ABSTRACT
Religion dominated Victorian life at mid-century though great diversity characterised that religion. When divorce, pre-eminently a matter of religious doctrine to many, came before the public eye in the 1850s, the strongest opposition to reforms came from segments of the Church of England, but the rich variety of religious life produced a diffuse response from the religious community as a whole. While history since the Reformation of Henry VIII convinced many Englishmen that, in politics, men could disagree and the kingdom still survive, indeed prosper, in religion, many came to accept that men differed but were not agreed that this was a good idea. Truth still existed in religion, if not in politics, and the confusion among Christians about divorce confused others about any possible reforms. Besides, not all thought divorce reform a religious issue and they did not want to hear the opinions of the churched. Mid-Victorian religion had many aspects and many themes, and divorce affected different men differently.
