During the Tudor period, there were many changes in religion. Henry VIII was a Catholic. When the Pope said he could not divorce Catherine, Henry left Catholicism and named himself as head of the Church. The Church of England was now Protestant. Edward VI was raised a Protestant. He closed all Catholic churches. Mary I was a strong Catholic. She had been raised in Spain because of her Spanish mother, Catherine of Aragon. She closed the Protestant churches and burnt about 300 people for being Protestant. Those people were later called martyrs. Elizabeth was Protestant. When she became queen, the Anglican Church was started. Since then, religion in England has been much calmer.