King Henry VIII and the Dissolution of the Monastries

Why?

1. After his divorce (on 23 May, 1533), Henry VIII needed to reduce the power of the Church's power in England, 2. He needed to find money to fund his fruitless and expensive wars against France and Scotland.

what happened?

1. Henry put Thomas Cromwell in charge of getting rid of the monasteries. 2. Cromwell started by sending royal commissioners to all the monasteries in 1535 - 1536 to find out what they own, how much money they have coming in, and to report on what is happening inside the monasteries. 3. The royal commissioners report stated that the monks and nuns are seriously breaking the rules they should be living by.

The Act of Supremacy (1534)

1. The Act of Supremacy (1534) confirmed the break from Rome 2. It declared Henry to be the Supreme Head of the Church of England.

Dissolution of the Monastries

1. The conflict between Henry VIII and the Roman Catholic Church eventually led to the seizure of Church properties by the state. 2. Over 800 monasteries were dissolved, demolished for building materials, sold off or reclaimed as Anglican Churches.

when?

1. The year 1536 saw Henry order the closing down of the wealthy Roman Catholic Abbeys, monasteries and convents across England, Wales and Ireland. 2. This Act became known as the 'Dissolution of the Monasteries'

Herny VIII and the Pope

The Pope refused to grant Henry's wish to divorce Catherine of Aragon,which led to Henry setting up the Church of England