A BRIEF HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY IN ENGLAND
By Tim Lambert
Christianity in Roman Britain
The first evidence of Christianity in England is from the late 2nd century AD. (There may have been Christians in Britain before then, we cannot be sure). Roman Britain was a cosmopolitan place. Merchants from all over the empire settled there and soldiers from many countries served there so we will never know who first introduced Christianity to England.
At that time England and Wales were ruled by the Romans. The native people were Celts. They were polytheists (they worshipped many gods). Their priests were called druids. When the Romans conquered England and Wales in the 1st century they destroyed the druids. However the people continued to worship their traditional Celtic gods. The Romans too were polytheists and they were willing to allow the Celts to worship their old gods. Furthermore there is some evidence that the Romans identified Celtic gods with their own gods. Many of them were similar and in some places the names of a Roman god and a Celtic god were carved on the same altar.
However the Romans were not tolerant of Christianity. At times waves of persecution crossed the empire. St Alban the first British Christian martyr was executed in a town called Verulamium in 304 AD. Much later an abbey was built there dedicated to St Alban and it gave its name to the town of St Albans.
In 313 the Emperor Constantine granted freedom of worship to Christians. So persecution ended and during the 4th century Christianity became widespread in England.
In 314 three British bishops attended a church council in Arles in France, Eborius bishop of York, Restitutus bishop of London and Adelius bishop of Caerleon (Gwent). So by that time there was a flourishing and organised church in England.
In Hinton St Mary, Dorset a 4th century mosaic was found with the face of Jesus and the Greek letters chi rho, which stand for christos (Greek for Christ) showing Christianity was a popular religion.
Christianity in Saxon England
In 407 the last Roman soldiers left Britain. Over the following decades Roman civilisation broke down. In the 5th and 6th centuries Saxons, Angles and Jutes from Germany and Denmark invaded southern and eastern England and gradually conquered England. Christianity vanished from England, except Cornwall.
However Christianity continued to thrive in Wales and by the early 5th century it spread to Ireland. In the 5th and 6th centuries Scotland was converted. Cut off from the Church in Rome Celtic Christians formed a distinctive Celtic Church.
Converting the Saxons to Christianity was partly the work of the Celtic Church and partly the work of the Roman Church. The Celtic Christians began converting the North of England missionaries were sent from Rome to convert the South. At that time there was no single kingdom of England. Instead there were a number of small kingdoms, which were converted individually.
According to tradition Pope Gregory saw boys on sale in the slave market in Rome. He is supposed to have asked about them and when told that they were Angles he replied ‘not Angles but angels' When he became Pope he was keen to convert the Anglo-Saxons. In 596 he sent a party of about 40 men led by Augustine to Kent. They arrived in 597.
At the end of the 6th century the king of Kent, Aethelberht, married a Christian princess named Berta. It may have been partly due to her influence that Kent was converted to Christianity.
Aethelberht permitted the monks to preach and in time he was converted. Furthermore his nephew, Saeberht, the king of Essex was also converted.
In 627 King Edwin of Northumbria (the North of England) and all his nobles were baptised. (He may have been influenced by his wife, Ethelburgh, who was a Christian). Many of his subjects followed. A man named Paulinius became the first Saxon bishop of York. Paulinius also began converting the kingdom of Lindsey (Lincolnshire).
However things did not go smoothly in Northumbria. King Edwin was killed at the battle of Hatfield in 632 and afterwards most of Northumbria reverted to paganism. They had to be converted all over again by Celtic monks from Scotland. In 634 monks led by a man called Aidan went to Northumbria to preach.
However there was disagreement among Christians in Northumbria. The Celtic Church differed with Rome over the date of Easter. Celtic monks also had a different tonsure (hairstyle) from Roman monks. After Northumbria was converted for the second time there was disagreement over whether to follow the Celtic custom or the Roman. A synod or church meeting was held at Whitby in 664. The Northumbrian king decided his people should follow the Roman way rather than the Celtic.
Further south in 630 a Christian called Sigeberht became King of East Anglia. He asked the Archbishop of Canterbury to send men to help convert his people.
Meanwhile Pope Honorious sent a man named Birinus to convert the West Saxons (who lived in Hampshire).
Then in 653 Paeda, son of Penda king of Mercia (The Midlands) was converted and baptised. His father allowed Christian missionaries to preach in Mercia and gradually the realm was converted.
The last part of England to be converted to Christianity was Sussex. It was converted after 680 by St. Wilfrid.
Finally by the end of the 7th century all of England was at least nominally Christian. However some people continued to secretly worship the old pagan gods as late as the 8th century.
The Celtic Church founded monasteries in the 5th and 6th centuries. When missionaries from Rome arrived they also founded monasteries in England.
