Who was the first Protestant Archbishop of Canterbury, consecrated in 1533 during the reign of Henry 8th?
Archbishop of Canterbury in full communion with the See of Rome and usually received the pallium from the Pope. During the English Reformation, the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Catholic Church. Thomas Cranmer became the first Protestant holder of the office in 1533, while Reginald Pole was the last Catholic in the position, serving from 1556 to 1558 during the Counter-Reformation. In the Middle Ages there was considerable variation in the methods of nomination of the Archbishop of Canterbury and other bishops. At various times the choice was made by the canons of Canterbury Cathedral, the Pope, or
Lyfing (Archbishop of Canterbury) Canterbury Cathedral. Lyfing was unable to go to Rome for his pallium during King Æthelred's reign, for every bishop that was consecrated during the remainder of the king's reign was consecrated by Archbishop Wulfstan of York. By 1018, however, he was named as archbishop, having returned to England from Rome with letters from Pope Benedict VIII. As Archbishop of Canterbury, Lyfing crowned two English kings: Ethelred's son Edmund Ironside in 1016 and Cnut the Great in 1017. He seems to have gone to Rome on behalf of Cnut at least once. Lyfing died on 12 June 1020. He was buried