New scholarly edition reveals fresh insights into Thomas Cranmer’s leadership of the Tudor Church
Posted on 19th January, 2026
UCL Press is delighted to announce the publication of Thomas Cranmer’s Register: A Record of Archiepiscopal Administration in Diocese and Province, edited by Dr Paul Ayris and with a Foreword by Professor Diarmaid MacCulloch.
This significant new edition provides access to text from Thomas Cranmer’s register, one of the most important sources for understanding the early Tudor church. Covering the years 1533 to 1553, the register captures a period of intense religious and political transformation, including the break with Rome, the growth of royal authority in church affairs, and the early shaping of a Protestant state.
To date, the register has presented many problems for researchers, with 16th-century handwriting hard for many to decipher and the manuscript’s location in London’s Lambeth Palace out of reach for many. Dr Ayris’s edition offers complete transcription of the difficult text and summaries of Latin passages. The register text is supported by editorial introductions that guide readers through the register’s structure and key themes, shedding new light on how Cranmer managed ecclesiastical business across both the diocese and province of Canterbury. Publication in open access will make the register text immediately available to all researchers worldwide.
The edition brings several major discoveries to public attention. Newly identified records from the diocese of Norwich in 1550 show that Cranmer, not Bishop Nicholas Ridley, initiated the instruction to remove stone altars from English churches. Dr Ayris also proposes a new explanation for the changing references to English Bible reading in the 1536 Royal Injunctions, offering fresh insight into the decision‑making of the period. Additional material from the Court of First Fruits and Tenths, together with detailed evidence of clerical appointments, provides the most complete overview to date of church promotions between 1533 and 1553.
Dr Ayris completed the edition shortly before his death in December 2025, drawing on more than 45 years of research. Published in association with the Canterbury and York Society, the volume stands as a major new resource for scholars of the Tudor period and the English Reformation.
Abut the Author
Paul Ayris (April 1957- December 2025) was Pro-Vice-Provost, Libraries, Culture, Collections and Open Science, at UCL. He previously published on aspects of Cranmer’s register and its significance. He was a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, formerly President of LIBER (Association of European Research Libraries) and chaired the Open Science Ambassadors group in LERU (League of European Research Universities).