Somehow, it survives!
In 1554, the Spanish Inquisition listed 103 editions of the Bible condemned because of errors, unscriptural additions and heresies. A year later, Britain’s Queen Mary commanded “that no manner of persons presume to bring into this realm any manuscript, books, papers, etc., in the name of Martin Luther, John Calvin, Miles Coverdale, Erasmus, Tyndale, etc. or any like books containing false doctrines.”
In 1582, Catholic exiles from England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I produced the first English-language Catholic New Testament and had it printed up in Rheims, France. In 1610, the Old Testament was added in a version printed at Douay, France. William Allen, a distinguished scholar under Catholic Queen Mary, is believed to have been the chief translator. He would have been named Primate or Archbishop of England had the Spanish Armada succeeded in invading England.