However in the 9th century pagan Vikings began raiding England. They raided monasteries and they did great physical damage. In the late 9th century the Danes changed from raiding to conquest. By 878 they had conquered most of England. However Alfred the Great king of Wessex (Southern England) continued to resist. In 878 the Danes were routed at the battle of Edington. Afterwards Guthrum, the Danish leader, and his men were baptised and made a treaty with Alfred. They split southern and central England between them. Guthrum took London, East Anglia and all the territory east of the old Roman road, Watling Street.
Once they were converted to Christianity the Danes of Eastern England had much in common with the Saxons. Gradually Alfred's descendants conquered the Danish-held areas of England and in time they created a single kingdom of England.
However in the late 10th century there was a religious revival. A man named Dunstan (c.1020-1088) was Archbishop of Canterbury. He reformed the monasteries. Many new churches and monasteries were built.
The Church in the Middle Ages
In the Middle Ages religion was a vital part of everyday life. All children were baptised (unless they were Jewish) and everyone attended mass on Sunday. Mass was in Latin, a language that ordinary people did not understand.
Bishops ruled over groups of parishes called dioceses. They usually came from rich families. Bishops lived in palaces and often took part in government. Things were very different for parish priests. They were poor and often had little education. Parish priests had their own land called the glebe where they grew their own food. They lived and worked alongside their parishioners.
In the Middle Ages monks and nuns gave food to the poor. They also ran the only hospitals where they tried to help the sick as best they could. They also provided hospitality for pilgrims and other travellers (although as time went by there were an increasing number of inns where you could pay to stay the night). In a medieval monastery there was an almonry where food or money was given to the poor, the refectory where the monks ate, the dormitory, infirmary and the cloisters where the monks could take exercise. An almoner looked after the poor, an infirmarian looked after the sick and a hospitaller looked after visitors.
As well as the monks from the 13th century there were also friars. They took vows like but instead of withdrawing from the world they went out to preach. Franciscan friars were called grey friars because of their grey costumes. Dominican friars were called black friars.
To read more about monasteries click here.
In the Middle Ages merchants and groups of craftsmen were organised into guilds, which protected their interests. Guilds also put on plays called mystery play. (The word mystery is a corruption of the French word metier, meaning job or trade). The plays were based on Bible stories and were meant to instruct the people. However there was nothing solemn about these plays. They contained lots of jokes.
In the 14th and 15th centuries the Virgin Mary and the saints were given much more prominence in religion. Far more devotion was shown to them. Furthermore rich people paid for chantries, which were chapels where a priest said prayers for the dead in the belief that they would shorted the period the dead person would spend suffering in purgatory before they could enter Heaven.
One famous Christian of the 14th century was John Wycliffe. He translated the Bible from Latin into English. He also denied the doctrine of transubstantiation (the belief that bread and wine are transformed into the body and blood of Christ during mass). Wycliffe died of natural causes but his followers were persecuted. They were known as Lollards (a word that meant mutterers). In 1401 a law was passed which allowed heretics to be burned to death. Nevertheless the Lollards continued to meet during the 15th century.
Another famous Christian of the 14th century and early 15th century was Julian of Norwich.
The Reformation in England
In 1501 Arthur the oldest son of King Henry VII married Catherine of Aragon. However Arthur died in April 1502. Henry VII's son Henry now became heir to the throne. Henry married Catherine of Aragon, his brother's widow in 1509. Normally such a marriage would not have been allowed but the Pope gave a special dispensation.
At the beginning of 1511 Henry had a son. Unfortunately the boy died after only 7 weeks. Catherine had four miscarriages and she only had one child who lived - a girl named Mary born in 1516. Henry was desperate to have a son and heir and Catherine could not give him one.
Henry came to believe - or said he believed - that God was punishing him for marrying his brother's widow. Normally that would not have been allowed but the Pope granted him a special dispensation. Henry now argued that the marriage to Catherine was not valid and should be annulled (declared null and void).
Not surprisingly Catherine was totally opposed to any move to dissolve the marriage.
Henry asked the Pope to annul the marriage. However the Pope would not co-operate. (He could not because Catherine's uncle Charles V of Spain had captured Rome and the pope was his prisoner).
The Henrician Reformation
Meanwhile in 1527 Henry began a relationship with Anne Boleyn. Henry was keen to get rid of Catherine and marry Anne. In 1529 Henry called the 'Reformation Parliament'. Ties between England and Rome were cut one by one. Finally Henry lost patience with the Pope and rejected his authority in 1534 the Act of Supremacy made Henry the head of the Church of England.
Although Henry broke with Rome he kept the Catholic religion essentially intact. He had no intention of changing the English religion to Lutheranism. (In 1521 Henry wrote a book called Assertio Septem Sacramentorum or The Defence of the Seven Sacraments in which he attacked the ideas of Martin Luther. As a reward the Pope granted him the title Fidei Defensor or Defender of the Faith).
