England then experienced a period of frenetic and eclectic reforms , some more radical and others more traditional , under monarchs such as Edward VI and Elizabeth I , and Archbishops of Canterbury such as Thomas Cranmer and William Laud . England would later experience periods of frenetic and eclectic reforms contrasted by periods led by staunch conservatives . Monarchs such as Edward VI , Mary I , Elizabeth I , and Archbishops of Canterbury such as Thomas Cranmer and William Laud pushed the Church of England in many directions over the course of only a few generations .