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Aug 22, 1485
Richard III is killed in battle
iRchard III was King of England for two years. His defeat at Bosworth Field is sometimes regarded as the end of the Middle Ages in England. He is the subject of the play Richard III by William Shakespeare. -
Oct 22, 1492
Christopher Columbus reaches the Americas
Christopher Columbus reached the Americas in 1492. He was attempting an Asian voyage. -
Oct 22, 1503
Leonardo da Vinci paints the Mona Lisa
The Mona Lisa is often regarded as the most well-known painting of all time. -
Oct 21, 1516
Thomas More's Utopia is published
Utopia is a work of fiction and political philosophy by Thomas More, first composed in the Latin language. The book is a frame narrative primarily depicting a fictional island society and its religious, social and political customs. -
Oct 22, 1543
With the Supremacy Act, Henry VIII proclaims himself head of Church of England
King Henry VIII was the second monarch of the Tudor dynasty, succeeding his father, Henry VII. He is known for his six marriages and also for his role in separation of the Church of England from the Roman Catholic Church. The separation gained support when Henry desired an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so he could marry Anne Boleyn. -
Oct 22, 1558
Elizabeth I becomes queen of England
Elizabeth I was the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Anne was executed two and a half years after Elizabeth was born. Elizabeth set out to rule by good counsel. -
Apr 26, 1564
William Shakespeare, the Bard of Avon, is born
The existence of William Shakespeare, often regarded as the greatest writer in the English language, was first acknowledged on April 26, 1564, the date he is thought to have been baptised. Shakespeare was a poet and dramatist whose plays, to this day, are performed more than those of any other author. -
The Globe Theatre is built in London
The Globe Theatre was built by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men. It was destroyed by a fire in 1613, rebuilt the next year, and closed again in 1642. It was reconstructed as Shakespeare's Globe and reopened once again in 1997. -
Shakespeare writes King Lear and Macbeth
From 1605 t0 1606, Shakespeare wrote two of his most well-known plays: King Lear and Macbeth, both tragedies about fallen kings who descend into madness. -
First permanent English settlement in North America is established at Jamestown, Virginia
Jamestown was the first successful English settlement on the mainland of North America. It was named for King James I. -
Shakespeare's sonnets are published
54 sonnets dealing with themes such as the passage of time, love, beauty and mortality. Some are addressed to a young man. -
King James Bible is published
Also known as the Authorized Version. An English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England begun in 1604. 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 made the voyage from England to the New World. The ship carried 102 passengers in two core groups – religious Separatists coming from Holland and a largely non-religious settler group from London. -
Newspaper are first published in London
The Corante was the first published newspaper in London. -
John Milton begins Paradise Lost
Paradise Lost is an epic poem in blank verse. It was originally published in 1667 in ten books. 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." -
Puritan Commonwealth ends; monarchy is restored with Charles II
The Commonwealth of England, was the period from 1649 onwards when England, along later with Ireland and Scotland, was ruled as a republic following the end of the Second English Civil War and the trial and execution of Charles I.
