The Tudor period

Beginning of the Tudor Period

Aug 22, 1485

The Tudor dynasty was founded in 1485 by Elizabeth's grandfather, Henry VII, when he emerged victorious after the dynastic Wars of the Roses.

Reign of Henry VII

Period: Aug 22, 1485 to Apr 21, 1509

Henry VII's coronation

Oct 30, 1485

Henry Tudor was crowned at Westminster Abbey and became Henry VII.

Henry VII married Elizabeth of York

Jan 18, 1486

This wedding united the houses of Lancaster and of York.

Birth of Arthur Tudor

Sep 20, 1486

He was the first son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York.

Birth of Henry Tudor

Jun 28, 1491

He was the third child and second son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. He will later become Henry VIII.

Death of Arthur Tudor.

Apr 2, 1502

He died at the age of fifteen and Henry became heir to the throne.

Margaret Tudor married James IV

Jan 25, 1503

Margaret was the second child of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. This wedding formed an alliance with Scotland which meant peace between the two countries.

Death of Henry VII

Apr 21, 1509

He died of tuberculosis and was succeeded by his son Henry VIII.

Reign of Henry VIII

Period: Apr 22, 1509 to Jan 28, 1547

Henry VIII married Catherine of Aragon

Jun 11, 1509

He married his brother's Spanish widow. He said that it was his father's dying wish that he marry Catherine of Aragon.

Henry VIII's coronation

Jun 24, 1509

He was crowned at the Westminster Abbey.

Mary Tudor married Louis XII of France

Oct 9, 1514

A peace treaty was negotiated with France and therefore she married the King of France and became Queen of France for three months. Louis XII of France died on January 1st, 1515. Mary was the daughter of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York.

Birth of Mary Tudor

Feb 18, 1516

After Catherine gave birth to several stillborn children, she finally gave birth to Mary Tudor, who will later become Mary I also known as "Bloody Mary".

Birth of Henry Fitzroy

Jun 15, 1519

Henry Fitzroy was the illegitimate son of Henry VIII and his mistress Elizabeth Blount. He was made Duke of Richmond in June 1525.

The Defence of the Seven Sacraments

1521

The Defence of the Seven Sacraments, in Latin: Assertio Septem Sacramentorum, was a book written by Henry VIII and Sir Thomas More, which spoke in defence of the Catholic religion and was presented to the Pope. The Pope gave Henry the title of Fidei Defensor (Defender of the Faith).

Divorce crisis began

1527

Around 1527, Henry VIII wanted to divorce his wife, Catherine of Aragon, because she was not giving him a male heir.

Cardinal Wolsey was sent to convince the Pope Clement VII.

1529

Cardinal Wolsey failed to convince the Pope Clement VII to annul the wedding of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon.

Divorce with Catherine of Aragon

1532

Catherine was banished from court, and her rooms were given to Anne Boleyn, Henry's mistress.

Henry VIII married Anne Boleyn

1533

Henry VIII finally married Anne Boleyn. She could give him children and especially sons because she was young. She became Queen Consort of England.

The Act of Restraint of Appeals

Apr 7, 1533

The Act of Restraint of Appeals meant that people could not appeal to the Pope to overturn Henry's rulings on the church.

Coronation of Anne Boleyn

Jun 1, 1533

Birth of Elizabeth I

Sep 7, 1533

Elizabeth, also known as the "Virgin Queen" would be the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs.

First Act of Supremacy

Nov 3, 1534

Henry VIII made his separation with Rome official by publishing the Act of Supremacy. The Act of Supremacy was an act passed by the parliament which declared that the king was "the only supreme head on Earth of the Church of England" and that said that the Pope did not have any power in England.

Henry VIII married Jane Seymour

1536

The day after Anne's execution Henry became engaged to Seymour. They were married ten days later at the Palace of Whitehall.

