Posted by Jeff from pcp01169382pcs.roylok01.mi.comcast.net (68.62.14.216) on Sunday, September 08, 2002 at 11:42PM :
I'm in a literature class and the teacher wanted to give us a brief summary of history in the time period so as to help us better understand the point of view of the authors...
It's interesting how the Curch of England switched from Catholic to Protestant because the Pope wouldn't grant Henry VIII a divorce from his wife... because the woman "wouldn't have a male child" and it was all her fault.
In the 1530's, the Catholic church owned between 1/2 and 1/3 of ALL of the land in England. After Henry VIII took charge of the church (he was the self-appointed head and granted himself the divorce), he seized this land and this step was the first in created a soverign (and somewhat secular) government... very interesting stuff.
Eventually many Catholics were hunted down, killed, and burned at the stake. Later they took power and did the same to the protestants...Swift said it best - they argued over whether "bread be flesh or flesh be bread"....
Ah, history (sigh).
-- Jeff
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