Governo 3: The Uniformity Act Of 1559

1) Supreme Governor of the Church: When Henry VIII broke away from the Catholic Church, he declared himself to be the Supreme Head of the English Church, and the title was perfectly acceptable for Henry to take because of the gender norms at the time. When Elizabeth takes the throne, she and her Parliament are faced with a dilemma because Elizabeth was a woman who, according to the same gender norms that Henry faced, could not be the head of a Church because to place a woman in a seat of power over religion had the potential to render the entire religion as illegitimate. However, Elizabeth held careful control over her word choice and style. Because of this, Elizabeth recognized how disastrous taking the title of Supreme Head could be for her England and instead took the title of …show more content…
In this document, Elizabeth included extreme punishments for not following the new order of service for her Protestant services because to undermine her in this religious aspect was to undermine her legitimacy and power as an authority on the throne. Elizabeth believed in the concept of divine right, and she then also followed the older notion of quius regio, quius religio, where the religion of the ruler was the religion of the people. One of the main reasons why Elizabeth attempted to unify the nation early during her rule was due to the intense rivalry between Catholics and Protestants that was caused by the swift and dramatic shift to break away from the Catholic Church under Henry VIII, and a return to the Church under his daughter, Mary. This Act of Uniformity was one of several political moves to unify England under Elizabeth’s control and for the nation to respect her legitimacy and authority as a divinely placed monarch on England’s