Protestants were executed in England under heresy laws during the reigns of

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

(1509–1547) and

Mary I Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, and as "Bloody Mary" by her Protestant opponents, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 and Queen of Spain from January 1556 until her death in 1558. She ...

(1553–1558). Radical Christians also were executed, though in much smaller numbers, during the reigns of

Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...

(1547–1553),

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". Eli ...

(1558–1603), and

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) *James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) *James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu *James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...

(1603–1625). The excesses of this period were recorded in Foxe's ''Book of Martyrs''. Protestants in England and Wales were executed under legislation that punished anyone judged guilty of

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important relig ...

against

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. Although the standard penalty for those convicted of treason in England at the time was execution by being

hanged, drawn and quartered To be hanged, drawn and quartered became a statutory penalty for men convicted of high treason in the Kingdom of England from 1352 under King Edward III (1327–1377), although similar rituals are recorded during the reign of King Henry III ...

, this legislation adopted the punishment of burning the condemned. At least 280 people were recognised as burned over the five years of Mary I's reign by contemporary sources.

Historical context

English Reformation

The

English Reformation The English Reformation took place in 16th-century England when the Church of England broke away from the authority of the pope and the Catholic Church. These events were part of the wider European Protestant Reformation, a religious and poli ...

had put a stop to

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

ecclesiastical governance in England, asserted

royal supremacy The Acts of Supremacy are two acts passed by the Parliament of England in the 16th century that established the English monarchs as the head of the Church of England; two similar laws were passed by the Parliament of Ireland establishing the Eng ...

over the English Church and dissolved some church institutions, such as monasteries and chantries. An important year in the English Reformation was 1547, when Protestantism became a new force under the child-king

, England's first Protestant ruler. Edward died at age 15 in 1553. His relative

Lady Jane Grey Lady Jane Grey ( 1537 – 12 February 1554), later known as Lady Jane Dudley (after her marriage) and as the "Nine Days' Queen", was an English noblewoman who claimed the throne of England and Ireland from 10 July until 19 July 1553. Jane was ...

claimed the throne but was deposed by Edward's Catholic half-sister,

. David Loades: ''Power in Tudor England''. New York: St Martin's Press, 1997.

Persecution of Protestants under Mary I (1553–1558)

The relationship between the English church and Rome was restored at the accession of Queen Mary I to the English throne in 1553. With her

repeal A repeal (O.F. ''rapel'', modern ''rappel'', from ''rapeler'', ''rappeler'', revoke, ''re'' and ''appeler'', appeal) is the removal or reversal of a law. There are two basic types of repeal; a repeal with a re-enactment is used to replace the law ...

of all religious legislation passed under Edward VI, Protestants faced a choice: exile, reconciliation/conversion, or punishment.Richards, Judith M. ''Mary Tudor'', Routledge 2009 Many people were exiled, and hundreds of dissenters were burned at the stake, earning her the nickname of "Bloody Mary". The number of people executed for their faith during the persecutions is thought to be at least 287, including 56 women. Thirty others died in prison. Duffy, Eamon ''Fires of Faith: Catholic England Under Mary Tudor,'' New Haven, Yale 2008 Although the so-called "Marian Persecutions" began with four clergymen, relics of Edwardian England's Protestantism, ''

Foxe's Book of Martyrs The ''Actes and Monuments'' (full title: ''Actes and Monuments of these Latter and Perillous Days, Touching Matters of the Church''), popularly known as Foxe's Book of Martyrs, is a work of Protestant history and martyrology by Protestant Engli ...

'' offers an account of the executions, which extended well beyond the anticipated targets – high-level clergy. Tradesmen were also burned, as well as married men and women, sometimes in unison, "youths" and at least one couple was burned alive with their daughter. The figure of 300 victims of the Marian Persecutions was given by Foxe and later by Thomas Brice in his poem, "The Regester".

English Inquisition and the judicial process

However bloody the end, the trials of Protestant heretics were judicial affairs, presided by bishops (most notably Bishop Bonner) adhering to a strict legal protocol under the

privy council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mo ...

