Acts of Supremacy

The Act of Supremacy by Henry VIII

The Act of Supremacy was passed by Henry VIII as part of his break from Roman Catholicism and the Pope. It was announced in 1534 during the sixth session of the Reformation Parliament. It brought along a change in religious structures of hierarchy and made Henry as monarch "the head on earth of the Church of England."
Therefore, Henry did not only have power over political decisions but also about "all spiritual authority to reform abuses and correct doctrine." One year later, in 1635, he transferred this power to Thomas Cromwell, whom he made his spiritual 'vice-Regent'.

The Act of Supremacy by Elizabeth I

After Mary I had abolished the Act of Supremacy it was restored by Queen Elizabeth I in 1558. The revised form included, for example, the re-installment of elections of bishops by cougé d'élire (i.e. the 'permission to elect' a bishop given to the Dean or Chapter of a cathedral). Moreover, Elizabeth replaced the term of the monarch being "Supreme Head and King" and entitled herself to be the "Supreme governor of this realm, and of all her highness's dominions and countries as well as in all spiritual and ecclesiastical things or causes as temporal."

Contents

The Act of Supremacy includes the Oath of Allegiance and several punishments for people who act against the monarch. Most of all it shows the supremacy of the monarch but also the responsibility towards his/her function.

Sources

The Oxford Companion to British History. Edited by J. Cannon. Oxford University Press, 1992. The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. Edited by F.L. Cross. Oxford University Press, 1997. Full text of Act of Supremacy online: http://history.hanover.edu/texts/engref/er79.html