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• 1 2021-04-29T15:54:17-07:00 The Protestant Press: A French man in England 40 The Printing Press was instrumental in the spread of Protestantism in England, exemplified by the history of a Press owned by a French refugee and his help in spreading the words of Martin Luther plain 2021-05-31T17:20:26-07:00

  The Life and Death of Dr. Martin Luther is an odd book when considering its origins. It’s a book that details the life of one of the most influential figures of the 16th century. Luther was instrumental in the push back against the Catholic Church, which would lead to the Protestant Reformation. It’s not unusual that a biography of his life would be published nearly a century after Luther’s death in 1546. But this book was printed and sold in London, a major city in England, far from the origins of the Reformation.   Taking all of this into consideration, a question emerges. What is a book about a German doing in England, in a time before major movements, such as the Industrial Revolutions or the Enlightment, that spread ideas across Europe? For that, the answer lies in the Protestant Reformation, the printing press, and the argument between Elizabeth Eisenstein and Adrian Johns.
  The protestant reformation and the printing press go hand in hand, as they made the conversion of Europe, from a largely Catholic continent to a much more divided one, quicker. Elizabeth Eisenstein has made this connection about 20 years ago in her book "An Unacknowledged Revolution Revisited." She notes that printing was of huge significance for Martin Luther and the Protestant movements that occurred due to his writings against the church (Eisenstein, 102). Without the printing press, it is questionable whether Luther’s criticisms would have reached the rest of Europe from present-day Germany. What is most surprising is that Luther's writings and fame managed to reach England, an island that had its own reformation that while associated with the Protestant Reformation, was also different in that it had King Henry VIII as the reformation's leader.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The Life and Death of Martin Luther is divided into two sections. The first section details the life of Martin Luther, describing his family origins up to his death. The second and much longer section is Luther's commentary on various passages of the bible. This second section is introduced with the title page on the left. On this title page, the most important lines for the matter at hand are “Translated out of Latine into English by Henry Bull.” Henry Bull was an English Protestant, which is obvious enough considering he helped translate the preachings of the most notable protestant. But most importantly, the reason why his translation was printed in the first place was due to a man by the name of Thomas Vautroullier, who printed the translation and the more important individual when describing the power of the printing press. Thomas Vautroullier was a French refugee who came to England and quickly found himself employed by the Stationer’s company. The stationer’s company is notable, as it was dedicated to printing and publishing. At the time of Vautroullier’s life, they were the biggest name in printing. Vautroullier had his start there but would go on to establish his own press in a city named Blackfriars. It is there where he printed Henry Bull’s translation. He would go on to be one of London’s most prestigious printers, to the point that he was patronized by James VI, the king of England.  
   Learning about Thomas Vautroullier makes one thing clear, that in London the printing press was astonishingly flourishing, evident in the fact that printing presses such as that of Vautroullier could flourish and even be commissioned by the King of England. This is what Adrian Johns invites people to do when looking at the time period. In order to find the importance of the printing press, a person must look at it on a smaller scale. London had a unique and flourishing press, made possible by the demand for texts that had for the longest time been inaccessible to the English. Earlier I mentioned the fact that this section of The Life and Death of Dr. Martin Luther was translated from Latin to English. While certainly not the first piece of text

  translated from a different language to English, it was probably one of the first printed and accessible. Surprisingly, it predates King James Bible, one of the most influential texts in English history due to its accessibility and as the holy book for the Church of England. The King James Bible and Thomas Vautroullier have a unique connection in this way, both being instrumental in the spread of Protestantism and sponsored by King James VI and I. 

  What led from the efforts of both King James VI and I and Thomas Vautroullier was Protestantism and the Church of England becoming a part of the English identity. Vautroullier died in the year 1587, and yet his press was still distributing Protestant texts nearly half a century after his death. The demand for the preachings of Luther as well as his own life was strong among the population of England, as evident by the positive annotations of the anonymous reader, who we have no idea whether the reader was of importance or not. Aside from the annotations, there is a whole page that is what I can assume to be an illustration of Martin Luther.

  The press was instrumental in the spread of Protestantism across England, made possible by a flourishing press that was unique when compared to the rest of Europe. The spread of Protestant texts and the monarchy’s open adoption of foreign people and works made the spread all easier, especially when comparing the conflicts between the Catholics and Protestants that existed throughout the rest of Europe.
  
   

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