, with Parliament's blessing. Mary had difficulty forming an efficient Privy Council, which eventually numbered over 40 and never worked as a source of political advice, though it effectively pursued police work and enforcement of religious uniformity. During the session that restored the realm to papal obedience parliament reinstated the heresy laws. From 20 January 1555, England could legally punish those judged guilty of heresy against the Roman Catholic faith. Thus it became a matter of establishing the guilt or innocence of an accused heretic in open court – a process which the lay authorities employed to reclaim "straying sheep" and to set a precedent for authentic Catholic teaching. If found guilty, the accused were first excommunicated, then handed over to the secular authorities for execution. The official records of the trials are limited to formal accusations, sentences, and so forth; the documents to which historians look for context and detail are those written by the accused or their supporters.

John Rogers's execution

Before Mary's ascent to the throne,

John Foxe John Foxe (1516/1517 – 18 April 1587), an English historian and martyrologist, was the author of '' Actes and Monuments'' (otherwise ''Foxe's Book of Martyrs''), telling of Christian martyrs throughout Western history, but particularly the s ...

, one of the few clerics of his day who was against the burning of even obstinate heretics, had approached the Royal Chaplain and Protestant preacher, John Rogers to intervene on behalf of

Joan of Kent Joan, Countess of Kent (29 September 1326/1327 – 7 August 1385), known as The Fair Maid of Kent, was the mother of King Richard II of England, her son by her third husband, Edward the Black Prince, son and heir apparent of King Edward III. ...

, a female

Anabaptist Anabaptism (from Neo-Latin , from the Greek : 're-' and 'baptism', german: Täufer, earlier also )Since the middle of the 20th century, the German-speaking world no longer uses the term (translation: "Re-baptizers"), considering it biased. ...

who was sentenced to burning in 1550. Rogers refused to help, as he supported the burning of heretics. Rogers claimed that the method of execution was "sufficiently mild" for a crime as grave as heresy. Later, after Mary I came to power and restored England to Catholicism, John Rogers spoke quite vehemently against the new order and was burnt as a heretic.

Legacy

Throughout the course of the persecutions, Foxe lists 312 individuals who were burnt or hanged for their faith, or died or sickened in prison. Three of these people are commemorated with a gothic memorial in Oxford, England but there are many other memorials across England. They are known locally as the "Marian Martyrs". English Saints and Martyrs of the Reformation Era are remembered in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...

with a Lesser Festival on 4 May.

Martyrs executed

Also mentioned by Foxe

*John Fortune (or Cutler) (of Hintlesham, Suffolk, blacksmith, either burnt or died in prison) Foxe's Book of Martyrs: 346. John Fortune, otherwise Cutler.
Exclassics.com. Retrieved 26 May 2013. * John Warner of Bourne * Thomas Athoth, priest 'he may have died in prison, escaped or – less likely – been pardoned.' * John Ashedon of Catsfield

Posthumous proceedings

* William Tracy of Toddington, Gloucestershire, 'worshipful esquire', exhumed and burnt, 1532 Foxe's Book of Martyrs: 180. Persons abjured in London
Exclassics.com. Retrieved 18 August 2013. * John Tooley, poulterer, exhumed and burnt, 4 June 1555
Exclassics.com. Retrieved 17 May 2013. * James Trevisam, died 3 July 1555 and summoned posthumously to appear before the bishop
Exclassics.com. Retrieved 17 May 2013. * Catherine, wife of Peter Martyr Vermigli, exhumed 1556, CambridgeFoxe's Book of Martyrs:352 The visitation at Cambridge; exhumations and burnings.
Exclassics.com. Retrieved 26 May 2013 *

Martin Bucer Martin Bucer ( early German: ''Martin Butzer''; 11 November 1491 – 28 February 1551) was a German Protestant reformer based in Strasbourg who influenced Lutheran, Calvinist, and Anglican doctrines and practices. Bucer was originally a me ...

, Professor of Divinity, exhumed and burnt 6 February 1557,

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

* Paul Fagius, Lecturer in Hebrew, exhumed and burnt 6 February 1557,

* Joan Seaman, early 1558, refused burial at Mendlesham * John Glover, gentleman, 'about the latter end of Queen Mary', ordered to be exhumed * William Glover, September 1558, refused burial at Wem, Shropshire * Edward Burton, 15 January 1559, refused burial at

Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...

Those who sickened or died in prison

Notes

References

{{reflist, 30em

External links

List of martyrs according to FoxeList of martyrs according to Summers
Lists of Christian martyrs English Reformation Marian martyr Mary I of England Religiously motivated violence in England Human rights abuses in England Political and cultural purges Anglican saints