Dissolution of the monasteries

1536

The monasteries were suppressed because they were considerate as immoral places, there was corruption, it was a place where the pope could still have power and they had a lot of land and a lot of money.

The Pilgrimage of Grace

1536

The Pilgrimage of Grace was a popular revolt which began in Yorkshire in October 1536, under the leadership of Robert Aske. The "most serious of all Tudor period rebellions". It was a protest against Henry VIII's break with the Catholic Church and the dissolution of the monasteries. It ended in February 1537.

Act of Union

1536

Wales was legally incorporated into England, with English as its official language. The Bible was translated into Welsh in 1588.

Death of Catherine of Aragon

Jan 7, 1536

She died at the age of fifty.

Execution of Anne Boleyn

May 19, 1536

Henry was still without a male heir. Indeed, Anne miscarried a male child. Anne was arrested and accused of treasonous adultery and incest. On May 19, 1536, Anne was executed on Tower Green and Henry could marry his new mistress, Jane Seymour.

Birth of Edward VI

Oct 12, 1537

Edward was the first son of Henry VIII, he finally had a male heir.

Death of Jane Seymour

Oct 24, 1537

The birth of Edward was difficult, and Queen Jane died on October 24, 1537 from an infection, twelve days after the birth of her son.

Henry VIII married Anne of Cleves

Jan 6, 1540

Anne was the sister of the Duke of Cleves.

Annulment of Henry VII and Anne of Cleves' wedding

Jul 12, 1540

Anne was asked for her consent to an annulment, to which she agreed and confirmed that the marriage had never been consummated.

Execution of Thomas Cromwell

Jul 28, 1540

Thomas Cromwell was an English lawyer and statesman who served as chief minister to King Henry VIII and had help him with the annulment of his wedding with Catherine of Aragon. He was beheaded on orders of the king, who blamed false charges for the execution.

Henry VIII married Catherine Howard

Jul 28, 1540

Henry was delighted with his new queen and awarded her the lands of Cromwell. Soon after the marriage Queen Catherine had an affair with the courtier Thomas Culpeper.

Execution of Catherine Howard

Feb 13, 1542

Catherine was executed because she had an affair with two men, Culpeper and Dereham, who were also executed.

Henry VIII married Catherine Parr

Jul 12, 1543

Catherine Parr helped reconcile Henry with his daughters, Mary and Elizabeth, and he put them back in the line of succession after Edward. She will be the last wife of Henry.

Death of Henry VIII

Jan 28, 1547

He died at the age of fifty five

Reign of Edward VI

Period: Jan 28, 1547 to Jul 6, 1553

Edward VI's coronation

Feb 20, 1547

He was crowned at the age of nine.

Book of Common Prayer

1549

The Book of Common Prayer was book written by Thomas Cranmer. It was the comprehensive service book for Anglican churches. It contained the written liturgies for almost any service that would be held at an Anglican church.

Second Book of Common Prayer

1552

The 1552 Book of Common Prayer was the second version of the Book of Common Prayer. The first Book of Common Prayer was issued in 1549 as part of the English Reformation, but Protestants criticised it for being too similar to traditional Roman Catholic services.

The Act of Uniformity

1552

This Act of Uniformity replaced the 1549 one and aimed to make England a protestant country.

First Statute of Repeal

1553

The First Statute of Repeal was an act passed by the Parliament of England. It was the first act of Mary I's reign. It annulled all religious legislation passed under the previous monarch, Edward VI.

Death of Edward VI

Jul 6, 1553

Edward VI died at the age of fifteen.

Reign of Jane Grey

Period: Jul 10, 1553 to Jul 19, 1553

Jane Grey, known as the "Nine Days' Queen", was the cousin of Edward VI. She became Queen because Edward VI removed his half-sisters, Mary and Elizabeth, from the line of succession, mostly because Mary was a Catholic whereas Jane was a Protestant. After her cousin's death, she was proclaimed Queen but was deposed nine days later, before her coronation by Mary. Mary was proclaimed on July 19, 1553.

