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Fishy Politics
“Popish” was deemed suspicious, including eating fish on Fridays, during Lent, or on any of the other scores of Catholic fasting days that occupied almost half the calendar of the time. Suddenly, the country lost its appetite for fresh cod, salted herring, eels, and every other kind of seafood. It was a change that rippled through the entire economy, affecting the demand for ships and boats, sails and ropes, and, of course, the hearty sailors and fishermen themselves. Thirty years later, the decline in the fishing industry turned into a crisis. During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, Britain’s seafaring capacity had declined to the point that Parliament decided it was a risk to national security and something had to be done. In 1563, in the House of Commons, Sir William Winter argued that “it is necessary for the restoring of the navy of England to have more fish eaten and therefor one day more in the week ordained to be a fish day…” In a scholarly article called “Piscatorial Politics Revisited,” R.C.L. Sgroi argues that what became known as “Political Lent” was both a matter of economics, national self-image, and national defense. And although Sgroi doesn’t make the case, a person might guess that the rejuvenation of the fishing industry — and all its related activities — might have played a role in England’s famous naval defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588.
FRYDAYS Then&Now
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The Lenten Fish Fry traces his roots back to the earliest centuries of Catholic practice. From as early as the second century A.D., the ichthys (the “sign of the fish”) had become a secret symbol used by Christians in recognition of the importance of fish and fishermen in the Gospels. For nearly two millennia, the consumption of fish on days of abstention has played a prominent role in Roman Catholic tradition and practice. It’s a tradition that continues today all over the world. In Louisville alone, dozens of area churches host annual Fish Frys during Lent. But it turns out that all those centuries of fasting days have also had an enormous impact on history and the global economy. In 1533, England’s King Henry VIII decided to divorce his wife, Catherine of Aragon, in order to marry Anne Boleyn. Of course, we all know what happened next: a radical change in England’s diet and a crisis in its fishing industry. Oh, sure, that’s not the story you’ll see on Masterpiece Theatre or dozens of Hollywood films, but in the ports and kitchens of England it was big news. England, of course, was a seafaring and fishing nation. One day it was a Catholic country with an assortment of more than 800 Church institutions. Then it wasn’t: all the monasteries were dissolved by the King. Practicing Roman Catholicism became an act of treason. Any behavior that looked Volunteers serve happy diners on Preston Highway at the Guardian Angels Catholic Church Fish Fry.
PHOTO BY DAN DRY
BY MARTY ROSEN
PHOTOS BY WAYNE TUCSON
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