of Henry VIII of England to Anne Boleyn.
-
Oct 1536 - Dec 1536The Pilgrimage of Grace, a popular uprising against religious changes made by Henry VIII of England, marches in the north of England.
-
1539Henry VIII of England approves the translation of the Bible into English.
-
1539Henry VIII of England guarantees certain Catholic practices with the Act of Six Articles.
-
1539Parliament passes an act to close all monasteries in England and Wales regardless of size.
-
1539Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, is obliged to divorce his wife following the passing of the Act of Six Articles.
-
1547Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, issues his 'Book of Homilies'.
-
1549The Kett Rebellion breaks out in Norfolk led by Robert Kett.
-
1549A new Book of Common Prayer is issued in England.
-
1549The Act of Uniformity makes the new Book of Common Prayer compulsory in England.
-
1552A new, even more radical Book of Common Prayer is issued in England, removing many of the Catholic elements of religious worship.
-
Oct 1553The First Act of Repeal reverses all the religious-aimed legislation of Edward VI of England.
-
Jan 1554 - Feb 1554A rebellion led by Sir Thomas Wyatt marches on London against Mary I of England.
-
Jan 1555The Second Act of Repeal abolishes all post-1529 CE legislation concerning religious matters in England.
-
21 Mar 1556Thomas Cranmer is burnt at the stake in Oxford for heresy.
