November 3 in Church History
Henry VIII and the Act of Supremacy
November 3 in church history: the Act of Supremacy, the feast of Martin de Porres, the Long Parliament and David Brainerd’s baptisms at Crossweeksung.
Today marks the official birth of the Anglican Church, as Parliament passed the Act of Supremacy of 1534, making the king supreme head of the Church of England. This cemented Royal Supremacy of the King over religious institutions. Denying this supremacy became an act of treason, leading to prolonged conflicts. It was revoked by Mary I, but permanently reinstated by Elizabeth I.
Martin de Porres, kept today, was the son of a Spanish nobleman and a freed Black woman in Lima, and he is remembered for his care of the sick and the poor.
On Sunday, November 3, 1745, David Brainerd baptized six adults and eight children among the Native Americans of Crossweeksung, New Jersey. One was a woman of about eighty.
On this day
- 1534Parliament meets and passes the Act of Supremacy, making Henry VIII head of the English church
- 1639Martin de Porres, Dominican lay brother of Lima, dies
- 1640The Long Parliament opens, setting Puritans against Archbishop Laud
- 1745David Brainerd baptizes fourteen converts at Crossweeksung, New Jersey
- 1784Thomas Coke lands in New York as Wesley’s superintendent for America
Feast days
Martin de Porres, Malachy, Winefride, Pirmin
Also kept today: Clydog, Rumwold, Wulgan
November calendar
Sources. David Hugh Farmer, The Oxford Dictionary of Saints; standard reference works; Rusten and Rusten, The One Year Christian History; Curtis and Graves, This Day in Christian History.
Last updated November 2, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.