The Increasing Threat of Puritans (WJEC Eduqas GCSE History): Revision Note

Why did the Puritans Become an Increasing Threat during Elizabeth’s Reign?- Summary 

Elizabeth I introduced the 1559 Religious Settlement to create a ‘middle way’ between Catholicism and Protestantism, hoping to unite her people and avoid religious conflict. However, some Protestants, known as Puritans, believed the Church of England had not gone far enough in removing Catholic practices and wanted further reform.

Puritan influence grew throughout Elizabeth’s reign, with some seeking change through Parliament and others pushing for more radical reforms, such as removing bishops or even separating from the Church entirely. Events such as the Vestment Controversy (1566), Thomas Cartwright’s demands for Presbyterianism, and separatist movements like the Brownists demonstrated growing Puritan disapproval of the Religious Settlement.

Despite this, the Puritan threat was limited compared to the Catholic threat. Puritans did not attempt to overthrow Elizabeth, and she was able to control them by closing Parliament, destroying printing presses, imprisoning leaders, and enforcing conformity through new laws, such as the 1593 Act against Seditious Sectaries.

What is Puritanism?

• A Puritan is an extreme and strict Protestant who believed: 

  • There should be no religious compromise 

  • In the teachings of John Calvin

    • Calvin argued for the removal of all Catholic features in English churches

  • Sunday was the Lord’s day, and it should be entirely devoted to religious study 

• They opposed many Christian practices, ideas, and roles, including: 

  • The role of bishops

    • They claimed the position was created by the Pope to maintain his power 

    • No bishops are mentioned in the Bible 

  • Kneeling to receive communion 

  • The use of a ring in a marriage ceremony 

  • Decoration of a church 

    • Such as stained glass windows and ornaments 

  • Celebrating saints’ days 

  • Playing organ music in church services

• Three main strands of Puritanism emerged in this period 

  • Moderate Puritans

    •  Accepted the Religious Settlement of 1559, but wanted more reforms to be made to the Church 

  • Presbyterians 

    • Wanted more reform, including simpler services and the removal of bishops 

  • Separatists 

    • They wanted to break away from the Church of England 

    • Believed that churches should be run independently 

• Under the reign of Elizabeth I, many Puritans returned to England 

  • They left England during the reign of Mary I due to her religious persecution of Protestants 

• Elizabeth had many Puritans in her court and government, including: 

  • Francis Walsingham 

  • Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester 

• Some of Elizabeth’s bishops were sympathetic to the Puritan beliefs, including 

  • Edmund Grindal, Bishop of London 

  • Edwin Sandys, Bishop of Worcester 

  • John Jewl, Bishop of Salisbury  

Challenge to the Settlement 

• After the Religious Settlement in 1559, many Puritans wanted to reform the Church 

• However, Puritans did not pose as large a threat to Elizabeth as the Catholics did 

  • Puritans tended to raise their concerns in Parliament 

  • Puritans did not plot to overthrow or kill Elizabeth 

• Although the Puritan threat was small, it still posed a challenge to Elizabethan England 

Vestment Controversy, 1566 

• In 1566, many Puritan priests refused to follow the guidance provided on vestments by Matthew Parker, the Archbishop of Canterbury 

  • They claimed that the guidance was similar to the clothing worn by Catholics 

• Elizabeth saw these protests as a direct challenge to her authority 

• Elizabeth insisted that priests wear the vestments, or they would lose their jobs 

• Some Puritan priests refused to wear the vestments and were punished 

  • Thomas Sampson, the Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, was dismissed 

  • A total of 27 Puritan priests in London were also dismissed 

Thomas Cartwright, 1570 

• In 1570, Thomas Cartwright, a professor at Cambridge University, stated that a Presbyterian system should be introduced to the government to 

  • Allow each church to be ruled locally 

  • Remove the role of the archbishop and all bishops 

• These suggestions would have significantly weakened Elizabeth’s power 

• Elizabeth and the privy council rejected these suggestions

  • Cartwright was forced to leave England for Geneva 

The marriage pamphlet of John Stubbs, 1579 

• In 1579, John Stubbs had written a pamphlet criticising Elizabeth’s marriage negotiations with Francis, Duke of Aleçon

