Regular episode    •   Series 1 •   Episode 12 • The Protestant Crusade in Holland.

Series 1 • Episode 12 • The Protestant Crusade in Holland

The artwork is "The Ratification of the Peace of Münster".

Painted in 1648, by Gerard ter Borch, 1617 to 1681.

It depicts the treaty between Spain and the Dutch Republic, signed in the town hall of Münster, Westphalia on 15 May 1648. 

The music is Ave Verum Corpus – Composed by William Byrd and performed by The Sixteen.

William Byrd, circa 1540 to 4 July 1623, was an English Renaissance composer.

Considered among the greatest composers of the Renaissance, he had a profound influence on composers both from his native country and on the Continent.

He is often considered as one of England's most important composers of early music. 

Byrd wrote in many of the forms current in England at the time, including various types of sacred and secular polyphony, keyboard and consort music. 

He produced sacred music for Anglican services, but during the 1570s became a recusant Catholic, writing Catholic sacred music, later in his life

Regular episode  • Season 1 • Episode 11  • Reformation, without Tarrying for Any.

The artwork is a commemorative stone located in the churchyard of St. Giles in Northampton, part of a memorial dedicated to Robert Browne.

The music performed is "This Is the Record of John," arranged by Nico Muhly and played by the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra.

This verse anthem was composed by Orlando Gibbons (1583–1625) and is an Anglican-style piece that draws inspiration from a passage in the Gospel of John from the Geneva Bible. When sung, the lyrics are taken from the Gospel of John in the Geneva Bible, and the composition reflects the distinctive Anglican style that was prevalent during that time.

In late 1581, Robert Browne's congregation, known as the Brownists, was compelled to relocate to Middelburg in Zeeland. Middelburg, a medieval walled city in the Zeeland province of southwest Holland, was a refuge for fleeing Puritans.

After unsuccessful attempts to reform the English Church in Middelburg, Browne shifted his focus to the stronghold of Presbyterianism in Edinburgh, Scotland. While Scottish Presbyterians may have agreed with him theologically, they did not share his views on church organisation.

Upon returning to England, Browne had to confront the consequences of his actions again. Robert Browne was an active Separatist from 1579 to 1585, after which he returned to the Church of England.

Following Browne's compliance in 1587, the Brownist movement revived in London. Henry Barrow and John Greenwood led this revival, both of whom were arrested and placed in custody. While imprisoned, they secretly authored numerous books on Brownist theology and engaged in passionate polemics against perceived societal injustices.

In the early 17th century, John Robinson and John Smyth established religious communities in northern England known as Brownist congregations.

Regular episode • Season 1 • Episode 10   • Norwich, Robert Browne & Congregationalism.

The artwork is The St Andrew's and Blackfriars' Halls, together with their crypt and cloister, and is known collectively as The Halls Norwich. 

Grade 1 listed they form the most complete medieval friary complex still surviving in England.

The first piece of music is Greensleeves, a traditional English folk song. 

Its roots can be traced back to a broadsheet ballad, officially registered by Richard Jones with the London Stationers' Company in September 1580. 

The second music played at the end is The Old Hundred, a hymn melody from the second edition of the Genevan Psalter. It is credited to L. Bourgeous (1510-1561). 

This tune is frequently used to accompany the lyrics that commence with "All People That on Earth Do Dwell," a version that originated in the Anglo-Genevan Psalter of 1561 and which is attributed to the Scottish clergyman William Kethe. 

Although the melody was initially associated with Psalm 134 in the Genevan Psalter, it acquired its current name from its connection to the 100th Psalm, as translated by William Kethe and titled "All People that on Earth do Dwell." 

The melody is also employed with other lyrics, including commonly sung praises and German Lutheran chorales. Johann Sebastian Bach utilized this melody in his chorale cantata "Herr Gott, dich loben alle wir", Lord God, we all praise you.

The city of Norwich played a crucial role in the emergence of Congregationalism, and Robert Browne would experience a defining moment in his career, during his visit to this ancient city. Unaware of the chaos looming on the horizon, Browne continued to focus on delivering his separatist sermons in the Bury Saint Edmund area.

