Henry VIII was king of England in 1534 and wanted an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so he could marry Anne Boleyn.
Pope Clement VII, considering that the earlier marriage had been entered under a papal dispensation refused the annulment then King Henry VIII was excommunicated by Pope Paul III.
A separation had been wanting by various movements within the English church for sometime. This movement gained political support when Henry VIII wanted an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so he could marry Anne Boleyn.
The church at the time of his rein was the Roman Catholic Church, so To ensure the annulment of his marriage Henry VIII took the position of Supreme Head of the Church and it was renamed to The Church of England.
Maintaining a strong desire for traditional Catholic practices during his reign, many changes by reformers were unable to be made to the Church of England. The King or Queen are the head of the Church of England constitutionally established by the state.
Edward VII, Mary I, and Elizabeth I were the three children King Henry VIII left behind at his death, each of whom had a turn on the English throne. Under his son Edward VI, more Protestant-influenced forms of worship were adopted.
Then under the leadership of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, a more radical reformation proceeded. The changes that had come about ended by the death of the king 1547.
When Mary became Queen (Mary I) she returned England again to the authority of the Pope. An independent Church of England then was ended. During the reign of Mary I, many were burnt at the steak for their refusal to recant of their changed faith, including Thomas Cranmer. The honorable death of those burnt at the steak led to her nickname of “Bloody Mary”.
When Mary Is half-sister became queen, Elizabeth I, after Mary died childless, the new regime decided the direction of the church. Under Elizabeth I (from 1558), was the church moderately Reformed in doctrine, but also emphasizing a union with the Roman church and their traditions with the Church Fathers.
Unscripturally we see that they say, the canon law of the Church of England identifies the Christian scriptures as the source of its doctrine. In addition they say doctrine is also derived from the teachings of the Church Fathers and ecumenical councils to regulate matters of faith, morals and discipline, also the ecumenical creeds in so far as they agree with scripture.
This doctrine is shown in the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion, the Book of Common Prayer, the consecration of bishops, the ordination of priests and deacons. Under the leadership of England from 1649 to 1660, bishops were dethroned, former practices were eliminated, followers of Calvinism in the functions of a church were introduced in place of the jurisdiction of a bishop.
The Westminster Confession, the Book of Common Prayer used by Public Worship, replaced the 39 Articles of Religion. About one quarter of English clergy refused to conform to this form of State Presbyterianism, (followers of Calvinism) in the functions of a church.
The English Parliament restored the Church of England under Charles II, to a form similar to the Elizabethan version. One difference was the encompassing all the people of England in one religious organization, had to be abandoned.
The Church of England assumed its present form, with the Anglican established church occupying the middle ground. Too strong to be suppressed altogether, those Puritans and Protestants who favored and dissented from the previous Anglican church had to continue their existence outside the National Church rather than controlling it.
Continuing official suspicion and legal restrictions continued well into the 19th century and beyond. As what can be considered by history churches created and developed by man are constantly updated with their form of new doctrine.