Overview

The study of the Reformation in England and Wales, Ireland and Scotland has usually been treated by historians as a series of discrete national stories. Reformation in Britain and Ireland draws upon the growing genre of writing about British History to construct an innovative narrative of religious change in the four countries/three kingdoms. The text uses a broadly chronological framework to consider the strengths and weaknesses of the pre-Reformation churches; the political crises of the break with Rome; the development of Protestantism and changes in popular religious culture. The tools of conversion - the Bible, preaching and catechising - are accorded specific attention, as is doctrinal change. It is argued that political calculations did most to determine the success or failure of reformation, though the ideological commitment of a clerical elite was also of central significance.

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9780199280155

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Reviews

... [a] wonderful book. the book's greatest strength is its comparative framework. Sixteenth Century Journal

`Review from previous edition ... this is a book to take in small bites, to savour, and to digest slowly (perhaps with a glass of fine wine). It truly is a feast for the mind.' History `... stunning union of scholarship, common sense, erudition, and charm.' History `When a volume appears that is part of an eminent series such as the Oxford History of the Christian Church, as this one is, its readers' expectations are inevitably high. We expect a book that is comprehensive, balanced, scholarly, and well-written - in short, a book that one can turn to for decades to come. Happily, this is such a work.' History `This broad-based work is up to date in its scholarship, and Heal's synthesis will be welcomed by student and teacher alike.' Times Literary Supplement `Felicity Heal is judicious and balanced. She sees the strengths and weaknesses on all sides, and avoids extreme positions or special pleading ... those bewildered by recent controversies will find in it a sane and balanced evaluation.' Church Times `The book is extremely up-to-date. Its references are full: advanced students and researchers will find it an invaluable key to the literature on many difficult subjects.' Church Times `... a monumental, definitive, and elegant survey of a complex story.' Diarmaid MacCulloch, Oxford University, H-NET Book Review `... students thirsting to give shape to unformed information will find it a boon. The account of theology throughout the Churches of the islands is the best summary account now available ... Other highlights which will earn student gratitude are, for instance, the crisp survey of current knowledge on that most ambiguous of events, the dissolution of monasteries by Henry VIII, or the introduction to iconophobia and iconoclasm.' Diarmaid MacCulloch, Oxford University, H-NET Book Review `... Felicity Heal's volume is unlikely to be challenged in general outline for decades. This is a superb achievement based on a staggering range of reading: clear, and consistently sensible and judicious. It is a fitting complement to Owen Chadwick's recently published volume on the Reformation in the rest of Europe.' Diarmaid MacCulloch, Oxford University, H-NET Book Review

Author Information

Felicity Heal is Lecturer in Modern History at the University of Oxford and Fellow of Jesus College. She is a Fellow of the British Academy.

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