The clergy began to express their concerns to the Bishop about Browne's unauthorised preaching, and its impact on their congregations. Browne was charged with preaching without a licence, a bold act that defied established conventions. This incident marked the beginning of Browne's thirty-two imprisonments.

While in Norwich, Browne attempted to establish a Congregational Church, likely influenced by local Dutch woolworkers who held Anabaptist beliefs. In 1581, he established the first Congregational Church in England, close to the cathedral and the bishop's palace. 

Regular episode  • Season 1 • Episode 9  • An Admonition to the Parliament.

The Artwork is      The title page of Travers’ Ecclesiasticae Disciplinae. Located in the University of Glasgow library.

The Music is      John Dowland. Now, O Now Our Needs Must Part, Lute Song by Les Canards. 

From The First Book of Songs or Airs. A collection of songs by John Dowland, which includes one instrumental piece. The book was published in London in 1597 and was reprinted four times during the composer's lifetime. 

The Admonition Controversy. 

The Admonition Controversy of the early 1570s marked the start of the first organised attack on the government of the established Church in protestant England. 

The Admonition to Parliament demanded the elimination of the Episcopal hierarchy of the Church of England, replacing it with the system of Church government ordained by God -Presbyterianism. 

The publication of this, the first open manifesto of the Puritan party, set the stage for the most important literary and religious duel in the Elizabethan period.

English Presbyterianism. 

In early 1573, the first phase of the Presbyterian offensive reached its peak. 

Ecclesiastical authorities struggled to shut down Presbyterian presses and halt the spread of a message that threatened the Church's theological and organisational foundations. 

“Ecclesiasticae Disciplinae",

Walter Travers wrote "A Full and Plain Declaration of Ecclesiastical Discipline" in 1574. 

Originally written in Latin, this small volume argued that the English church should abolish governance by bishops and instead adopt a Presbyterian model. 

“Prophesying”. 

The Puritan clergy had started organising prayer gatherings known as "Prophesying," which Elizabeth found troubling. 

During these meetings, the Puritans embraced a more liberal prayer style that did not align with Elizabeth’s guidelines. 

Elizabeth and her advisers were concerned about the potential spread of this practice, which they feared would undermine her Religious Settlement. 

Modelled on Zwingli’s utopian vision, namely the “Prophezeit”, Puritans learnt of the practice through contact with the congregations of the Zurich refugees, who had settled in London. 

Regular episode  • Season 1  • Episode 8   • John Knox and the Presbyterian Offensive.

Artwork   •   The International Monument to the Reformation, usually known as the Reformation Wall, was inaugurated in 1909 in Geneva, Switzerland.

The Wall, stands within the premises of the University of Geneva, honouring the legacy of John Calvin, its founder.

At the centre of the monument, (from left to right) four 5 metre-tall statues of Calvinism's main proponents are depicted:

 William Farel (1489–1565), John Calvin (1509–1564), Theodore Beza (1519–1605),     John Knox (c.1513–1572).

To the left of the central statues are 3 metre-tall statues of:

Frederick William of Brandenburg (1620–1688). William the Silent (1533–1584),   Gaspard de Coligny (1519–1572).

To the right are 3 metre-tall statues of:

Roger Williams (1603–1684),     Oliver Cromwell (1599–1658),     Stephen Bocskai (1557–1606).

Along the wall, to either side of the central statues, is engraved the motto of both the Reformation and Geneva:

Post Tenebras Lux (Latin for After darkness, light). On the central statues' pedestal is engraved a Christogram: ΙΗΣ.

The Wall is in the grounds of the University of Geneva, which was founded by John Calvin, and was built to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Calvin's birth and the 350th anniversary of the university's establishment.

It is built into the old city walls, and the monument's location there is designed to represent the integral importance of the fortifications, and therefore of the city of Geneva, to the Reformation.

Music 1    •   Why Fum'th In Fight. (Third Psalm Tune for Archbishop Parker's Psalter of 1567). Psalm 2:1. Composer Thomas Tallis. Masterworks Gallery.

