A Conflict Between Edward Ⅲ And Church

The reign of Edward III was not only the important period in the development of the relations between the English monarchies and the churches but also a transition of the Roman Catholic Church from its great prosperity in 1200 s to the Reformation in 1400 s and 1500 s. England was getting stronger after Edward III’s effective measures. In the meantime, The Hundred Year’s War stimulated a growing national feeling in England so that the English nation-state began to come into being. Its formation showed that England had got rid of the control of the Roman Catholic Church. The Catholic Church’s authority was decreasing with the growing power of England. Although the Roman church moved to Avigon, and its influence was not as big as usual, it still controls the England church in economy, justice and appointment or removal of personnel. The conflict between the monarchs and the Roman Church was inevitable as England wanted to get rid of the control of the Roman Catholic Church which held more power over it. Actually the essence of this conflict is not only a struggle of political power between royalty and church, but also a pursuit of economic benefits.During the Hundred Year’s War, the Catholic Church’s preferential policies towards French and further squeeze of English wealth caused strong anti-papal sentiment among the oppressed English people. Therefore, Edward III united the parliament to pass some anti-papal legislation, including The Statute of Provisors and The Statute of Praemunire and dissolved the feudatory relationship with the Roman Catholic Church. The legislations published in the reign of Edward III laid the basis for Henry VIII’s reformation in the 1500 s.