Thanks, those are very interesting and pertinent points. Protestantism was indeed closely linked with nationalism, and antagonism towards the Pope was linked to trade. Nation states did not want the Papacy to have control over their imports and exports when huge markets were opening up worldwide.
I’ll definitely be covering all these issues in future blogs, but for the time being, please see also my reply to Jon Cook’s comment. The role of Huguenots in Ireland is a whole other story, which I’m looking forward to dealing with in depth.

Thank you! Protestantism and nationalism were indeed closely linked, and antagonism towards the Pope was linked to burgeoning trade – nation-states did not want their imports and exports to be controlled by the Papacy. I want to blog more about this in future – see also my reply to Jon Cook’s comment.

There had long been demands to return to the kind of church run by the Apostles, where goods were held in common, where there was no hierarchy, and where all Christians were considered equal. See, for example, the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381. Such “heresy” was rumbling along for a couple of centuries before the time was right for Protestantism to become an unstoppable force. This coincided with the rise of nationalism, which clashed with recognition of the Pope and subjection to papal control of trade. The use of vernacular/national languages instead of Latin was a big part of the Protestant push.

The paranoia of Puritans is rooted in the idea that the Devil is real and is actively engaged in a bitter day-to-day struggle for mastery of the world. No corner of the world is safe from the Devil, and so everything and everyone must be viewed with suspicion: hypervigilance is essential. This mindset is very finely portrayed in Robert Eggers’ film “The Witch”, and the fine line between faith and hallucination beautifully drawn.

Yes, I feel that all the republican forces active in the Civil War generally have a bad press and are grossly misunderstood – not just the Puritans. The explosion of ideas at that time is fascinating, and well worth exploring. It’s all too easy to write the factions off as deluded extremists.

There’s plenty more of all this to come! I’m very interested in King James I and his role in Protestantism – do you have any more info on his order to limit the influence of Puritans? A source I could read, perhaps? Thanks in advance!