the name of the State Church of England. The term is used in two senses. The first in a general way refers to the church as a whole, which since the introduction of Christianity has been the church of the English people. In a broader sense, it refers to the Church of England as distinguished from the Roman Catholic Church, and it is in this sense that the term is ordinarily used. The present Church of England really dates from the reign of Henry VIII, who, by divorcing Catharine of Aragon without the consent of the pope, brought on the struggle which resulted in the abolition of papal authority in England and the complete independence of the Church of that country. Henry was made the supreme head of the Church and at the time contemplated no change in doctrines and no separation into rival communities. However; the king dissolved the monasteries and expended the treasures of the Church on himself and court. These high-handed measures retarded any reform movement that might have been made and caused a general discontent, not only among the officials but among the communicants of the Church. During the reign of Edward VI the influence of the Reformation was strongly felt in England, and there were many men who sympathized with Luther, Calvin and other leaders of that movement; England probably would have become Protestant at that time had not the king been succeeded by Mary, who was a Catholic. During her reign there was a strong reaction. This struggle continued during the reign of Elizabeth, though she exerted her influence for the ancient Church of the land. In 1562 the convocation and parliament at London subscribed to the Thirty-Nine Articles (See ARTICLES, THE THIRTY-NINE), which have ever since been the authoritative teaching, and with the Book of Common Prayer constitute the orthodox doctrines of the Church of England. During Elizabeth's reign, Puritanism sprang up (See PURITANS) and though strongly opposed by Elizabeth and her successor, James I, continued to spread. In 1580 the Puritans separated from the Church and formed an independent organization. This led to violent persecution as well as civil oppressions, which in 1653 resulted in the overthrow of the king, and from that time till 1660 the Church of England was practically suspended. However, with the restoration of the monarchy and the accession of Charles II, the Church was restored to its original position, from which it has never since been removed, though at different times its influence has been weak and its condition somewhat perilous. The Church is now divided into two branches, generally known as the high church and low church. The high church claims to be the representative of the Catholic, or national, school, which was prominent in Elizabeth's time. They believe in the efficacy of the sacrament, in apostolic succession and in the authority of the Church and priesthood (See APOSTOLIC SUCCESSION). The low church represents the Protestant, or Puritan, part of the Church during Elizabeth's reign. They do not believe in the efficacy of the sacrament and deny that regeneration necessarily takes place in infant baptism. The ecclesiastical law of England is very simple. There is no formal constitution, but the Church is governed by about 150 canons. Parliament with the sovereign may impose any law on the Church. Convocations are called for the purpose of considering ecclesiastical subjects. The country is divided into two provinces, Canterbury and York, with an archbishop in each, the archbishop of Canterbury being the primate of all England. Each province is divided into dioceses, over which are bishops. Next to the bishops in order of rank are the archdeacons and deans, followed by canons, prebendaries, rectors, vicars and curates. Many of the churches have large endowments, and the support of their clergy is entirely independent of the congregation. The Church maintains effective missionary societies and other auxiliary organizations and has missions in almost every part of the world where Christianity does not prevail. See EPISCOPAL CHURCH.