Puritans (AQA GCSE History)
Revision Note
Written by: Natasha Smith
Reviewed by: Bridgette Barrett
Did the Puritans Pose a Significant Threat to Elizabeth’s Religious Settlement? - Summary
Puritans were hopeful for the succession of Elizabeth I in 1555. After the five-year reign of the Catholic Mary I, Puritans believed Elizabeth would return the Church of England to Protestantism.
During the 1560s, Puritan clergymen began breaking elements of the Religious Settlement. They thought that Elizabeth had maintained too many Catholic elements within the design and services of churches. They demanded the removal of crucifixes and vestments from their churches. Some devout Puritans argued for the abolition of organ music and holy days. Most parishioners did not want the removal of these elements of the church. More seriously, Puritans challenged Elizabeth’s authority as Supreme Governor of the Church of England. The Act of Supremacy established her power over church matters.
As the challenges originated from Puritan clergymen, Elizabeth had to consider her reaction. Elizabeth used a combination of compromise and punishment. This was effective in dealing with the Puritan challenge to the Religious Settlement.
Who were the Puritans?
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
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
How did Elizabeth deal with the Puritan threat?
Puritans did not pose as large of 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, they still posed a challenge to Elizabethan England
The Puritan threat to Elizabethan England
Date | The Puritan threat | Elizabeth’s response |
|---|---|---|
1566 | Puritans wore plain clothing, but bishops in the Church of England wore a surplice during services. This caused arguments among Puritan Bishops | Elizabeth made it clear that bishops who refused to wear a surplice would lose their jobs |
1571 | Walter Strickland, the leader of a Puritan group, wanted to ban vestments and reform the new Prayer Book | Elizabeth closed parliament to prevent his ideas from being discussed |
1570s | Purtains started to organise meetings known as prophesyings. At these meetings, the clergy would pray and discuss religion which was often critical of Elizbaeth’s church. These meetings were supported by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Edmund Grindal | Elizabeth saw these meetings as dangerous. She ordered Grindal to ban the meetings but he refused. Grindal was suspended and 200 Puritan priests were expelled. Grindal returned after he apologised to Elizabeth |
1580 | Robert Browne created a new separatist church | Browne was arrested and later released |
1583 | John Stubbs, a Puritan, published a pamphlet criticising Elizabeth’s marriage negotiations with Francis, Duke of Anjou and Aleçon | Stubbs was put on trial and found guilty. He had his right hand cut off |
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 |
Elizabeth was able to control the threat of Puritans more effectively when John Whitgift became the new Archbishop of Canterbury in 1583, as Whitgift introduced:
Rules banning unlicensed preaching
Recusancy fines
A new High Commission
Who had the power to fine and imprison Puritans who did not conform
Worked Example
Write an account of the ways Elizabeth I dealt with the Puritan threat.
[8 Marks]
Partial answer:
One way Elizabeth dealt with the Puritan threat was by using severe punishments to control the problem. Individual Puritans like Robert Browne created separatist churches Elizabeth punished these individuals initially by using threats or lighter punishments. For example, Browne was arrested for establishing a separatist church in 1580. However, as these threats developed, or continued, Elizabeth used severe punishments to stop or eliminate the threat. This was seen when John Stubbs attempted to create a separatist church in 1583, Stubbs was put on trial and had his right hand cut off. This was an effective way of dealing with the Puritan threat because no one attempted to build a separatist church in Elizabethan England.
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Above is a partial answer for an 8-mark ‘write an account’ question. To achieve a Level 4, you need to explain two paragraphs that demonstrate either cause and consequence, sequencing or connections about the event or issue outlined. In your revision, you may want to consider organising your revision based on those second-order concepts..
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