The Rise of the Protestants

Shaughan Holt

Welcome to my podcast. This podcast examines the rise of Protestantism, its challenge to established traditions, its transformation of core beliefs, and its role in initiating global change. England’s Nonconformist and Separatist movements are central to this narrative, and their influence continues to shape the broader Christian tradition. By examining these movements within the broader context of Christian history, we can understand how they altered doctrine, influenced Western Christianity, and intensified the enduring division between Roman Catholicism and emerging Protestant groups. The series follows a chronological timeline, beginning in early 16th-century Germany with Martin Luther’s excommunication and concluding a century later on England’s southern coast. The initial 12-episode series highlights the contributions of Beza, Vermigli, Calvin, Tyndale, Knox, and Robert Browne, who is often called the father of Congregationalism. The series does not seek to persuade listeners or promote any specific belief system. Instead, it aims to explore the events, ideas, and conflicts that shaped one of the most important times in European religious history. Throughout the series, the determination and conviction of early Puritans, Nonconformists, and Separatists are highlighted. These individuals challenged prevailing norms, endured persecution, and often risked their lives for their beliefs. Their courage contributed to the foundation of religious freedom and individual rights that remain widely valued today. The first 12 episode series highlights the contributions of figures such as eza, Vermigli, Calvin, Tyndale, Knox, and Robert Browne, who is frequently referred to as the father of Congregationalism. Each episode begins and ends with a brief musical piece that reflects its theme. A complete transcript will be provided for each episode.

  1. Series 2 Episode 1 - The killing of a Queen.  -  Shorter listen  (Transcript  added).

    EPISODE 1 BONUS

    Series 2 Episode 1 - The killing of a Queen. - Shorter listen (Transcript added).

    Regular episode • Season 2 • Episode 1 • Series 2 Episode 1 - The killing of a Queen. - Shorter listen (Transcript added). Artwork • The Execution of Mary Queen of Scots at Fotheringhay Castle on 8 February 1587, drawn by Robert Beale (1541-1601), Clerk of the Privy Council to Queen Elizabeth I, who wrote the official record of the execution to which he was an eyewitness. The evening before the execution he had read-out to Mary her death warrant and informed her that she was to be executed the following morning. Key to numbers: George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury and Henry Grey, 6th Earl of Kent are seated to the left (1 & 2) and Sir Amias Paulet, one of Mary's guards, is seated behind the scaffold (3) Music 1 • Christum wir sollen loben schon, 1586 · Württemberg Chamber Choir. Lyricist: Martin Luther. Composer: Lukas Osiander. Martin Luther initially adapted his melody from the Latin hymn melodies associated with 'A solis ortus cardine' by Caelius Sedulius to make it suitable for his German verse. The chorale text and melody first appeared in print in Erfurt 'Enchiridion' in 1524. Music 2 • Miserere Mei. Composer: Gregorio Allegri (c. 1582–1652) Composed for the Sistine Chapel Choir to be sung during the Tenebrae services of Holy Week. "Miserere mei" is Latin for "Have mercy on me, O God," the opening words of Psalm 51. The phrase is most famously known from the Gregorio Allegri motet Miserere (c. 1630s), a sacred choral piece and known for its complex polyphony and use of a high, soaring vocal line. There are some writings which Seethe, with a barely concealed anger, even after more than four centuries. Two memoranda by Robert Beale, Clerk to the Privy Council under Queen Elizabeth the first, exemplify this; in them, he expresses his outrage at Elizabeth’s efforts to shift the blame for the death of Mary Queen of Scots. After agreeing to the assassination of Mary, Elizabeth would later blame Secretary of State William Davison and the Privy Council, for executing the very death warrant, she had signed.

    22 min
  2. Series 2 Episode 2 - Martin Marprelate. Part 1, Backdrop (Transcript  added).

    EPISODE 2

    Series 2 Episode 2 - Martin Marprelate. Part 1, Backdrop (Transcript added).

    Regular episode • Season 2 • Episode 2 • Series 2 Episode 2 - Martin Marprelate. Part 1, Backdrop (Transcript added). Artwork • The Cambridge University Library copy of: 'The Protestation of Martin Marprelate’, 1589, the final instalment, in the series Hastily created on an antiquated press hidden in a barn on a Coventry property, this last pamphlet was probably typeset by Martin’s collaborators, Job Throckmorton and John Penry. of Martin Marprelate'. Music • Daniel Bacheler: To Plead My Faith · The Consort of Musicke · Anthony Rooley Music • Daniel Bacheler: To Plead My Faith • The Consort of Musicke • Anthony Rooley Daniel Bacheler, 1572 – 1619, was an English lutenist and composer. Daniel Bacheler served an apprenticeship with his uncle, Thomas Cardell, who was a lutenist and dancing-master in the court of Queen Elizabeth I. Bacheler worked for Sir Francis Walsingham, Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, as a groom of the bed chamber for Queen Anne of Denmark, and the consort of James I. At the royal court he composed some fifty lute pieces. This is his only surviving song, set to the words of Robert Devereux, the Earl of Essex, 1565-160. Notes: In the late 1500’s in London, if you wanted to buy a good book, or some other publication, there was only one place to go: St. Paul’s Churchyard. Today, visitors standing at its north gate, see sloping paths and quiet gardens, but 435 years ago, this open space was packed with a dense maze of bookshops. Shops were tucked between buildings, wedged against the cathedral’s buttresses, and even wrapped around the walls. Everywhere you turned, there were books, and the people who loved them. In and around, these bustling stalls, groups of shoppers from long ago, rummaged through all manner of publications, while gossiping, and sharing the latest news. By the end of the 1580s, there was but one name, on everyone’s lips: Martin Marprelate.

