James and Religion

Millenary Petition- April 1603

• 'Eased and relieved' of popish practices E.g wedding rings and bowing to name of Jesus
• Educated preaching ministry
• Extensive but moderate- no attempt to get rid of bishops

Hampton Court Conference- January 1604

• Requests put forward by petition
• King James Bible decided upon-1611
• Attempt to end excessive use of excommunciation failed
• Attempt to solve Church poverty failed- Parliament benefitted from inappropriation of tithes. 1580s, only 600 out of 9000 parishes provided adequate stipend to clergy
• Only four to five modearte Purtians- radicals disappointed
• Failed to win demands
• James dimissed small things as trivial e.g removal of surplices
• James began to take anti-Puritan steps- appointed Richard Bancroft to enforce uniformity (non-Puritan)
• Deep seated dissatifcation- Puritan Revolution 1642
• Seperation- John Robinson and Smith New World

• February 1604
• Resolve disputed matters
• All ministers must subscribe to to three artivles supporting King's supremacy, agree to 39 Articles and accept the Book of Common Prayer.
• Only use authorised services- attack on Puritan ministers who were accustomed to giving long sermons
• Serious blow- could no longer ignore practices they disapproved of
• 90 Puritan ministers lost livings
• Mistake for James- created opposition

• 1611
• Calvinist, sympathetic to Puritans
• Example of James compromising
• General desire to see a more learned ministry and many bishops encouraged this by frequently preaching to themselves
• Pleased Puritans, lectureships endowed where townsfolk were encouraged to attend
• Non-conformity over small things like wearing a surplice reappeared- generally tolerated
• Until 1618 religious divisons seemd to have resolved

• Promised he wouldn't persecute 'any that will be quiet'
• Hope that they would be able to practice in private, unmolested
• Needed a relaxation of crippling recusany fines
• Recusancy fines reduced and fell to less than a quarter of their level before 1603
• Short lived and caused protest- told Salisbury he wouldn't persecute for faith but never intended to extend a general tolerance

• All priests and Jesuits ourdered out of kingdom
• November- recusancy fines to be collected in full
• Many Puritans in parliament- kept fines to themselves
• Due to adverse reaction of tolerance from Puritans in Parliament- 1604 Parliament passed an act calling for 'due execution of statutes' against 'an manner of recusant'
• Didn't want to antagonise Parliament- use Catholics as bargaining tool for union with Scotland
• Needed recusancy fines to raise revenue
• Election of transgient Pope Clement- stirct and unwilling to compromise
• No help from Spain- Gunpowder Plot

• James upset- Venetian ambassador 'the King is in terror'
• Recusancy fines increased
• Catholics forbidden to live in or near London or hold public offices
• Oath of Allegiance 1606- denied Pope's authority to depose Kings- to appease Puritans and single out extremists
• Example of James' leniancy; most Catholics happy to obey
• Apology of 1608- justification
• No further trouble from Catholics
• Massive subsidy £400,000

• Howard faction had pushed Spanish match from 1614- if succesful Catholic worship in London
• Tolerance for Catholics increasing
• Failure to support Protestant cause on the continent
• Relaxation of recusancy fine 1622-1623
• 30YW led to polarisation

• 1618- Conference of Dort- Opposes Arminians
• 1620s- they upheld James' authority while people were protesting about Spain and Catholicism
• 1622- Directions to Preachers- forbidding clergy to preach about predestination or damnation- insult to Puritans
• 1624- Richard Montagu's 'New gag for an old goose'- attacked Calvinist beliefs- criticised for actions. ' if this be popery then i am a papist'
• Commitment to Protestant cause not doubted (went on to allow war)
• May 1618- Book of Sports- blow to Puritans- Sunday for worship. Many clergy refused to read it. James withdrew- compromise

• Wanted to force conformity with CoE
• Won nobles away from Kirk- needed their support
• Bishops imposed in 1618
• Articles of Perth 1618- deeply unpopular especially kneeling for Communion.
• Not strictly enforced and new prayer book that had been prepared in 1619 wasn't introduced