The Book of Common Prayer (1662)
The Book of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments
Almighty God, unto whom all hearts be open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid.
What it is
The normative liturgical and devotional book of the Church of England, reprinted at the accession of every monarch with updated prayers for the reigning sovereign and royal family. Queen Elizabeth II was confirmed on 28 March 1942 in the Private Chapel at Windsor Castle; her grandfather George V read a chapter of the Bible alongside the Prayer Book every day; and the Queen Mother Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon had, according to Archbishop George Carey's eulogy, 'a lifelong love of the Authorised Version and the Book of Common Prayer.' It governed Morning and Evening Prayer at all Windsor chapels and was described by Elizabeth II as central to her formation.
Why it still matters
Still the normative devotional text of the Church of England; its daily Morning and Evening Prayer offices can be prayed at home by any Christian seeking structured Scriptural devotion.
Kept alongside
Book of Common Prayer (1662 Revision)
The Book of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, and other Rites and Ceremonies of the Church
The 1662 Book of Common Prayer was authorized by Act of Uniformity following the Savoy Conference (1661) and the subsequent revision carried out by the Convocation of the Church of England, producing over six hundred alterations to the previous text. It became the standard devotional and liturgical text for all Stuart and Windsor monarchs, and Charles I's personal copy—preserved at Trinity College Library, Cambridge, inscribed 'Charles Stuart Rex — a book he used to take out of his closett 1648'—documents his private daily use. All subsequent Stuart and Windsor monarchs have drawn on its language in court chapel worship and personal piety, and it remains the legal standard of Anglican worship to this day.
Eikon Basilike: The Pourtraicture of His Sacred Majestie in His Solitudes and Sufferings
Published on 9 February 1649, ten days after Charles I's execution, this text presents the king's meditations, prayers, and political reflections composed during the Civil War, framing royal suffering as Christ-like martyrdom. It went through approximately 35 editions in 1649 alone and was embraced by Royalists as a devotional text venerating Charles as a royal martyr. Cambridge University Library holds a significant collection (CCA-E.8) comprising 65 volumes of editions and related works, and the text circulated in pocket editions for personal prayer. It shaped Stuart Restoration piety and led to a Feast of Charles the Martyr being formalized in the 1662 Book of Common Prayer.
The Authorized (King James) Version of the Bible
James I personally commissioned this translation at the Hampton Court Conference of 1604, set the translators' rules, and ensured publication in 1611; 47 of the 54 appointed scholars are documented as having participated. Lancelot Andrewes headed the First Westminster Company, responsible for Genesis through 2 Kings. The KJV became the Bible of the entire Stuart and Windsor dynasties in royal chapel worship, public proclamations, and coronation ceremonies, with the Bible presented at Queen Elizabeth II's coronation being the KJV. Her Christmas broadcasts routinely quoted from it, extending royal identification with this translation across more than four centuries.