Hilaire Belloc's Cranmer depicts Thomas Cranmer as a shy, cunning scholar living a double life as Archbishop who facilitated the divorce of King Henry VIII and unleashed a Calvinist vision on the English people. Belloc portrays Cranmer as a symbol of a profound change in the English mind, one that destroyed the country's Catholic heritage. The book highlights his role in destroying the English Catholic faith, imposing a Calvinist vision, and creating a new national liturgy, making him a key figure in the transformation of the English mentality. It narrates how Cranmer, after being freed from his old master, violently enforced radical religious changes, including suppressing rebellions with artillery.