Music 2    •    Psalm 91. (Scottish Metrical Psalms) Stevenston High Kirk

Music 3    •   Why Fum'th In Fight.

Regular episode  • Season 1 • Episode 7  • Mary Queen of Scots.

Audio • Season 1 • Episode 7 Mary Queen of Scots

The Artwork is A Miniature of Mary Queen of Scots. c 1559 by François Clouet.

This exquisite miniature is related to a drawing by the artist François Clouet, held in the Bibliothèque nationale de France Paris, likely dated slightly earlier to 1555. Her clothing is updated in the miniature, particularly the detail of the ruff in the drawing, which is changed into an open-standing collar.

The original drawing is only bust-length, whereas the miniature includes the sitter's hands, indicating their significance to the portrait's function. The gesture of placing a ring on the fourth finger of her right hand is thought to allude to Mary Queen of Scots’ marriage to the French Dauphin, the future Francis the Second, in 1558.

This portrait was commissioned by the French royal family from their court artist to commemorate the royal marriage. The size and details of the miniature are: A watercolour, 8.3 x 5.7 cm, on a canvas panel stretcher.

The miniature was almost certainly Queen Elizabeth I's personal possession and would later become part of the Royal Collection.

The Royal Collection of the British Royal Family is the most extensive private art collection in the world. It is held in trust by The King, as Sovereign, for his successors and the nation. He does not own it as a private individual. The Collection was formed mainly after the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660. Following Charles I's execution in 1649, most of the King's possessions were sold by order of the Lord Protector, Oliver Cromwell.

The Music is Alas Madame. French, Bayeux Manuscript (English: Alas my Lady)

The Bayeux Manuscript is an illustrated manuscript that contains one hundred and three songs, and was compiled by Charles III, Duke of Bourbon, in the early 16th century. These songs were composed in the late 15th century, shortly after the conclusion of the Hundred Years' War. The manuscript is housed in the Bibliothèque Nationale de France.

Some contents of the episode are:

The Thirty-nine Articles of Religion.

The Convocation of 1563.

The second part of the Vestiarian Controversy.

Foxe's Book of Martyrs.

Regular episode  • Season 1 • Episode 6 • Elizabeth's Religious Settlement. 

The Artwork isa Portrait of Elizabeth I, Queen of England, by anonymous Artist.

It location is  The Rijks Museum, Amsterdam.

The Music is The Volta, a couples' renaissance dance.

The Protestant exiles, who had fled Mary’s revived heresy laws and executions, were beginning to return to England and campaign for ecclesiastical reforms. 

They sought to recreate the pattern of church life recorded in Scripture without vestments and prelates such as cardinals, abbots, or bishops.

When Elizabeth became Queen, she worked with the Privy Council, intending to devise a religious settlement that would unite the country under a single Church.

The Elizabethan Religious Settlement, introduced in 1558, aimed to bridge the gap between Catholics and Protestants and address the variations in their religious services and beliefs.

It attempted to make England Protestant again, without alienating a population that had

previously supported Catholicism under her sister Mary.

Heinrich Bullinger was a Swiss reformer and theologian; he succeeded Ulrich Zwingli as head of the Zurich church and pastor at Grossmünster.

His publication “The Decades” was the most famous of the 150 treatises and manuscripts he wrote.

Regular episode  • Season 1  • Episode 5  • Geneva: The First English Study Bible.

The artwork is the cover from an original copy of the Geneva Bible dated 1560.

The Geneva Bible is one of the most historically significant translations of the Bible into English, preceding the Douay Rheims Bible by 22 years, and the King James Version by 51 years. It was the primary Bible of 16th-century English Protestantism and was used by William Shakespeare, Oliver Cromwell, John Knox, John Donne and others.

It was one of the Bibles taken to America on the Mayflower and its frontispiece inspired Benjamin Franklin's design for the first Great Seal of the United States. Benjamin Franklin's design for the Great Seal of the United States featured a scene from the Exodus in the Bible. The design illustrated Moses parting the Red Sea with his staff, while Pharaoh and his chariots were submerged by the waters. Franklin's design also included the motto:- "Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God."

