English Reformations

For some months, I’ve been educating myself about Anglicanism. In so doing, I’ve discovered the hard way that Anglican histories are sometimes not the most readable or well written books around. English Reformations is a happy exception to that.

That it’s written by Christopher Haigh, a self-described “kind of Anglican agnostic,� yet was recommended and given to me by a very orthodox professor (Thank you, good doctor!) illustrates its broad appeal among Anglicans. And as this amateur student of history and of historiography read, it soon became clear the book is exceedingly well researched. And the research is very well presented in a lucent and approachable manner. I even devoured the bibliography!

Haigh pointedly chose to use the plural “reformations� in the book’s title. For, as he documents well, the direction of the Church of England went back and forth even under Henry VIII and all the more so under Edward, Mary, and Elizabeth. There was indeed more than one reformation in the Church of England. In reading, I could sense the awkwardness (to say the least) of Britons in every walk of life being caught in the middle of the struggle between Catholics and Protestants. One on the “right� side could all too easily be on the wrong side in a matter of weeks even. And to raise the stakes (Pun intended.), the struggle was often as much political as religious, a frequent theme of Haigh’s.

I can’t emphasize enough how well written English Reformations is. Haigh never writes down to his audience nor waters down his presentation. At the same time, the book is really a fun read. Even details, such as his frequent citing of church warden records, are set forth in a manner that is actually entertaining, often with delightfully dry humor.

If you want to get beyond the basics of the tumult of 16th century Church of England without your patience being tried by dusty and turgid writing, I highly recommend English Reformations.