Some thoughts on this.....The Reformation was a much wider issue, pertaining to several European countries, and generally concerned with the reform of christian religious practice. Henry's break from Rome was a politically rather than religiously motivated move. In addition, the break from Rome was not really a single act: the authority of the 'Bishop of Rome' was ended through a series of parliamentary acts, each addressing - and ending - different elements of the powers of the Pope. Despite these distinctions, I suspect that when people today write 'English Reformation' they are referring to the political process rather than religious reform. So... I don't know if there is a word, because I don't know if contemporary court types would have had the pre-break/post-break sense that we have. It may be the case that Henry referred to his acts as 'reformation' as a PR move to ally himself with the religious reformers, but I'm not sure. References to the 'Reformation Statutes' don't seem to be contemporary with the statutes themselves. I have a hunch that AS would not have been referring to 'The Reformation', unless in terms of the movement of European religious reform. I think you need another term, but I don't know what that would be.
Regards,
K.
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From: British & Irish poets [[log in to unmask]] on behalf of Mark Weiss [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 08 December 2014 18:33
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Query
Received this from a friend: "What would contemporary court types have called Henry VIII's religious break from Rome? I'm editing a novel in which Anne Seymour keeps calling it 'The Reformation.'"
Got me curious, and I have no idea. Anybody have an answer, before I bother Robin Hamilton?
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