- Established church
An established church is a church officially sanctioned and supported by the government of a country, e.g. the
Church of England in theUnited Kingdom .Church of England
The Church of England is the established church in England, of which the
monarch is constitutionally the supreme governor. Until 1920 it also held the same position inWales and theChurch of Ireland had the same position inIreland prior to 1869.Since the
Revolution of 1688 theChurch of Scotland has been the established church in Scotland. After King William III and his wife Queen Mary II landed in England and replaced James II, a settlement was reached where Scotland would have a distinct church. From that point on theChurch of England was Episcopalian and theChurch of Scotland wasPresbyterian . Because of the National Covenants, which were important to the people ofScotland , the relationship between church and state is organized differently in that the church is independent of parliament rather than being subject to it.A strong push was made by
liberals anddissenters for disestablishment in England in the late nineteenth century as well; although unsuccessful, the issue has never entirely gone away.ee also
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State religion
*Church of Ireland
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