 Luther and his Bible sparked a religious reformation, broke up the Roman Church, and led to the formation of Protestant churches. While it isn't in the direct lineage of today's English Bibles, it was Martin Luther's translation that sparked the first translation of the Bible into modern English. Henry VIII famously broke ties with the Catholic Church and became the Supreme Head of the Church of England in 1534. In 1536, he authorized Thomas Cromwell, his keeper of the Privy Seal, to create a Bible in English.