-
Period: 1491 to 1547
Henry VIII
Henry VIII (28 June 1491 – 28 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. He appointed himself Supreme Head of the Church of England and dissolved convents and monasteries, for which he was excommunicated by the pope. -
Period: 1516 to 1558
Mary I
Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, and as "Bloody Mary" by her Protestant opponents, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death in 1558. She is best known for her vigorous attempt to reverse the English Reformation, which had begun during the reign of her father, Henry VIII. -
1517
The Ninety-Five Theses
written by Martin Luther denoucing the indulgences created by the Church in exchange on money -
1521
excommunication of Martin Luther
following the writing of his book in 1517, Martin Luther was expelled from the Church and declared a heretic. -
1522
the New testament (Latin version)
the New Testament was first published in 1522 and was widely
disseminated -
1526
the Tyndale Bible
In England, the Tyndale Bible was published. William Tyndale translated the New Testament into English -
1533
Act in Restraint of Appeals
gives the King the legal power to annul marriages. -
Period: 1533 to
Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I (7 September 1533 – 24 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Sometimes referred to as the Virgin Queen, Elizabeth was the last of the five monarchs of the House of Tudor. -
1534
Act of Supremacy
Act declaring the King and his successors as Supreme Head of the Church, taking the place of the pope. -
1534
schism
Separation of the church of England from the
Roman Catholic Church -
Period: 1534 to
The Early Modern Period
The early modern period in England (c. 1500-1800) is often best remembered for dramatic developments that transformed the political, religious and economic life of the country. -
1536
Pilgrimage of Grace
-
1537
English Bible Mandatory in every church
-
Period: 1537 to 1553
Edward VI
Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first English monarch to be raised as a Protestant. During his reign, the realm was governed by a regency council because he never reached maturity. -
Period: 1545 to 1563
Council of Trent
held in the Italian city of
Trent = the symbol of Counter Reformation
o the Roman Catholic church attempted to correct
some of the abuses of the church
o and harshly condemned protestant heresies -
1549
Book of Common Prayer
-
1553
Mary I became the first Queen of England
-
1553
Poor Laws (1st version)
This established the idea that central and local governments had a
responsibility for helping the poor.
• BUT it also established a distinction between the “deserving poor” and the
“undeserving poor”.
• Very harsh laws against beggars and vagrants -
1559
The Act of Uniformity
• every parish had to use the Book of Common Prayer
• people who did not attend an Anglican service were fined. -
1559
The Act of Supremacy (1559)
under the reign of Elizabeth I, she abolished the authority of the Pope, restored the authority of the Queen over the Church. She also became “Supreme Governor of the Church of England” -
Period: 1563 to 1571
The 39 articles of faith
• stated the doctrine (religious belief) of the Church
• 3 important changes : a new ecclesiology (conception of the Church) / a new doctrine of
Salvation (doctrine du salut) / a new definition of sacraments and of the mass
• still in use today -
Period: 1566 to
King James I of England and VI of Scotland
King James I of England and VI of Scotland
• He was the son of Mary Queen of
Scots (who had been executed by
Elizabeth)
• James was proclaimed King of
Scotland in 1567
• He was crowned King of England in
1603 on Elizabeth’s death
• Strong believer in the divine rights of
kings -
1570
Excommunication of Elizabeth I
excommunication by Pope Pius V -
1571
Treasons Act
The 1571 Treasons Act made it
treason for anyone to say that Elizabeth was not
the true Queen of England and Wales -
1581
the 1581 Act
also known as “Act to retain the
Queen’s Majesty’s Subjects in
their due Obedience”):
• It provided for the death
penalty for any person
converting, or already
converted to Catholicism.