However in 1538 Chancellor Thomas Cromwell did make some minor reforms. In 1538 he ordered that every church should have an English translation of the Bible. He also ordered that any 'idolatrous' images should be removed from churches.
Nevertheless in 1539 Henry passed the Act of Six Articles, which laid down the beliefs of the Church of England. The Six Articles preserved the old religion mainly intact. However from 1545 Latin was replaced by English as the language of church services.
Meanwhile Henry dissolved the monasteries. Parliament agreed to dissolve the small ones in 1536. The large ones followed in 1539-1540.
Edward VI
Henry was succeeded by his 9-year-old son Edward. Since he was too young to rule his uncle, Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset, was made protector and ruled in his stead.
Somerset was a devout Protestant as was Archbishop Cranmer. They began to turn England into a truly Protestant country. The Act of Six Articles was repealed and in 1549 the first Book of Common Prayer, the first Anglican prayer book was issued. Meanwhile priests were allowed to marry and pictures or statues of Mary or the saints were removed from churches.
In 1552 a second prayer book was issued. This one was much more extreme than the first. Also in Edward's reign the chantries were closed as Protestants denied the existence of purgatory.
Mary
In 1553 Edward died and he was followed by his sister Mary. She was a devout Catholic and she detested the religious changes of Henry VIII and Edward VI. When Edward became king she continued to attend Catholic mass in her own private chapel. When Edward ordered her to desist she appealed to her cousin, Emperor Charles V. He threatened war with England if she was not left alone.
Mary was determined to undo the religious changes of the two previous reigns. Catholic mass was restored in December 1553. In 1554 married clergy were ordered to leave their wives or lose their posts. Then, in November 1554 the Act of supremacy was repealed.
In 1555 Mary began burning Protestants, which earned her the nickname 'Bloody Mary'. The first martyr was John Rogers who was burned on 4 February 1555. Over the next 3 years almost 300 Protestants were martyred. (Most of them were from Southeast England where Protestantism had spread most widely). Many more Protestants fled abroad.
However Mary's cruelty simply gained sympathy for the Protestants and alienated ordinary people. She simply drove people away from Roman Catholicism. Mary died in 1558.
Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I was crowned in January 1559. She restored Protestantism to England. The Act of Supremacy was restored in April 1559 and further Acts replaced Catholic practices. However it was a moderate Protestantism. Elizabeth disliked extremists. She disapproved of the Puritans. (They were people who wanted to 'purify' the Church of England of its remaining Catholic elements).
All but one of the English bishops refused to take the Oath of Supremacy (recognising Elizabeth as head of the Church of England) and were removed from their posts. About one third of the parish clergy were also removed.
However most of the population (not all) accepted the religious settlement. People could be fined for not attending church. Nevertheless some Catholics continued to practice their religion in secret.
However in 1581 the fines for non-attendance at Church of England services (aimed at Catholics) were greatly increased (although in some areas they were not imposed). In 1585 all Catholic priests were ordered to leave England within 40 days or face a charge of treason. Despite these measures the great majority of English Catholics remained loyal to the Queen when the Spanish Armada sailed in 1588.
Meanwhile clergymen became much better educated during the 16th century. By the end of the century many of them did a degree.
Christianity in 17th Century England
In the early 17th century king and parliament clashed over the issue of religion. In the 17th century religion was far more important than it is today. It was a vital part of everyday life. Furthermore there was no toleration in matters of religion. By law everybody was supposed to belong to the Church of England (though in practice there were many Roman Catholics especially in the Northwest).
In 1633 William Laud was made Archbishop of Canterbury. He was strongly opposed to the Puritans and King Charles I supported him wholeheartedly. Laud was determined to suppress the Puritans and he sent commissioners into almost every parish to make sure the local churches came into line.
Furthermore the Puritans had their own preachers called lecturers. These men were independent of the Church of England. Laud tried to put a stop to these preachers - with some success.
Most of all Laud emphasised the ceremony and decoration in churches. These measures were strongly opposed by the Puritans. They feared it was the 'thin edge of the wedge' and Catholicism would eventually be restored in England.
In 1642 came civil war between king and parliament. The war ended in 1646 and Charles I was executed in 1649.
In the 16th century everybody was supposed to belong to the Church of England. However in the 17th century independent churches were formed. The first Baptist Church in England began meeting in 1612.
Later in the 17th century George Fox (1624-1691) founded the Quakers. Fox believed that everybody had an inner light and during the 1660s and the 1670s he travelled across England. However the Quakers were persecuted and Fox himself was often imprisoned.
From the end of the 16th century there were also Congregationalists or Independents. They believed that every congregation had a right to run its own affairs without any outside interference.
