Anglicanism is the historic branch of the one, holy, Catholic, and apostolic Christian Church in the English-speaking world. Christianity was first brought to the island of Britain in the first century. It flourished (although it was not the dominant religion) among both the native Celtic population and the Roman colonists. Christian missionaries, including the British-born Patrick, also carried Christianity to Ireland and Scotland. When the Roman Empire withdrew from Britain in the fifth century, the island was invaded by pagan German tribes (including the Angles, Jutes, and Saxons), who conquered the southern part of the island and drove the Celtic Britons into Wales and Cornwall. Although Christianity persevered in these Celtic strongholds, most of what is now England was under pagan control.
At the end of the sixth century, two missions began to evangelize the Anglo-Saxons: a mission of Benedictine monks was sent from Rome under Bishop Augustine (who established his base at Canterbury in Kent) and a mission of Irish monks was sent from Iona under Bishop Aidan (who established his base in northern England). Working separately, the two missions eventually converted most of the Anglo-Saxon population to Christianity; but there was a serious rivalry between the Roman and Irish missions. Finally, in the late seventh century, Bishop Theodore (a Greek from Tarsus in Asia Minor) brought the two missions together, along with the surviving Welsh Church, into a unified Church of England.
In the mid sixteenth century, a confluence of religious and political events brought about the separation of the Catholic Church of England from the Church on the European continent, which was itself divided into Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and protestant (Lutheran and Calvinist) factions. The services of the Church were translated from Latin to English and compiled as the Book of Common Prayer in 1549. The separation became permanent during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, and remains in effect to this date. The Church of England, together with the national and regional churches of the English speaking world and the British commonwealth became the Anglican Communion.
