Renaissance

Puritan Commonwealth ends; monarchy is restored with Charles II

1660 BCE

King Charles II, the first monarch to rule after the English Restoration. The Restoration of the English monarchy began in 1660 when the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II after the Interregnum that followed the Wars of the Three Kingdoms.

John Milton begins Paradise Lost

1658 BCE

Paradise Lost is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The first version, published in 1667, consisted of ten books with over ten thousand lines of verse. The poem concerns the Biblical story of the Fall of Man: the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their expulsion from the Garden of Eden. Milton's purpose, stated in Book I, is to "justify the ways of God to men"

Newspapers are first published in London

1621 BCE

In the beginning of the 17th century, the right to print was strictly controlled in England. This was probably the reason why the first newspaper in English language was printed in Amsterdam by Joris Veseler around 1620.

The Mayflower lands at Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts

1620 BCE

The Mayflower was the ship that transported the first English Separatists, known today as the Pilgrims, from Plymouth to the New World in 1620 There were 102 passengers, and the crew is estimated to have been about 30, but the exact number is unknown.

King James Bible is published

1611 BCE

An English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England begun in 1604 and completed in 1611.[a] The books of the King James Version include the 39 books of the Old Testament, an intertestamental section containing 14 books of the Apocrypha, and the 27 books of the New Testament.

Shakespeare’s sonnets are published

1609 BCE

Shakespeare's Sonnets is the title of a collection of 154 sonnets by William Shakespeare, which covers themes such as the passage of time, love, beauty and mortality. The first 126 sonnets are addressed to a young man; the last 28 to a woman

First permanent English settlement in North America is established at Jamestown, Virginia

1607 BCE

On May 14, 1607, a small company of
settlers landed at a point on the James River
in Virginia and established the settlement of
Jamestown. It was the first permanent
English settlement in the New World.

1605-1606 Shakespeare writes King Lear and Macbeth

1605 BCE

Written within a year of each other, these are widely regarded as Shakespeare’s most profound tragedies. The course will consider them not only as studies in moral evil, but also as tragedies of state with a peculiar relevance to the Jacobean period.

Globe Theatre is built in London

1599 BCE

The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. The Globe was owned by many actors, who (except for one) were also shareholders in the Lord Chamberlain's Men.The Globe was built in 1599 using timber from an earlier theatre, The Theatre, that had been built by Richard Burbage's father, James Burbage, in Shoreditch in 1576.

William Shakespeare, the Bard of Avon, is born

1564 BCE

William Shakespeare was an English poet, playwright, and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet, and the "Bard of Avon".

Elizabeth I becomes queen of England

1558 BCE

Queen Elizabeth I was born on the September 7, 1533 in Greenwich England. She was a princess but declared illegitimate through political machinations. She eventually claimed the throne at the age of 25 and held it for 44 years, keeping England in the ascendant through wars, and political and religious turmoil.

With the Supremacy Act, Henry VIII proclaims himself head of Church of England

1543 BCE

The title was created for King Henry VIII, who was responsible for the English Catholic church breaking away from the authority of the Roman Catholic Church after the Pope excommunicated Henry in 1533 over his divorce from Catherine of Aragon. By 1536, Henry had broken with Rome, seized the church's assets in England and declared the Church of England as the established church with himself as its head.

Leonardo da Vinci paints the Mona Lisa

1503 BCE

Leonardo da Vinci began painting the Mona Lisa in 1503 or 1504 in Florence, Italy. Although the Louvre states that it was "doubtless painted between 1503 and 1506", the art historian Martin Kemp says there are some difficulties in confirming the actual dates with certainty.

Christopher Columbus reaches the Americas

1492 BCE

Christopher Columbus Discovers America, 1492. Columbus led his three ships - the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria - out of the Spanish port of Palos on August 3, 1492. His objective was to sail west until he reached Asia (the Indies) where the riches of gold, pearls and spice awaited.

Richard III is killed in battle

1485 BCE

Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 1483 until his death in 1485, at the age of 32, in the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty.

Thomas More’s Utopia is published

Nov 8, 1516

Utopia is a work of fiction and political philosophy by Thomas More published in 1516 in Latin. The book is a frame narrative primarily depicting a fictional island society and its religious, social and political customs