Defender of the Faith

Fidei defensor is a Latin title which translates to Defender of the Faith in English and Défenseur de la Foi in French. The phrase has been used as part of the full style of many monarchs since the early 16th century.

English usage

History

"Defender of the Faith" has been one of the subsidiary titles of the English and later British and Commonwealth monarchs since it was granted on November 24, 1521, by Pope Leo X to King Henry VIII of England. The title was conferred in recognition of Henry's book Assertio Septem Sacramentorum (Defence of the Seven Sacraments), which defended the sacramental nature of marriage and the supremacy of the Pope. This was also known as the "Henrician Affirmation" and was seen as an important opposition to the early stages of the Protestant Reformation, especially the ideas of Martin Luther.

Following Henry's decision to break with Rome in 1530 and establish himself as head of the Church of England, the title was revoked by Pope Paul III (since Henry's act was regarded as an attack on "the Faith") and Henry was excommunicated. However, in 1544, the Parliament of England conferred the title "Defender of the Faith", then mainly against Catholicism, so the inverse of the original papal grant, on King Edward VI and his successors, now the defenders of the Anglican faith, of which they (except the Catholic 'renegade' Mary Tudor) remain the Supreme Governors (formally above the Archbishop of Canterbury as Primate).

During The Protectorate (1653-59), the republican heads of state Oliver Cromwell and Richard Cromwell, more clearly profiled as Protestant than the Monarchy, although claiming divine sanction, did not adopt the style "Defender of the Faith". However, the style was reintroduced after the restoration of the monarchy and remains in use to this day.

Modern usage

In her capacity as queen of the United Kingdom, Elizabeth II is styled, "Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith". The title "Defender of the Faith" reflects the Sovereign's position as the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, who is thus formally superior to the Archbishop of Canterbury. The original Latin phrase - Fidei Defensor - is referred to on all current British coins by the abbreviations, F D or FID DEF. This reference was first added to British coins in 1714, during the reign of King George I. The decision of the Royal Mint to omit reference to the phrase (and other parts of the monarch's style) from the pre-decimal British so called "Godless Florin" in 1849, caused such a scandal that the coin was replaced.

In most Commonwealth Realms the phrase does not appear in the Monarch's full style, while maintaining the initial By the Grace of God. For example, in Australia Queen Elizabeth is presently styled, "...by the Grace of God, Queen of Australia and Her other Realms and Territories, Head of the Commonwealth"). She is only styled "Defender of the Faith" in Canada, New Zealand and the UK. Canada chose to include the phrase not because the sovereign is regarded as the protector of the state religion (Canada has none), but as a defender of faith in general. In a speech to the House of Commons in 1953, Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent stated:

The rather more delicate question arose about the retention of the words, "Defender of the Faith". In England there is an established church. In our countries [the other monarchies of the Commonwealth] there are no established churches, but in our countries there are people who have faith in the direction of human affairs by an all-wise providence, and we felt that it was a good thing that the civil authorities would proclaim that their organisation is such that it is a defence of the continued beliefs in a supreme power that orders the affairs of mere men, and that there could be no reasonable objection from anyone who believed in the Supreme Being in having the sovereign, the head of the civil authority, described as a believer in and a defender of the faith in a supreme ruler.

— Louis St Laurent

At various times, some countries of the Commonwealth retained the title until they formally became republics, e.g. South Africa from 29 May 1953 and Ireland. Others dropped it even sooner, e.g. in 1953, while still a dominion of the Commonwealth (till 1956), Pakistan dropped the title in recognition of the contradiction between its overwhelmingly Muslim population and having a monarch as the defender of the Christian faith.

Charles, Prince of Wales, the present heir to the thrones of all the Commonwealth Realms, expressed a preference to change the style and the spirit should he succeed as expected. He commented in 1994, "I personally would rather see [my future role] as Defender of Faith, not the Faith".

Usage in the French language

Haiti

In 1811, when he proclaimed himself king, Henri I of Haiti awarded himself the title, "Défenseur de la Foi", and incorporated it into his long, pompous full style, which translates from the French original as: By the grace of God and the constitutional law of the state, King of Haiti, Sovereign of Tortuga, Gonâve and other adjacent Islands, Destroyer of Tyranny, Regenerator and Benefactor of the Haitian Nation, Creator of her Moral, Political and Martial Institutions, First Crowned Monarch of the New World, Defender of the Faith, founder of the Royal and Military Order of Saint-Henry.

Canada

Today, the French variant is used as part of the official version of the monarch's style in Canada ("...par la Grâce de Dieu, Reine du Royaume-Uni, du Canada et de ses autres Royaumes et Territoires, Chef du Commonwealth, Défenseur de la Foi" - mainly used in the francophone province of Quebec).

See also

• By the Grace of God
• Dieu et mon droit
• Protestantism in the Church of England
• Style of the British Sovereign
• Defensor Perpétuo do Império do Brasil
• Amir al-Mu'minin (Commander of the Faithful) in Islam