Thomas Cranmer was the first Protestant Archbishop of Canterbury and a leader of the English Reformation. As the Archbishop of Canterbury he was responsible for establishing the first doctrinal and liturgical structures of the reformed Church of England. Along with Thomas Cromwell who served as chief minister to King Henry VIII of England, he supported the principle of Royal Supremacy which gave the king power over the Church within his realm. He also advocated for the king’s desired divorce from Catherine of Aragon and helped in building the case for the annulment of this marriage. However, he was not much successful in making any radical changes to the church under Henry’s rule due to the turbulent political situation and power struggles between religious conservatives and reformers. Once King Edward VI ascended to the throne, opportunities opened up for Cranmer to implement major reforms. He was considered one of the outstanding theologians of his time and is credited to have written the first two editions of the ‘Book of Common Prayer’, a complete liturgy for the English Church. However, things started falling apart for him after Queen Mary ascended the throne. A Roman Catholic, she put Cranmer on trial for treason and he was burned at the stake.