Reign of Mary I

Period: Jul 19, 1553 to Nov 17, 1558

Mary I reigned for five years. She was known as "Bloody Mary" because during her reign over three hundred religious dissenters were burnt at the stake and about a thousand protestants left England. However her reputation of "Bloody Mary" was formed after her death.

Mary I's coronation

Oct 1, 1553

Wyatt's Rebellion

1554

Wyatt's Rebellion was an unsuccessful uprising in England led by four men. Thomas Wyatt the Younger led a force from Kent to depose Mary in favour of Elizabeth.

Death of Jane Grey

Feb 12, 1554

Jane was executed because she was accused by Mary I and convicted of high treason, like her father a month a earlier.

Mary I married Philip II

Jul 25, 1554

Phillip II has been King of Spain, Portugal, Naples and Sicily. Mary wanted to find a husband in order to produce heirs because she did not wanted the throne to go to her sister, who was a Protestant. Therefore, they married for political reasons.

The second Statute of Repeal

1555

The Second Statute of Repeal was an act passed in the Parliament of Mary I and Philip. It followed the First Statute of Repeal. The second statute abolished all religious legislation passed against the papacy from 1529 in Henry VIII's reign.

Death of Mary I

Nov 17, 1558

She died at the age of forty two.

Reign of Elizabeth I

Period: Nov 17, 1558 to Mar 24, 1603

Elizabeth was known as "the Virgin Queen" because during her reign she had many suitors, but still refused to marry.

The Act of Supremacy

1559

The Act of Supremacy replaced the original Act of Supremacy of 1534. It re-established the Church of England's independence from Rome, and Parliament conferred on Elizabeth the title of Supreme Governor of the Church of England.

The Act of Uniformity

1559

The Act of Uniformity re-introduced the Book of Common Prayer from Edward VI's reign.

Third Book of Common Prayer

1559

It was written by Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Elizabeth I's coronation

Jan 15, 1559

She was crowned at Westminster Abbey.

Excommunication of Elizabeth I by Pope Pius V

1570

Pope Pius V issued the bull Regnans in Excelsis, which excommunicated Queen Elizabeth I, deprived her of her right to rule, and released her subjects from obedience to her.

Beginning of the Anglo-Spanish War

1585

The Anglo-Spanish War was a conflict between the Kingdom of Spain and the Kingdom of England. It was never formally declared. It began with England's military expedition in 1585 to what was then the Spanish Netherlands.

Mary Queen of Scots plotted against Elizabeth I

1586

Mary plotted against her cousin and tried to assassinate her in order to become the Queen. She was helped by Christians who did not wanted a Protestant monarch.

Death of Mary Queen of Scots

Feb 8, 1587

Elizabeth imprisoned Mary during eighteen years. Then, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth in 1586 and was beheaded the following year at Fotheringhay Castle.

Spanish Armada defeated

1588

Spanish attempted an invasion with the “Invincible Armada". They were defeated (with the help of the weather) during the Battle of Gravelines.

Beginning of the Nine Years' War

1593

Also called Tyrone's Rebellion, the Nine Year's War took place in Ireland. It was fought between an Irish alliance against English rule in Ireland, and was a response to the ongoing Tudor conquest of Ireland.

Death of Elizabeth I

Mar 24, 1603

She died at Richmond Palace, at the age of sixty nine. She reign for forty five years.

End of the Nine Years' War

Mar 30, 1603

The war ended with the Treaty of Mellifont in 1603. Many of the defeated northern lords left Ireland. This marked the end of Gaelic Ireland and led to the Plantation of Ulster.

End of the Anglo-Spanish War

1604

The war ended with the Treaty of London in 1604, negotiated between Philip III of Spain and the new king of England, James I. In the treaty, England and Spain agreed to cease their military interventions in the Spanish Netherlands and Ireland, and the English ended their high seas privateering.