• It was now forbidden to
participate or celebrate the
Catholic Mass
• Anglican services were
compulsory: £20 per month
fine -
The Babington plot
Young Catholics had sworn to kill Elizabeth and put Mary
Stuart on the throne but their strategies were discovered
by Francis Walsingham, when he managed to decipher a
coded letter between Marie Stuart and this group. -
The execution of Mary Queen of Scots
She was executed in 1587 in Fotheringham Castle, wearing a bright red dress, the colour of Catholic martyrs. -
The Defeat of the Spanish Armada
Reasons for victory:
- a material advantage on the side of England
- Under Elizabeth, a new fleet (une flotte) was
constructed: modern fleet of 800 ships
- Invention of a new strategy by England: line
battle
- Used the Dutch strategy of incendiary ships
- a human advantage on the side of England
- recruiting efforts had been made: many
more sailors -
Speech to the troops at Tilbury
The queen made this speech in Tilbury, Essex, in order to rally the troops who were preparing to repel the invasion of the Spanish Armada:
“I know I have the body of a weak woman but I have the heart and
stomach of a king, and a King of England too”. -
Poor Laws (2nd version)
-
Poor Laws (3rd version)
This system remained in place until the 19th century.
One of the most famous legacy of the Queen’s reign. -
Elizabeth's death (at 69 years old)
• She had secured the position of
England in the world
• She had imposed Protestantism
• Her heir was the son of her cousin
Mary Queen of Scots (Mary Stuart)
• James VI of Scotland: became James I
of England. -
The Gunpowder Plot
Conspiracy devised by a small group of Catholics to blow up the Parliament and kill James I -
first permanent colony, Virginia
-
establishment of Jamestown in Virginia
-
Period: to
The Starving Time
-
financial reforms - “ The Great Contract” (REFUSED)
The King would receive a fixed sum
• But some MPs feared the King would not need to call up parliaments
anymore to get money (the king would be financially independent)
• The House of Commons refused to vote in favour of the Great Contract
result: James dismissed Parliament -
the King James’ Bible
-
Period: to
The Thirty Years' War
• Military defeats (Lord Buckingham, the King’s advisor became very
unpopular)
• England at war with Spain and France • Consequences of the war:
• A huge strain on finances
• The raising of troops (50 000!) had important impacts on the local
population -
Period: to
King Charles I
• Firmly believed in the divine right of
Kings
• He interpreted all criticism as a
challenge to his authority.
• Married the French princess
Henrietta Maria (absolutist +
Catholic)
• Favoured a minority wing of
Anglicans: the ARMINIANS
(wished to restore traditional
ceremonies and increase the
authority of bishops and the clergy) -
Petition of Rights
• They requested the King to recognise the illegality of extra-
parliamentary taxation, billeting, martial law, imprisonment without trial.
• Wanted to get Charles to recognise that there were limits to his
powers
• Charles reluctantly signed it but was furious, and as MPs were
discussing impeaching Lord Buckingham again, he suspended
parliament seating. -
the Three Resolutions (by the MPs)
• Declared that whoever tried to
bring in “Popery or Arminianism” or
to alter the protestant forms of the
Church of England was an enemy
of the Kingdom
• as well as anyone advising the
King to collect custom duties
without Parliament’s consent -
Period: to
The Personal Rule
11 years when the King ruled without calling a parliament -
Period: to
The Scottish crisis
• Scotland was Calvinist
(Protestant too, but different
religious practices /England)
The Kirk = the Church of
Scotland
The General Assembly = the
Kirk’s governing body
• 1637: the introduction of the
New Prayer Book
(Book of Common Prayer)
set Scotland aflame.
The changes were deemed
unacceptable (new position of
the altar, kneeling, etc). The riot would soon turn into a widespread
rebellion known as the Bishops’ Wars -
The Short Parliament (3 weeks)
needing money to fight the Scots, Charles called a
parliament for the first time in 11 years (“The Short
Parliament” à as the MPs demanded the King to address their
grievances first, Charles dissolved it after only 3 weeks) -
Treaty of Ripon
• The Scots invaded England and emerged victorious
à Peace Treaty (Treaty of Ripon, Oct 1640): Charles was
forced to pay the cost of the Scots’ army -
Period: to
The Long Parliament
The 1640 Parliament was determined to remedy 11 years of
grievances and wanted to ensure regular parliaments.
