Uniformity, Acts of

Uniformity, Acts of (1560, 1666), designed to ensure that the nation followed a uniform Protestant liturgy. The 1560 Act for the Uniformity of Common Prayer and Service in the Church (2 Eliz. 1 c. 2) required all clergy in Ireland to use the English Prayer Book of 1559. Punishments were prescribed for clergy who refused to use the book, with the ultimate sanction for repeated offences being deprivation and life imprisonment. Laity who refused to attend services were subjected to a fine of 12d. and this was subsequently used to try to force people to attend the Church of Ireland. By the early 17th century it was becoming clear that it would not be possible to impose uniformity by legislative fiat and the 12d. fine was seen more as a way of raising revenue than as a means to make people Protestant.

The passing of the English Act of 1662, establishing a slightly revised Prayer Book, was followed in Ireland by the 1666 act. This reiterated the need for conformity, but was also directed at tightening control over schoolmasters and ensuring uniformity within the established church by excluding those with Presbyterian sympathies. Like its predecessor, however, it was ‘more effective in stating the ideal of uniformity than enforcing the reality’.

Alan Ford