Despite initial criticisms from some quarters, the King James
Bible soon replaced the Bishops’ Bible as the version read in
churches and in time became the acknowledged Bible of the
English-speaking world, a position it was to hold unchallenged
for over 300 years. Advancements in Biblical scholarship led to
the production of a revised version in the 1880s, the aim of
which was to correct and improve the King James version, while
retaining its linguistic style and vocabulary. This revised
version was prepared by the Convocation of the Province of
Canterbury (the Convocation of the Province of York having
declined to take part) and assistance was also sought from a
committee of American scholars. The American committee’s
suggestions were not all adopted by the Convocation, with the
result that a separate American revised version appeared in
1901. Neither of these revisions, however, succeeded in
supplanting the King James Bible from its position of supremacy.
It was not until the mid-20th century that a serious