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Jan 1, 1485
Richard lll killed in battle
He is credited with the responsibility for several murders, including those of his nephews Edward and Richard, and of Henry VI. -
Oct 12, 1492
Christopher Columbus reaches the Americas
Famed Italian explorer, he discovered the "New World" of the Americas on an expedition sponsored by King Ferdinand of Spain. -
Oct 1, 1503
Leonardo da Vinci paints the Mona Lisa
Painted by the famous Italian artist, between 1504 and 1519,it is a half body commission for a woman named Lisa Gherardini. Her husband, Francesco Del Giocondo requested the work -
Oct 1, 1516
Thomas More’s Utopia is published
Thomas More is known for his 1516 book Utopia and for his untimely death in 1535, after refusing to acknowledge King Henry VIII as head of the Church of England -
Oct 1, 1543
With the Supremacy Act, Henry VIII proclaims himself head of Church of England
He was the second Tudor monarch and was well-known for having six wives. -
Oct 1, 1558
Elizabeth I becomes queen of England
Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana or Good Queen Bess, the childless Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty. -
Oct 1, 1564
William Shakespeare, the Bard of Avon, is born
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. -
Globe Theatre is built in London
The Globe was destroyed by fire in 1613, rebuilt in 1614, and then demolished in 1644 -
Shakespeare writes King Lear and Macbeth
Tradgedies written by William Shakepeare. -
First permanent English settlement in North America is established at Jamestown, Virginia.
The Jamestown[1] settlement in the Colony of Virginia was the first permanent English settlement in the Americas -
Shakespeare’s sonnets are published
Shakespeare's Sonnets is the title of a collection of 154 sonnets accredited to William Shakespeare which cover themes such as the passage of time, love, beauty and mortality -
King James Bible is published
First printed by the King's Printer Robert Barker, this was the third translation into English to be approved by the English Church authorities. -
The Mayflower lands at Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts
The Mayflower was the ship that transported English Separatists, known today as the Pilgrims, from Plymouth in England to the New World. -
Newspapers are first published in London
In the beginning of the 17th century, the right to print was strictly controlled in England. -
John Milton begins Paradise Lost
John Milton was an English poet, polemicist, man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell. -
Puritan Commonwealth ends; monarchy is restored with Charles II
The Restoration of the English monarchy began in 1660 when the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II.