The Music is I Greet Thee, Who My Sure Redeemer Art,

Sung by the Capitol Hill Baptist Church, Washington, D.C. Author: Anonymous. Source: French, 1545; French Psalter, Strasbourg, 1545.

First published in 1560, the Geneva Bible was a groundbreaking work that represented a remarkable achievement in Renaissance scholarship, printing, and Reformation theology.

John Knox, a Scottish minister, theologian, and writer, played a crucial role in shaping the Church of Scotland. His work and ministry also contributed to developing the Puritan movement in Elizabethan England.

John Calvin spent much of his life as a minister in Geneva. His ideas, actions, and sermons greatly influenced the Protestant Reformation and transformed Geneva into Europe's intellectual capital.

Theodore Beza established the Academy of Geneva using Strasbourg's successful model. By the end of the sixteenth century, many distinguished Englishmen had made Geneva an essential place to study.

In 1545, John Bale published his book, "The Image of Both Churches," which provides a detailed commentary on the Book of Revelation, the final book of the Christian Bible.

Regular episode   •    4     •          Bloody Mary.

Regular episode  • Season 1 • Episode 4  • Bloody Mary.

Artwork   •      Portrait of Mary by Antonis Mor. c.1554

Music    •      The Lord is my light and my salvation (Psalm: 27) Anglican chant.

After Edward's death, Lady Jane was proclaimed Queen on 10 July 1553 and was held safe in the Tower of London chambers awaiting coronation.

After hearing about Edward's death, Mary Tudor, fearing for her safety, escaped to East Anglia where she held ownership of several estates.

Stephen Gardiner, an English Catholic bishop, crowned Mary Tudor as Mary I, Queen of England and Ireland, at Westminster Abbey on 1 October 1553.

Mary was the first Queen to rule England in her own right.

She was known as "Bloody Mary" for her persecution and executions of Protestants.

Most controversially, over her reign she ordered 280 Protestants to be burned at the stake as heretics, in a vain attempt to restore Catholicism in England.

Her reign led to a clandestine Protestant church in London as a reaction to her enforcement of Catholicism as England's official religion.

It was on waste ground beyond that ditch, now the site of Broad Street, that the three Protestant Martyrs of Oxford  Cranmer, Ridley, and Latimer were burnt at the stake.

The trial of Thomas Cranmer began on 12 September 1555, held under papal jurisdiction, with the final verdict decided upon by Rome.

The first Vestments controversy, or Vestarian Controversy, arose during the English Reformation concerning the wearing of vestments and clerical dress

It was the first significant attack in the Puritans' campaign for reform.

Regular episode   • Season 1  • Episode 3  • The Protestant Boy King.

Artwork   •                 The Family of Henry VIII, c. 1543-1547

Music    •                 John Taverner: Quemadmodum , Psalm 42, c.1540.

In 1547, King Henry VIII's nine-year-old son, Edward VI, became the first English monarch raised as a Protestant.

Notable French Protestant reformer John Calvin was a key figure in the second wave of the Protestant Reformation, publishing his influential work, "Institutes of the Christian Religion".

Meanwhile, Anabaptism emerged from the 16th-century Protestant Reformation, distinguishing itself from the Catholic Church with its unique principle of adult baptism.

John Calvin was born on 10 July 1509 in Picardy, France.

He was a French theologian, a pastor in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation, the leading French Protestant reformer and the most important figure in the second generation of the Protestant Reformation.

John Calvin’s interpretation of Christianity in his “Institutes of the Christian Religion”, first published in Basel, Switzerland, was a seminal work of Systematic Theology.

Ulrich Zwingli was born on 1 January 1484 in Wildhaus in the Swiss Confederation.

He led the Reformation in Switzerland during a time of emerging Swiss patriotism, believing that the state governed with divine sanction and that the church and state were subject to the sovereign rule of God.

Peter Martyr Vermigli was born on 8 September 1499 in Florence. He was a leading Italian religious reformer whose chief concern was Eucharistic doctrine.