    26 min
  3. Series 2 Episode 2 - Martin Marprelate. Part 2, Progression (Transcript  added).

    EPISODE 2 BONUS

    Series 2 Episode 2 - Martin Marprelate. Part 2, Progression (Transcript added).

    Regular episode • Season 2 • Episode 2 • Series 2 Episode 2 - Martin Marprelate. Part 2, Progression (Transcript added). Artwork • The Cambridge University Library copy of: The fifth Marprelate Tract "Theses Martinianæ", published 22 July 1589. Printed by John Hodgkins in Wolston Priory Warwickshire, at the residence of Roger Wigston. Exhaustive biblical references fill the margins, connecting passages with specific verses related to Christian brotherhood. Music • Bradley Johnson plays Monsieur's Almain by Daniel Bacheler, - on guitar. Guitar arrangement by Phillip Woodfield. 2013. Original Composer: Daniel Bacheler. 1572-1619. Original Instrument: Lute. Genre: Allemande, a popular dance form of the era. Historical Context: Bacheler was a prominent court musician, serving as groom of the privy chamber to Queen Anne of Denmark. The tune of "Monsieur's Almain" is thought to predate Bacheler's variations and appears in other settings by composers like Thomas Morley and William Byrd. This set of variations on a popular tune is found in Robert Dowland's Varietie of Lute Lessons. The title is thought to refer to Francis Duke of Alençon and, later Anjou, youngest son of Henry II of France and Catherine de Medici and brother of two French kings (Charles IX and Henry III). He paid suit to the English queen Elizabeth I and she referred to him on correspondence as ‘Monsieur’; Elizabeth also referred to Francis as 'The Frog’ - perhaps the origin of the title of John Dowland’s Frog Galliard. Episode Notes: For more than 4 centuries, scholars have been intrigued by the authorship of the Marprelate Tracts. From their very beginning, the publications aimed to protect, both authors and printers, by purposefully concealing their identities. A total of 7 anonymous Marprelate tracts, were secretly printed on a movable press, and transported across several counties in England, to avoid detection by the authorities, during Queen Elizabeth’s reign. From October 1588 to September 1589, the press operated in the homes of Puritan sympathisers, in many counties across England.

    31 min
  4. Series 2 Episode 4 - Imprisonments, within London's Jails (Transcript  added).

    EPISODE 4

    Series 2 Episode 4 - Imprisonments, within London's Jails (Transcript added).

    Regular episode • Season 2 • Episode 4 • Series 2 Episode 4 - Imprisonments, within London's Jails (Transcript added). Artwork • The Gasthuiskerk is a Protestant church of the Christian Reformed Churches in Middelburg in the province of Zeeland . The church was built in 1493 as a chapel dedicated to Saint Barbara . The originally Roman Catholic hospital chapel was used by the residents of the abbey from 1568 to 1571 and was rented to English merchants from 1579 to 1589. The chapel was subsequently assigned to the Reformed Church in 1589 and in 1799 it became a Roman Catholic church again. In 1845 the building was sold to the Christian Separated Churches and in 1936 it was purchased by the Christian Reformed Churches. Music • My Sweetest Lesbia, composer: Thomas Campion, performed by Andreas Scholl. The poem, "My Sweetest Lesbia", is sometimes described as a translation. Its inspiration is the Latin poet Catullus's poem, Carmen V. The theme of the poem is; We must live now, because we don't have forever. Thomas Campion belongs to that fascinating tradition of medically-trained poets. He was a poet, composer, musical and literary theorist, and physician. Born in London in 1567, left Cambridge without a degree, briefly studied law, but ultimately graduated from the University of Caen with an MD. After practising medicine in London he later returned to the continent as a gentleman-soldier. He is believed to have died of the plague in London in 1620.

    15 min

Trailers

About

Welcome to my podcast. This podcast examines the rise of Protestantism, its challenge to established traditions, its transformation of core beliefs, and its role in initiating global change. England’s Nonconformist and Separatist movements are central to this narrative, and their influence continues to shape the broader Christian tradition. By examining these movements within the broader context of Christian history, we can understand how they altered doctrine, influenced Western Christianity, and intensified the enduring division between Roman Catholicism and emerging Protestant groups. The series follows a chronological timeline, beginning in early 16th-century Germany with Martin Luther’s excommunication and concluding a century later on England’s southern coast. The initial 12-episode series highlights the contributions of Beza, Vermigli, Calvin, Tyndale, Knox, and Robert Browne, who is often called the father of Congregationalism. The series does not seek to persuade listeners or promote any specific belief system. Instead, it aims to explore the events, ideas, and conflicts that shaped one of the most important times in European religious history. Throughout the series, the determination and conviction of early Puritans, Nonconformists, and Separatists are highlighted. These individuals challenged prevailing norms, endured persecution, and often risked their lives for their beliefs. Their courage contributed to the foundation of religious freedom and individual rights that remain widely valued today. The first 12 episode series highlights the contributions of figures such as eza, Vermigli, Calvin, Tyndale, Knox, and Robert Browne, who is frequently referred to as the father of Congregationalism. Each episode begins and ends with a brief musical piece that reflects its theme. A complete transcript will be provided for each episode.