PARKER, Matthew. - Anglican archbishop of Canterbury, b. at Norwich on 6 Aug. 1504, d. in May 1575; he became chaplain to Anne Boleyn in 1535, and vice-chancellor of the University of Cambridge in 1545.
He was led to follow Anglican tendencies, and in 1547, as soon as clerical marriage was legitimized, he married the daughter of the zealous reformer Harleston, which did not prevent him from maintaining a hostile position toward the sale of ecclesiastical properties. Queen Elizabeth appointed him archbishop of Canterbury in 1559, and P. effectively contributed to organizing and disciplining the Anglican Church, coming into conflict (1565) with the Puritans, especially over the matter of vestments during the celebration of the Eucharist: the controversy dragged on for a long time, much to P.’s disappointment, as he felt he would not live long enough to resolve such an important issue for the consolidation of the Reformation in England. In 1572 he wrote the De antiquitate Britannica Ecclesiae.
LUCIANO GULLI