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Jan 1, 1485
Richard III is killed in battle
Richard III was King of England for two years, from 1483 until his death in 1485 during the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat at the Battle of Bosworth Field was the decisive battle of the Wars of the Roses and is sometimes regarded as the end of the Middle Ages in England. He is the subject of an eponymous play by William Shakespeare. -
Jan 1, 1492
Christopher Columbus reaches the Americas
After sailing across the Atlantic Ocean, Italian explorer Christopher Columbus sights a Bahamian island, believing he has reached East Asia. -
Jan 1, 1503
Leonardo da Vinci paints the Mona Lisa
The best known, the most visited, the most written about, the most sung about, the most parodied work of art in the world. -
Jan 1, 1516
Thomas More's Utopia is published
Describes the travels of one man, Raphael Hythloday, to an undiscovered island that he considers to be the best country on earth.The book, written in Latin, is a frame narrative primarily depicting a fictional island society and its religious, social and political customs. -
Jan 1, 1543
With the Supremacy Act, Henry VIII proclaims himself head of Church of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France. Henry was the second monarch of the House of Tudor, succeeding his father, Henry VII. -
Jan 1, 1558
Elizabeth I becomes queen of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called "The Virgin Queen", "Gloriana", or "Good Queen Bess", Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty. -
Jan 1, 1564
William Shakespeare, the Bard of Avon, is born
William Shakespeare was born after a tumultuous century of violent religious and political events, into the quiet town of Stratford-upon-Avon in 1564. William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon". He was baptized on April 26, 1564. His birth date is unknown. -
Globe Theatre is built in London
Built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, on land owned by Thomas Brend and inherited by his son. -
Shakespeare writes King Lear and Macbeth
King Lear It depicts the gradual descent into madness of the title character. Macbeth dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those who seek power for its own sake. -
First permanent English settlement in North America is established at Jamestown, Virginia.
Established by the Virginia Company of London as "James Fort" on May 14, 1607. it followed several earlier failed attempts, including the Lost Colony of Roanoke. Jamestown served as the capital of the colony for 83 years. -
Shakespeare’s sonnets are published
Shakespeare's sonnets are a collection of 154 sonnets, dealing with themes such as the passage of time, love, beauty and mortality, first published in a 1609 quarto entitled SHAKE-SPEARES SONNETS.: Never before imprinted. -
King James Bible is published
The Authorized Version, commonly known as the King James Version, King James Bible, AV, KJB, or KJV, is an English translation of the Christian Bible by the Church of England begun in 1604 and completed in 1611. First printed by the King's Printer Robert Barker, this was the third official translation into English. -
The Mayflower lands at Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts
The culmination of the voyage in the signing of the Mayflower Compact was an event which established a rudimentary form of democracy, with each member contributing to the welfare of the community. -
Newspapers are first published in London
In London, the newspaper Corante is the first to be published. -
John Milton begins Paradise Lost
An epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century. -
Puritan Commonwealth ends; monarchy is restored with Charles II
The term Restoration is used to describe both the actual event by which the monarchy was restored, and the period of several years afterwards in which a new political settlement was established. It is very often used to cover the whole reign of Charles II and often the brief reign of his younger brother James II.