Charles II (1660-1685) was not particularly religious but as far as he had any religion he secretly leaned to Roman Catholicism. (He had to keep this very quiet as he feared the people would rebel if they found out).
Meanwhile parliament was determined to crack down on the many independent churches that had sprung up during the interregnum (the period between 1649 and 1660 when England was without a king) and make Anglicanism the state religion again.
They passed a series of acts called the Clarendon code, a series of laws to persecute non-conformists (Protestants who did not belong to the Church of England). The Corporation Act of 1661 said that all officials in towns must be members of the Church of England.
The Act of Uniformity 1662 said that all clergy must use the Book of Common Prayer. About 2,000 clergy who disagreed resigned. Furthermore the Conventicle Act of 1664 forbade unauthorised religious meetings of more than 5 people unless they were all of the same household.
Finally the Five Mile Act of 1665 forbade non-Anglican ministers to come within 5 miles of incorporated towns. (Towns with a mayor and corporation).
However these measures did not stop the non-conformists meeting or preaching.
When Charles II died in 1685 he was followed by James II, who was openly Catholic. James II promptly alienated the people by appointing Catholics to powerful and important positions. In 1687 he went further and issued a Declaration of Indulgence suspending all laws against Catholics and Protestant non-Anglicans.
Worse in June 1688 James had a son. The people of England were willing to tolerate James as long as he did not have a Catholic heir. However his son would certainly be brought up a Catholic and would, of course, succeed his father.
James II was deposed in 1688. Afterwards the Bill of Rights (1689) said that no Catholic could become king or queen. No king could marry a Catholic.
Parliament also passed the Toleration Act in 1689. Non-conformists were allowed their own places of worship and their own teachers and preachers. However they could not hold government positions or attend university.
Christianity in 18th Century England
The early 18th century was noted for its lack of religious enthusiasm. It was an age of reason rather then dogmatism and the churches lacked vigour. However in the mid-18th century things began to change. In 1739 the great evangelist George Whitefield (1714-1770) began preaching. Also in 1739 John Wesley (1703-1791) began preaching. He eventually created a new religious movement called the Methodists.
John Wesley travelled all over the country, often preaching in open spaces. People jeered at his meetings and threw stones but Wesley persevered. He never intended to form a movement separate from the Church of England. However the Methodists did eventually break away.
Though there were still Roman Catholics in England, especially in the Northwest anti-Catholic feeling remained very strong. In 1780 London was rocked by the anti-Catholic Gordon riots. Riots Lord George Gordon (1751-1793) was an MP who led a huge crowd to parliament to present a petition demanding the repeal of a 1778 act, which removed certain restrictions on Roman Catholics. The demonstration became a riot. With cries of 'No Popery!' the rioters held London for several days until the army restored order. About 300 people died in the rioting.
At the end of the 18th century a group of Evangelical Christians called the Clapham Sect were formed. They campaigned for an end to slavery and cruel sports. They were later called the Clapham Sect because so many of them lived in Clapham.
In the late 18th century religious enthusiasm began to revive in England.
Christianity in 19th Century England
During the 19th century Britain was transformed by the industrial revolution. In 1801, at the time of the first census, only about 20% of the population lived in towns. By 1851 the figure had risen to over 50%. By 1881 about two thirds of the population lived in towns.
During the early 19th century religious revival continued. The Church of England regained its energy and many new churches were built.
Meanwhile in 1829 the Catholic Emancipation Act was passed. Since the Reformation Catholics had been unable to become MPs or to hold public office. The Act restored those rights to them.
Organised religion was much more important in Victorian times than it is today. Nevertheless in 1851 a survey showed that only about 40% of the population were at church or chapel on a given Sunday. Even allowing for those who were ill or could not make it for some other reason it meant that half the population did not go to church. Certainly many of the poor had little or no contact with the church. In 1881 a similar survey showed only about 1/3 of the population at church on a given Sunday. In the late 19th century organised religion was in decline.
During the 19th century many poor workers had little or no contact with the church. In 1865 William and Catherine Booth founded a new movement to reach the poor and fight a 'war' against poverty. In 1878 it was named the Salvation Army.
Christianity in 20th Century England
During the 20th century church going declined rapidly and by the end of the 20th century only a small minority of the population attended church regularly. Nevertheless most people continued to believe in God and in the late 20th century there was a hunger for the spiritual. There was an explosion of interest in the occult and the New Age Movement.
Meanwhile in the early 20th century Pentecostal churches were formed. They practised the gifts of the Holy Spirit such as praying in tongues. In the 1906s use of the gifts of the Holy Spirit spread to mainstream churches. In the 1970s and 1980s charismatic or 'house churches' became common.
At the end of the 20th century the Alpha Course became an effective method of introducing people to Christianity.