Irish Supremacy Act

The Irish Supremacy Act of 1537 was a declaration by the British Parliament that asserted the English king's authority over both the English and Irish churches. This act was part of a superficial Reformation in Ireland, as the dissolution of monasteries was incomplete, and significant liturgical changes were minimal due to limited knowledge of English. The majority of the Irish population remained loyal to the Roman Catholic Church. The Church of Ireland, an Anglican church, was the established church, but its privileged position, despite being a minority, caused resentment. The Act of Union in 1800 merged the Irish and English parliaments, and the Church of Ireland became part of the United Church of England and Ireland. Agitation against the church's tithes, largely collected from Roman Catholic tenant farmers, led to the Irish Church Act of Disestablishment in 1869, which took effect in 1871.1