The King's Reformation: Henry VIII and the Remaking of the English Church (review)

The King's Reformation charts the religious twists and turn of Henry VIII's reign, beginning with Henry VIII's questioning of the validity of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. In the period 1527-1533 Henry consistently threatened the Pope with unilateral action in England to secure the divorce if the Pope did not comply: the Royal Supremacy, we are told, was a possibility from the beginning as the essential ideological framework was present. The visitation of the monasteries in 1535, and the subsequent dissolution of the less economically viable houses in 1536, stemmed from a genuine reforming impulse, not financial motivations. Henry's attitude toward monasticism in general only deteriorated as a result of the Pilgrimage of Grace. Although the King's reformation led to changes in doctrine and worship, it did not introduce continental evangelical reform, but was rather initially inspired by Erasmian humanism. The changes, however, were so substantial that the nature of religion afterwards cannot simply be characterized as an interpretation or rethinking of pre-1530's Catholicism, but should instead be recognized as partially radical and unique to Henry's kingdoms. In light of the opposition Henry VIII faced from conservative quarters, Bernard argues against the notion that English subjects complied with religious change because they negotiated the reformation for their own profit. Rather, it was Henry's tyrannical suppression of outspoken critics that silenced men across the religious spectrum. In contrast to historians who depict religious policy in the 1530's and 1540's as contingent upon the influence of competing factions on the King, Bernard instead describes a monarch in control of his church and episcopate, who assiduously pursued a considered via media. Even those assemblies which were ostensibly debates among the leading clergymen to determine doctrine, were, apparently, conducted along lines prescribed by the King. The King's Reformation takes issue with interpretations that suggest that Thomas Cromwell, Thomas Cranmer, and other leading evangelicals were attempting to influence Henry into a more reformist religious stance. Bernard's Cromwell was not continually pursuing his own, more evangelical agenda, but instead was emphatically a Henrician, while if Archbishop Cranmer influenced anything, we are assured, it was merely the details, not the direction of religious policy. Readers who are relatively unfamiliar with this area should be aware that Bernard assumes a large degree of background knowledge of both events and historical debate. The balance of Bernard's book is also somewhat problematic. While early opposition to the Divorce and Supremacy, and the Pilgrimage of Grace receive substantial attention, some areas which do not easily fit Bernard's picture of a king-driven and coherent via media are discussed only relatively briefly, most notably the debates in 1537 which led to the drafting of the Bishops' Book and the developments of the 1540's. The King's Reformation is undeniably an important contribution to the study of reformation in Henrician England, which will undoubtedly provoke much debate.