  • Stubbs was put on trial and found guilty 

    • He had his right hand cut off 

Puritan Opposition in the Privy Council and Parliament 

• Some of Elizabeth’s most powerful privy councilors were Puritans 

  • Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester 

  • Sir Francis Walsingham 

• In Parliament, many Members of Parliament (MPs) were also Puritan 

• Many MPs would attempt to introduce bills that were favorable to Puritanism, including: 

  • Walter Strickland, who proposed a bill for the introduction of a new Book of Common Prayer and to ban vestments

    • Elizabeth shut down Parliament before this could be discussed

    • The Thirty-nine Articles were approved by Parliament, stating that all priests had to accept the articles to keep their jobs

  • John Field and Thomas Wilcox, in 1572, published books arguing about the structure of the Church 

    • They claimed that the Presbyterian Church structure was the one described in the Bible 

    • They also criticised the Book of Common Prayer 

    • They were both arrested and imprisoned for a year 

    • Elizabeth ordered Puritan printing presses to be destroyed 

  • Peter Wentworth, in 1576, argued that MPs should be allowed to discuss what they want in Parliament 

    • Elizabeth placed him in the Tower of London and stated that Parliament was not to debate religious matters without her permission 

  • Peter Turner, in 1584, proposed a bill to change the government of the church to copy the Calvin system at Geneva 

    • This bill did not generate much support 

  • Anthony Cope, in 1586, introduced a bill to Parliament to abolish all bishops and to introduce the Geneva Prayer Book of John Calvin instead of the Book of Common Prayer

    • Cope and his supporters were imprisoned in the Tower of London for several months, and Parliament was shut down 

Dealing With the Puritan Challenge 

• Elizabeth faced two main challenges from the Puritans outside of Parliament 

  • Prophesying 

  • Separatists 

Prophesying 

• In the 1570s, Puritans started to organise meetings known as prophesyings 

  • The clergy would pray and discuss religion, which was often critical of Elizabeth’s church

  • The meetings were supported by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Edmund Grindal 

    • Elizabeth believed these meetings were dangerous and ordered Grindal to ban them, 

    • Grindal refused

    • Grindal was suspended, and 200 Puritan Priests were expelled 

  • Elizabeth issued her own instructions to the bishops, banning prophesying 

John Whitgift and Separatists 

• John Whitgift became the new Archbishop of Canterbury in 1583, after the death of Edmund Grindal 

  • Whitgift was a member of the privy council and a Protestant 

• In 1583, Whitgift introduced the Three Articles that forced uniformity, ensuring that the clergy 

  • Accepted the role of the bishop 

  • The Book of Common Prayer 

  • Acceptance of the Thirty-nine Articles 

• Approximately 300-400 ministers were removed from office as they refused to accept the Three Article

• Separatist groups decided to leave the Church and form their own, due to 

  • Whitgift's enforcement of uniformity 

  • The imprisonment of some Puritans 

  • The destruction of printing presses 

• In 1580, Robert Browne established a separatist church 

  • Known as the Brownists 

• Browne argued that the ‘middle way’ contained elements of the Catholic faith and therefore lacked moral discipline 

  • Browne was imprisoned and later moved to Holland in 1582 

• Later in 1592, Henry Barrow and John Greenwood created another separatist church in London

  • Parliament passed the 1593 Act against Seditious Sectaries, which imprisoned or executed suspected separatists

    • Barrow and Greenwood were arrested and hanged for distributing Brownist pamphlets 

• The Marprelate Tracts, a series of anonymous pamphlets, were a part of the separatist movement 

  • They attacked the church and the bishops 

    • This attack offended many people as it contained violence and offensive language 

• In response, some Protestants wrote pamphlets against Puritans 

  • Including the 1593 Richard Hooker pamphlet called Laws of Ecclesiastical Policy 

• Elizabeth responded by asking Parliament to pass the Act Against Seditious Sectaries in 1593 

  • This gave Elizabeth the power to

    • Execute separatists 

    • Impose harsh penalties on those who attended unauthorised meetings