What religion were the pilgrims and puritans dissenting against?

Answer 1

Pilgrim is the term used to describe the English immigrants to the NW pre-colonial settlements. They were not the first immigrants and yes, many were Puritans. Some were Evangelists and others wanted an adventure. In fact, most of the early "pilgrims" did not remain in America for long and after the English "Glorious Revolution" they returned home. The word Dissenters comes from about 2,400 Puritan clergy in England who left the Church of England (Anglican) after the Act of Uniformity of 1663. Barely 100 years before there was only one Christian Church: The Holy Roman Apostolic Catholic Church. When King Henry VIII wanted an annulment from his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, the Church of England separated from Rome (1534) and through the Parliament's act, in the Act of Supremacy, began the events making the king, head of The Church of England. After the Prince of Wales death at 17, Mary brought back the pope and when she died, Elizabeth I, England's greatest reign, was the one who established an English Church and became Supreme Governor to what evolved into today's Church of England. The Puritans accepted the Act of Uniformity (Church-wise) exept for the dissenting clergy who wanted to rule as a separate religion. The best way to understand this is to read about the supremacy of the Pope at a time when Church and State were supreme. Not separated.