I partly agree that religious changes happened in England under the Tudors because of the religious beliefs of the Monarchs because Henry VIII changed the religion of the country based on love, whereas his children changed the religion of the country by their own beliefs. Mary and Edward were both extremely religious while Elizabeth was trying to please both sides even though she was raised as a protestant herself.
Henry VIII did not change the religion in England for religious reasons but he is motivated by gaining more power and money. We know this because the monarchs would’ve ruled the church which means they also get the profit from the church and in terms of power the pope had more power than the king and queen in Catholicism were as kings and queens could become the head of Protestant church gaining them more religious power as well, but the main reason was love. Henry didn’t have a legitimate male heir to become king after eighteen years of marriage with Catherine of Aragon. At the same time, he didn’t want a daughter-in-law to become queen after he dies as well and Henry also thought that Catherine was too old to give birth, therefore, he wanted a divorce but he would've needed permission from the pope to divorce, and unfortunately, the pope did not think there was a religious reason for it, so he rejected it. Some advisers of Henry’s were secretly Protestants, e.g. one of we, therefore, they found ways to convince Henry to change religion and bribed him by saying that’s the best/easiest way to get a divorce. Henry was quite convinced and decided to change religion. Henry was originally a strong catholic but how he changed religion shows us how eager he was to get an heir to the throne and to get a divorce. He was happy with the result because he gained a lot of profits and became more powerful and successful.
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Edward VI changed the religion in England mainly because of his strong beliefs in the Protestant Church. He had been brought up as a committed Protestant and was very young when he became the King. His Protestant beliefs are then strengthened in the parliament as there were many Protestants as well. Edward introduced more Protestant reforms, e.g. marriage is allowed by the parliament in 1549 which is something that is not allowed by the Catholic Church. The freedom brought by religious reformation is then not limited to be enjoyed by the royals but also the British public as it was a parliament ruling. In general, introducing more Protestant reforms would benefit the Protestant Church by encouraging more people to become Protestants which strengthen the Protestant Church's power.
Mary changed the religion because she might have thought that previous religious reforms are more pro-Protestant which puts catholic at a disadvantaged position of the conflicts between religions. As a strict Catholic, like her mother Catherine, she also had a desire to change the country’s religion after her father changed it. Besides, from a personal perspective, she might have made England a Catholic country to stop people getting divorce as her parent’s divorce might have left her a scar.
Elizabeth I was raised as a Protestant, but people at the time were divided by religion so she would need to bring together all the different groups to ease religious tension. Elizabeth kept many of her religious view private, also being oddly conservative so there is a possibility that might agree with some Catholics beliefs as well. Although she is in favor of Protestants over Catholics compared to previous monarchs, she is trying to please both sides therefore a tolerant approach is introduced. Since she was raised as a Protestant the acts introduced are still benefiting the Protestant side more but there weren’t as many problems as before. There is also a serious threat which is a fear of catholic plots rulers of powerful countries in Europe at the time were mostly Catholics and plots are often backed up by foreign countries. In 1570, the pope actively encouraged plots against her as well. Mary, Queen of Scotts is one the biggest potential replacement for Elizabeth at the same time she is also the main figurehead for such plotters. To strengthen her position, Elizabeth passed laws to minimize the Catholic threat, e.g. the Act of Uniformity and Act to retain the Queen’s subjects in their due obedience. These acts successfully please Catholics or even puritans who used to be uncomfortable with the monarch as the head of religion and head of state at the same time.
I think that the most important reason was that Elizabeth making peace and stability for the country because if laws aren’t tolerable to non-Protestants, Catholic plots might be taken place which will put England at a dangerous position and she would have to please lots of people because they might put her down for Mary, Queen of Scotts also that she didn’t have a husband people at that time would underestimate her for being a woman and ruling a country by herself.
In conclusion, I personally mostly agree with this statement because Edward VI and Mary Tudor have religious reforms due to their strong personal beliefs, whereas Henry VIII have religious reforms as he wanted more freedom and power, and Elizabeth I have religious reforms as she wants peace between religions and stability of the country. Her approach is the most tolerant although it is still quite pro-protestant due to her personal belief. Therefore, in general, I agree with the statement that I mostly agree with it because I think that the monarchs are doing things for the countries good by making alliances with other countries, but sometimes they just take advantage of the people and do what they fancied.
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