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1485
The rise of the Tudors
"Some scholars date the beginning of Early Modern Britain to the end of the Wars of the Roses and the crowning of Henry Tudor in 1485 after his victory at the battle of Bosworth Field. Henry VII's largely peaceful reign ended decades of civil war and brought the peace and stability to England needed for art and commerce to thrive. A major war on English soil would not occur again until the English Civil War of the 17th century. The Wars of the Roses claimed an estimated 105,000 dead." -
Period: 1547 to 1568
Mary, Queen of Scots
n 1547, after the death of Henry VIII, forces under the English regent Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset were victorious at the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh, the climax of the Rough Wooing and followed up by occupying Edinburgh. However it was to no avail since much of Scotland was still an unstable environment. She did not do well and after only seven turbulent years, at the end of which Protestants had gained complete control of Scotland, she had perforce to abdicate. Imprisoned for a time. -
Period: 1558 to
Elizabethan era (1558–1603)
"The Elizabethan Era is the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603) and is known to be a golden age in English history. It was the height of the English Renaissance and saw the flowering of English literature and poetry. This was also the time during which Elizabethan theatre was famous and William Shakespeare, among others, composed plays that broke away from England's past style of plays and theatre -
1559
John Knox Returned
"Returned from ministering in Geneva to lead the Calvinist reformation in Scotland." -
Protestant/Catholic divide
"The Italian Renaissance had come to an end under the weight of foreign domination of the peninsula. France was embroiled in its own religious battles that would only be settled in 1598 with the Edict of Nantes. In part because of this, but also because the English had been expelled from their last outposts on the continent, the centuries long conflict between France and England was largely suspended for most of Elizabeth's reign." -
Passing the throne
The Reformation remained somewhat precarious through the reign of Queen Mary, who remained Roman Catholic but tolerated Protestantism. Following her deposition in 1567, her infant son James VI was raised as a Protestant. In 1603, following the death of the childless Queen Elizabeth I, the crown of England passed to James. He took the title James I of England and James VI of Scotland, thus unifying these two countries under his personal rule. -
Period: to
unions of crowns
"The Jacobean era refers to the years of the reign of James I in England, 1603–1625. The Jacobean era succeeds the Elizabethan era and precedes the Caroline era, and specifically denotes a style of architecture, visual arts, decorative arts, and literature that is predominant of that period." -
Period: to
English Civil War
"The English Civil War consisted of a series of armed conflicts and political machinations that took place between Parliamentarians (known as Roundheads) and Royalists (known as Cavaliers) between 1642 and 1651. The first (1642–1646) and second (1648–1649) civil wars pitted the supporters of King Charles I against the supporters of the Long Parliament, while the third war (1649–1651) saw fighting between supporters of King Charles II and supporters of the Rump Parliament." -
Protectorate
"The Civil War led to the trial and execution of Charles I, the exile of his son Charles II, and the replacement of the English monarchy with first the Commonwealth of England (1649–1653) and then with a Protectorate (1653–1659), under the personal rule of Oliver Cromwell. Upon his death, his son took over, but proved a weak ruler with very little support. The military and religious elements that supported Cromwell began disputing with each other." -
Restoration
"In 1660, the remaining members of the Long Parliament (1640–1660) rejected the anarchy and confusion since Cromwell's death. Elite and popular opinion called for a restoration of the monarchy under the Stuarts. There was widespread revulsion against the intense moralism and high taxes of the Rule of the Major Generals in 1657. Nostalgia for Royal traditionalism was strong. Gen. George Monck, a former supporter of Cromwell, led the movement for a royal restoration." -
slavery
"The Company of Royal Adventurers Trading to Africa had been set up in 1662 to trade in gold, ivory and slaves in Africa; it was reestablished as the Royal African Company in 1672 and focused on the slave trade. British involvement in the each of the four major wars, 1740 to 1783, paid off handsomely in terms of trade. Even the loss of the 13 colonies was made up by a very favorable trading relationship with the new United States of America. British gained dominance in the trade era." -
British Empire
"The Seven Years' War, which began in 1756, was the first war waged on a global scale, fought in Europe, India, North America, the Caribbean, the Philippines and coastal Africa. The signing of the Treaty of Paris (1763) had important consequences for Britain and its empire. In North America, France's future as a colonial power there was effectively ended with the ceding of New France to Britain ."