They passed two acts ensuring that:
• Parliament should meet at least every 3 years
• The dissolution of Parliament required its consent
Parliament also executed Earl Stafford, one of the King’s most
powerful advisers (scapegoat for the king’s policies during the
Personal Rule). -
The Irish Rebellion
an armed revolt broke out in Ireland: The Irish
Rebellion
• James I (Charles’ father) had implemented a plantation policy =
sending English and Scottish protestant colonists to Ireland,
taking the lands of Irish Catholics
• In Oct 1641, Irish Catholics rebels rose up against Protestant
settlers
-> Massacre of 3 000/4 000 protestants
• Rumours: Irish atrocities, 200 000 protestants massacred (fuelled
the anti-Catholic sentiment in England)
->
Parliament passed the Militia Act (1641) -
The Grand Remonstrance
important document voted by Parliament after heated debates.
It summarized all the wrong doing of Charles I and concluded on
“revolutionary” demands:
• the right of the House of commons to choose the King’s
ministers
• the right for Parliament to control any army sent to Ireland
• the right for Parliament to reform the Church -
Period: to
ENGLISH CIVIL WARS
-
Battle of Naseby
turning point and saw the Royalist
forces weaken. -
King and the Royalists surrendered
-
the New Model Army seized the King
-
King escaped from army custody and allied himself with the Scots
-
PRIDE’S PURGE
Colonel Pride (Army) entered the House of
Commons, stopped the vote and arrested the 45 conservative leader MPs.
• The remainder MPs (named the Rump Parliament = le Parlement Croupion) put
the King on trial for high treason -
Period: to
Second Civil War
-
King Charles I executed
-
England was declared a Commonwealth (Republic)
-
Period: to
The Interregnum
England declared a “Commonwealth” = governed by its people without a King
But failure to reach stability and creation of a military protectorate ruled by Cromwell many experiments with republican forms of government.
But main problem: any republican regime needed the support of both
The propertied classes who wanted stability and order
The army who wanted religious toleration and reforms -
Period: to
The Commonwealth
The regicide was welcomed with shock and dismay in England and Europe (reinforced by Royalist propaganda describing the King as a martyr) In 1649:
A law abolished monarchy (described as “unnecessary, burdensome and dangerous”)
The House of Lords was abolished
The House of Commons had supreme authority
England was declared a Commonwealth
Ruled as a Republic -
Blasphemy Act
-
Blasphemy Act
-
end of the Commonwealth and start of the Protectorate
-
Period: to
The Cromwellian Protectorate
-
Declaration of Breda
It promised:
A general amnesty (pardon)
To continue religious toleration
To share power with Parliament
…in return for the restoration of monarchy. -
Period: to
Early Restoration
-
The Restoration
-
Outbrake of the Plague
-
The Popish Plot
Rumour of a plot organised by the French to murder Charles II and replace him by his Catholic brother James II
Fear: James as king would implement pro-Catholic politics + might try to restore absolute monarchy, threatening Parliament (Just look at Louis XIV: absolute monarch + persecution of protestants!) -
Period: to
The Exclusion crisis
-
Toleration Act
established religious pluralism,and freedom of worship for all Protestants -
The Bill of Rights
Lists King James’ misdeeds
Fixed limitations on the sovereign’s powers
Parliament had to consent to new laws
Parliament gained control over finances and over the army
No Catholic was to inherit the throne
Set out the rights of Parliament
Regular parliaments
Free elections
Freedom of speech in Parliament
Set out basic civil rights -
The Act of Settlement
-
Period: to
War of the Spanish Succession
-
Period: to
George I
-
Period: to
George II
-
Period: to
Seven Years’ War
Britain gained Florida over the
Spanish and (most of) Canada
over the French -
Period: to
George III
-
Acts of Union
acts of the Parliament of Great Britain and the Parliament of Ireland which united the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland to create the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. -
Period: to
George IV