Elizabethan England and Shakespeare

Historical Events Leading Up:• Tudors come to power, England is united under one monarchy

– End of the War of the Roses (English Civil War)

• King Henry VIII (1509-1547) can’t decide on a wife, has six.

– Henry’s marital unhappiness causes England to break with Catholic church

– Church of England established so Henry can get a divorce

– This causes split in country between Catholics and member of the Church of England

• King Edward IV (1547-1553) brings peace with France

– Died at the age of fifteen

• Queen Mary I (1553-1558) re-establishes Catholicism

– Persecutes Protestants

– Burned 300 dissenters at the stake, earning her the name “Bloody Mary”

• Queen Elizabeth I (1558-1603)

– Begins England’s Golden Age and the Renaissance

• Art, Music, Poetry and Drama flouirsh

– Restores Protestant Church

• England and France invade each other – a lot. Also, there were wars with Scotland, Spain, and Ireland

Who is Queen Elizabeth?

• Ruled from 1558-1603

• Became queen at age 25

• Daughter of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII

• One of the most successful and loved rulers of England

Who is Queen Elizabeth?• Ruled during the

Renaissance/Elizabethan Period– Especially loved music,

dance, and the theater

• Nickname: the “Virgin Queen”

• Never married– Had many marriage proposals– Never had any children– Used her flirtatious nature to

get what she wanted from male rulers of other nations

Who is Queen Elizabeth?

• Was a Protestant(Church of England) like her father

• Completely opposed to Catholicism because she blamed the pope for her being called a “bastard”

• TOLERATED Catholics because she knew that if she allowed some religious freedom, she would have her subjects’ loyalty

How did people live?(Social Class and the Church)

• Life was governed by two important factors- religion and social structure.

– Social order and position decided everyone’s place in society.

– The bible advocated the ‘natural order’• Generally the population believed this and

knew their place or degree.• England was a largely rural society

– As much as 90% of the population lived in the countryside.

– The Gentry (Lords/Dukes) owned the majority of land.

• This group counted for just 1% of the population

• Queen Elizabeth I established The Church of England (Anglican Church), officially splitting from the Catholic Church

– Laws regarding religion were established:• Everyone is required to attend church

service every Sunday and on holidays.• People were fined for not attending

church.• It was illegal to be a Catholic priest.

How did people live?(Dwellings)

• Most were made of wood

• Type of house and amount of furniture depended on social class

– Typical Tudor houses were timber framed with thatched straw roofs, the gaps were filled with wattle and daub (twigs covered in a mud and dung plaster) or bricks for those who could afford it.

• Houses started to be built for comfort, not just protection

• More windows

• Built around courtyards and gardens

• Most of the furniture was made of wood.

– The wealthy had more ornate furniture, like big wooden four poster beds.

– Many poor people just had a straw mattress to sleep on and a pot to cook their meals in.

How did people live?(Food)

• The richer you were, the more variety of food you had, but it depended on which foods were in season.

• Food was salted or smoked to preserve it, and often spices were added to hide the taste of rotten food.

• Meat, fish, bread, and cheese were popular.

• Vegetables and fruit were not eaten as much because it was thought they were not good for you.

• Ale and cider were common drinks, even for the children, as the water was dirty.

How did people live?(Clothing)

• Wealthy Men wore:– a shirt and doublet (a bit like a jacket), and

padded hose, like thick tights.• Wealthy Women wore:

– long sleeved dresses with skirts to the floor. It was fashionable to make the skirt stick out using a cage or bumoll (padded material tied around the hips).

• Poor people wore simple, loose-fitting clothes made from woolen cloth.

– Most men wore trousers made from wool and a tunic which came down to just above their knee.

– Women wore a dress of wool that went down to the ground. They often wore an apron over this and a cloth bonnet on their heads.

How did people live?(Education and Work)

• Education– Few people went to school,. Those that did were the sons of

the wealthy (not the daughters).– The boys would go to grammar school every day but

Sunday. – They would learn Latin, Religious Studies, Greek, Math, and

Music. – Majority of the population was illiterate and not educated.

• Work– Most middle and lower class children and adults worked

each day tending their crops and animals.• Most men and boys worked in the fields, and would

hunt and keep animals to provide their meat. – Some men had special jobs such as blacksmiths

making tools. • Women and girls looked after the home, cooking,

washing, making clothes and candles, milking the cows and growing herbs for medicines and cooking.

– There was a rise of modern commerce, with cloth and weaving leading the way.

• A prosperous merchant class emerged, causing many people to move to cities like London.

How did people live?(Cities)

• London

– largest city in Western Europe

– most important trading city in England

– The city was dangerous and filthy:

• Great risk of fire because most buildings made of wood

• A large population and the lack of a structured sewage system, meant that all waste was simply dumped into the River Thames

• There was a lot of disease

• The government didn’t help the poor, so crime was high

– Queen Elizabeth I had a huge love of the theater and story telling. With her reign, the fine arts world thrived.

Elizabethan Theater• During Elizabeth’s reign

theater changed and started being more inclusive of all classes, not just the wealthy.

• New dramas were called “Elizabethan Dramas”

• Plays had religious undertones, but were completely not designed to teach religion or morality. It was okay for a play to be simply entertaining.

• Plays contained historical allusions that the audience would understand. Shakespeare did this a LOT.

Elizabethan Theater cont’d• Lower class people (called

commoners) started attending theater more.

• They were also called “groundlings” because they paid very little money (a penny) to stand on the ground to watch plays.

• One ticket would pay for a day at the theater—usually three plays in one day.

• There were no female actors in Tudor times. Boys played women's parts.

William Shakespeare

• April 23, 1564-April 23, 1616

• Born in Stratford-on-Avon, England

• He married Anne Hathaway when he was 18 and she was 26, but they eventually separated.

• He had three children:– Susannah– Judith– Hamnet (died in childhood)

Shakespeare cont’d

• 1584-1594—These years are completely missing from any historical records about him.

• He’s believed to have left his home and traveled with a traveling drama troupe performing at carnivals and fairs all over England and Scotland.

• The next records of him show him in London. He never lived at home with his family again.

Shakespeare’s Theater

• 1594—records indicate Shakespeare was in London– Joins an acting troupe

called “The Lord Chamberlain’s Men”

– Acted in the Rose Theater (very famous)

• 1599—Shakespeare and his troupe built the Globe Theatre.

The Globe• Nicknamed “The

Wooden O” because it was not rectangular but oval in shape– Could hold 2000-3000

people

• Most expensive seats were in the balcony

• Very important guests were often seated ON the stage in the wings

• Still stands today

What did Shakespeare contribute to society?

• He wrote tragedies, comedies, and histories that are still read, studied, and performed today.

• He wrote 154 sonnets about love and life.

• He added words and phrases to the English language (Ex.: blanket, elbow, gossip, traditional, torture, swagger….).

Shakespeare’s Writing(Words to know)

• Tragedy: A dramatic play that ends in catastrophe, often death for the main character(s).

• Tragic hero: The main character (usually someone noble/rich) in a tragedy who has a tragic flaw, which is a weakness that leads to their downfall.

• Comic Relief: Following a serious scene with a lighter, humorous one to give the audience a tension release.