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Aug 22, 1485
Richard III is killed in battle
He was killed at the Battle of Bosworth Field which was the last decisive battle of the Wars of the Roses. His death marked the end of the Middle Ages in England -
Jan 1, 1492
Christopher Columbus reaches the Americas
Italian explorer, navigator, and colonizer who was the first to reach the Americas which lead to lasting European contact with it -
Jan 1, 1503
Leonardo da Vinci paints the "Mona Lisa"
Acclaimed as the best known, the most visited, the most written about, the most sung about, and the most parodied work of art in the world that is on permanent display at the Louvre Museum in Paris since 1797 -
Jan 1, 1516
Utopia by Thomas More
Takes place in Utopia which is some sort of perfected society, but it is ultimately unreachable. -
Nov 1, 1543
With the Supremacy Act, Henry VIII proclaims himself head of Church of England
An act of Parliament that did not necessarily grant the King the title but simply acknowledged it as an established fact -
Nov 17, 1558
Elizabeth I becomes queen of England
Sometimes called The Virgin Queen or Gloriana, she established an English Protestant church where she became Supreme Governor. She also reigned while English drama flourished -
Apr 23, 1564
William Shakespeare, the Bard of Avon, is born
He was an English poet, playwright, and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world’s pre-eminent dramatist -
Globe Theatre is built in London
A theatre in London made by Lord Chamberlain’s Men on land owned by Thomas Brend. Burnt down in 1613, reopened 1614, officially closed 1642 -
Shakespeare writes King Lear and Macbeth
Two tragedies focusing on the damaging psychological effects of politics -
First permanent English settlement in North Ameria is established at Jamestown, Virginia
Established by the Virginia Company of London as “James Fort” and located within the country of Tsenacommacah (in the Powhatan Confederacy) -
Shakespeare's sonnets are published
154 sonnets with themes such as the passage of time, love, beauty and mortality -
King James Bible is published
Translated by over 40 Anglican scholars with instructions to have it conform to the ecclesiology and episcopal structure of the Church of England -
The "Mayflower" lands at Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts
Carried 102 separatists with a crew of about 30 who later established a rudimentary form of democracy -
Newspapers are first published in London
Named the Corante, single page, and it was published by Nathaniel Butter -
John Milton begins "Paradise Lost"
Totaled 22 books and focuses on the Biblical story of the Fall of Man to justify the ways of God to men -
Puritan Commonwealth ends; monarchy is restored with Charles II
Replaced Cromwell, a virtual dictator, and was tolerant with religion
