1. The English Renaissance
The Tudors and James I
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Marina Spiazzi, Marina Tavella,
Margaret Layton © 2015

2. 1. The Tudor Dynasty Henry VII (1485-1509) Henry VIII (1509-1547)
Edward VI ( )
Mary I ( )
Elizabeth I ( )
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3. 2. Henry VII ( )
Came to the English throne when the Wars of the Roses ended.
Had to deal with frequent conspiracies.
Tried to consolidate his position through:
a treaty with France, giving him recognition;
a trade treaty with the Netherlands;
the dynastic marriage, in 1501, between his son Arthur and the Spanish princess, Catherine of Aragon.
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4. England had its own merchant fleet and extended its military power.
2. Henry VII ( )
Strengthened the monarchy and turned England into a modern State.
Aimed at increasing and reinforcing England’s trading position.
Laid the foundations of English naval power by increased spending on shipbuilding
England had its own merchant fleet and extended its military power.
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5. 3. Henry VIII (1509-1547) Henry VII’s second son.
A natural sportsman, popular both with the English elite and the English public.
Called the ‘Golden Prince’ both for his natural good looks and his chivalry and education.
Granted the title of ‘Defender of the Faith’ by the Pope in 1521 for his Latin treatise defending the sacraments.
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6. 3. Henry VIII ( )
Married Catherine of Aragon who bore him a daughter, Mary.
Asked the Pope for a divorce to marry his pregnant mistress Anne Boleyn.
Broke with Rome when the Pope refused and declared himself ‘Supreme Head of the Church of England’ with the Act of Supremacy (1534).
Dissolved the monasteries, taking their wealth.
Ireland remained a Catholic country.
Beginning of the Irish question.
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7. 3. Henry VIII ( )
Anne Boleyn gave him a second daughter, Elizabeth.
She was tried and executed for treason in 1536.
Henry went on to have four more wives and one son, Edward, later Edward VI, from Jane Seymour.
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8. 4. Edward VI ( )
The son of Jane Seymour and Henry VIII, he became king at 10, but he was weak and ill and he died at 16.
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9. 5. Mary I ( )
The daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon.
Refused to abandon the Catholic faith.
Tried to restore the Catholic religion through violence.
Married the Catholic Philip of Spain.
The burning of Protestants earned her the nickname ‘Bloody Mary’ and alienated public opinion.
Died without an heir.
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10. 6. Elizabeth I (1558-1603) Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn’s daughter.
Became queen of a divided nation, the majority of which was anti-Catholic and anti-Spanish.
She was twenty-five and had a strong personality, a lively intelligence and a passionate character.
She had received an excellent education: she could speak French, Latin and Italian.
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11. 6. Elizabeth I ( )
Her Church of England restored the country firmly to Protestantism, yet she granted Catholics freedom of worship.
Was unmarried and used this as a political weapon.
Said that ‘the Queen was married to her people’ and became the ‘Virgin Queen’.
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12. 6. Elizabeth I ( )
Went on royal progresses to be seen and to get to know her people.
Inspired literature, music, drama and poetry.
Recognised Spain as her main trade rival and enemy.
Expanded exploration and overseas trade.
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13. 6. Elizabeth I ( )
Encouraged sea-captains Francis Drake and Walter Raleigh in their piracy against Spanish ships and took a share of the profits.
Defeated the Spanish Armada in 1588.
Laid the basis of England’s empire.
Elizabeth’s portraits and physical appearance (page 28)
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14. 7. James I (1603-1625) Elizabeth died in 1603 without heirs.
James VI of Scotland became the first Stuart king in England with the title of James I.
Was a Protestant.
Based his rule on the theory of the ‘divine right of kings’.
Summoned Parliament only to ask for money.
Interested in witchcraft.
In his treatise Daemonologie (1597) he declared his belief in black magic.
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15. 8. James I and the Puritans
Religion was the most urgent problem of his reign.
Catholics were barred from public life and fined if they refused to attend the Church of England.
Extreme Protestants, called Puritans, disapproved of the rites and bishops of the Church of England.
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16. 8. James I and the Puritans
Puritans had a high sense of duty and morality.
A hundred of them – the Pilgrim Fathers – applied for a government patent to colonise New England.
In 1620 they left England for America on the Mayflower and founded New Plymouth and the first colony of the United States.
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17. 9. The Gunpowder Plot
In 1605 some radical Catholics, lead by Guy Fawkes, plotted to blow up the king in the Houses of Parliament.
The plot was discovered and Guy Fawkes was killed.
The failure of the Gunpowder Plot is commemorated in England on 5th November.
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