Cranmer, Thomas (1489–1556)

A portrait of the English cleric Thomas Cranmer, painted by Gerlach Flicke, and found in the National Portrait Gallery in London. Cranmer was the first Protestant to be appointed Archbishop of Canterbury (in 1533, after annulling Henry VIII's marriage to Catherine of Aragon). He was largely responsible for English liturgical reform, and for the compilation of the Book of Common Prayer (1549). He was tried for treason and heresy and burnt at the stake for supporting the succession of Lady Jane Grey.

English cleric, archbishop of Canterbury from 1533. A Protestant convert, he helped to shape the doctrines of the Church of England under Edward VI. He was responsible for the issue of the Prayer Books of 1549 and 1552, and supported the succession of Lady Jane Grey in 1553.

Condemned for heresy under the Catholic Mary I, Cranmer at first recanted, declaring his former opinions to be wrong. However, when his life was not spared, he resumed his position and was burned at the stake, first holding to the fire the hand that had signed his recantation.