Oppressed and stifled by the strict rules of the Church, which had no relation to actual religious obligations, the English people began to abandon their original beliefs in favor of news. Each faith appealed to a part of society, but ultimately could not appeal to all classes, which led to religious disarray. The Anglican Church, or the Church of England, was the official Church of England after the separation from the Roman Catholic Church. in 1530. (Black, XLVIII) The Anglican Church "from the time of Elizabethan settlement" (The Victorian Web), attempted to serve as a middle way between Catholicism and Puritanism, with varying degrees of success . (The Victorian Web) However, under Charles II, Puritans were purged from the Church and non-Anglicans were, in the years to come, prohibited from holding office in Parliament as well as from receiving Oxford degrees and Cambridge. the Anglican Church became vulnerable to spiritual challenges from other churches and quickly fell into the hands of the aristocracy. (The Victorian Web) Dependent on young aristocrats for its finances, the Church became unpopular with society, leading to disinterest in religion and "increasing numbers of urban poor". (The Victorian Web)The introduction of evangelicalism provided a solution to the problem of the Church. Evangelicals “worked to restore the Church and country to some semblance of morality” (The Victorian Web) and specifically aimed to bring “the belief and morality of the upper class into conformity with their profession of faith.” (The Victorian Web) These ideas were expounded in various texts which similarly argued that without real wealth reform...... middle of article ......2010Cody, David "Evangelicalism" . The Victorian Web. http://www.victorianweb.org/religion/evangel1.html February 25, 2010 Schlossberg, Herbert. “The Evangelical Movement in the Church of England.” The Victorian Web. http://www.victorianweb.org/religion/herb5.html. February 25, 2010 Everett, Glenn. “High Church: Tractarianism. » The Victorian Web. http://www.victorianweb.org/religion/tractarian1.html. February 25, 2010 Schlossberg, Herbert. “The Tractarian Movement”. The Victorian Web. http://www.victorianweb.org/religion/herb7.html. February 25, 2010 Landow, George P. “The Broad Church Party in the Church of England.” The Victorian Web.http://www.victorianweb.org/religion/brdchrch.html.February 25, 2010Landow, George P. “Tom Brown at Oxford on Muscular Christianity.” » The Victorian Web. http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/hughes/muscular.html. February 25 2010