Reformation and the Rise of the Empire

Abstract

The sixteenth-century Reformation was a major turning point in history affecting Europe in general and Britain in particular. In this research, one aimed to tackle both the European Reformation which started with Martin Luther and the English Reformation in which King Henry VIII was the main leader. The research went further to investigate how the English Reformation paved the way for the birth of the British Empire. Unlike Europe, the English Reformation was very unique since a monarch was responsible for its outbreak, while major reformers in Europe were theologists and religious men. It also differed in duration since it took a long time to be officially completed. The Reformation in England was a great contributor to the emergence of the British Empire since it freed England from the authority of Rome and gave it a chance to go make a name for itself among great powers in the world. Protestantism, the biggest and most important outcome of the Reformation, assisted deeply in uniting the kingdoms of the British Isles and was the weapon used in the development and the wide growth of the empire.