What Difference Between 1547 And 1559 England Was Almost Torn Apart By Religious Revolution

‘Between 1547 and 1559 England was almost torn apart by religious revolution’ -Assess the validity of this view.
During the period of 1547-1559 there were many fluctuations in the religion of the country. As during Edward VI reign (1547-1553) the religion changed to Protestantism which meant that many changes took place and they were very anti-catholic. Edward changed the succession which claimed that Mary I illegitimate and that Lady Jane Grey should be next in line to take the throne. However Edwards plan failed and Mary usurped the throne from Grey and made the country Catholic immediately. Marys reign was based on the reinstallment of Catholicism to England, the majority of the England accepted but there were still people who refused
to obey these rules and consequently they were burned at the stake. After Mary died the throne was left to her sister Elizabeth who inevitably changed the religion back the Protestantism.
England was most torn apart by religious revolutions during this period due to public uprising as a result of these changes.
Between 1547 and 1559 England was faced with numerous rebellions in response to the changes in regimes. During Somersets protection of Edward VI there was a major rebellion due to Somerset introducing the Act of Uniformity 1549 which lead to the creation of the new Book Of Common Prayer. This is known as the Western Rebellion, this caused major problems for Somerset as it showed that the majority of the people were against his regimes and wanted the country to remain Catholic, therefore this shows that England was torn apart by religious revolutions because if Somerset would have not tried to reverse the laws of Catholism the rebellion would have never happened. Another rebellion that was caused by religion was Wyatts rebellion, even though the main motive for this rebellion was due to her marriage to Phillip II of Spain many of the Wyatts urban supporters came from Maidstone which was a Protestant stronghold. Also the rising only occurred in the South which is evidence that it could have been religiously motivated as the majority of the South were Protestants and the Northerners where Catholics. Consequently this proves that England was torn apart by religious
revolution.
Further evidence that England have been torn apart because of religious revolution is during Marys reign with the revival of the heresy laws in 1555. The heresy laws were regarded as a religious and civil offence amounting to treason, this meant that anybody who believed in a different religion from the Sovereign it classed as a act of defiance and disloyalty. These laws resulted in around 300 people getting burned at the stake. This resulted in many people being scared about their religion and whether they would get caught. By Mary reinstalling this law is caused the divide between the Protestant and Catholics become bigger as the Protestants now had to live in fear while Catholics had nothing to worry about.
However it can be argued that religious revolution did not tear England apart, it in fact created economic stability for England. During Edwards rein the dissolution of the monasteries and chantries gave the country a steady flow of income as England was still suffering from Somerset’s idea of paying for the war with Scotland by debasing the coinage. Similarly in Marys reign the reinstallment of Catholism created a influx of money into England. This leads to the conclusion that the religious revolution did not tear apart England apart but actually helped England grow and develop as a country economically.
Another reason why religious revolution did not tear England apart is because there was never a major rebellion that caused huge problems. There were rebellions throughout this time period however they never caused any serious issues, as they were all dealt with effectively and efficiently. The uprisings during this time period were not a huge threat and did not cause any long term problems for the royal in charge at that time.
Overall, between 1547-1559 England was torn apart by religious revolution because even though not one thing in particular caused the divide, it was a build up of all the different events that occurred over the time period that resulted in the divide between Protestants and Catholics becoming increasing bigger.