History of Protestantism History of Protestantism Protestantism originated from work of several theologians starting in the 12th century, although there could have been earlier cases of which there is no surviving evidence. Any prominent dissent was subject to persecution by the Roman Catholic Church, and thus attempts to change anything in the Catholic Church were kept isolated or effectively eradicated up to the 16th century. One of the early Protestant Reformers was John Wycliffe, an English theologian and early proponent of reform in the 14th century. His followers, known as Lollards, spread throughout England but soon were persecuted by both the Catholic Church
John Wycliffe Black John Wycliffe Black John Wycliffe Black (21 July 1862 – 18 June 1951) was an English shoe manufacturer and Liberal Party politician. John Wycliffe Black was born in London, the son of Robert Black, a successful Knightsbridge draper He was sent to Bishop's Stortford College in Essex for his schooling. In 1890 he married Eunice Marsden from Wigan in Lancashire and they had one son and a daughter. Their son Arthur Norman Black (1894–1973) was a celebrated motor cycle and racing car driver of the 1930s and 1940s. Adventurous activity runs in the Black family, John Wycliffe Black's nephew Tom