1. Life in Elizabethan England

2. Queen Elizabeth’s England Queen Elizabeth ruled England from 1558-1603 This time was known as the Elizabethan era Elizabethan England was a leading commercial and military power. The country experienced great prosperity!

3. London Life Many Europeans came to London to escape their own war-torn countries. As a result, London became a cultural center with a diverse population. New cultural influences breathed new life into science, art, philosophy, literature, and theater. This movement in the arts is known as the Renaissance (Rebirth en François!).

4. The Renaissance Renaissance artists were inspired by “the classics.” “The classics” is a term that refers to works of literature from the Greeks and Romans. Renaissance artists, like Shakespeare, reinvented characters* and stories from Greek and Roman mythology. *Allusion: a reference a writer makes to another artist’s work

5. Elizabethan Theater Elizabethan plays, Shakespeare’s included, were secular in themes and topics. Secular means non-religious or universal (instead of strictly Catholic, Protestant, etc.) London was made-up of a mostly Puritan population that held political power. They did not approve of secular theater. Lucky for Shakespeare, Queen Elizabeth loved the theater as did the general population. The theater district was immensely popular and lucrative!

6. The End of an Era… During the Elizabethan era, there were constant outbreaks of the deadly Bubonic Plague or The Black Death. The large audiences who were attracted to the massive theaters posed a real health hazard to the largely populated city of London. The plague ravaged London killing 33,000 people and the theaters are shut down officially in 1642. All theaters are closed until 1660 when the deadly outbreak subsides.