THE TUDOR REVOLUTION: HENRY VIII'S REFORMATION AND THE CENTRALIZATION OF ENGLISH STATE AUTHORITY, 1534-1603

This article examines the foundational period of Anglican church-state relations during the Tudor dynasty, focusing on how Henry VIII's break with Rome and subsequent religious reforms fundamentally transformed English governance structures. Through analysis of the Act of Supremacy, monastic dissolution, and Elizabethan settlement, this study demonstrates how religious authority became a crucial mechanism for state centralization. The Tudor experience established precedents for using ecclesiastical institutions to enhance state capacity, territorial control, and national identity formation that would influence British governance for centuries.