The Tudors

1485-1603

This period of history was usually defined by the conflicts involving religion and the monarchy.

The Tudor period,

1485-1603, was a lot more peaceful than the previous century which was wracked with civil war. However there were still large-scale rebellions and threats of foreign invasion.

The biggest change was the Reformation - the change from Catholic to Protestant beliefs under the reign of Henry VIII.

The Tudor Rose, linking the rival Houses of York

and Lancaster under the Tudor royal family

Key Events

Henry VII came to power in 1485, signalling the

end of the Middle (Medieval) Ages.

Printing had been invented in 1436 by Thomas

Gutenberg and this began the spread of ideas.

In 1492 Europeans crossed the Atlantic and found

the New World.

In 1517 Martin Luther, a German monk, nailed his

'95 These' - a list of complaints about the Catholic

Church - to the church door in Wittenburg - launching

the Protestant movement.

Timeline

Early-Modern

How have these changed? Crime, Protest, Punishment and Policing.

What happened in?

Early-Modern

c.1500-1750

Kett's Rebellion, Pilgrimage of Grace, Gunpowder Plot, Vagabonds, Poaching, Smuggling, Highwaymen, Witchcraft, Corporal Punishment, Bloody Code........more

Industrial Britain

c.1750-1900

Theft and robbery, Poverty, Police, Transportation, Prisons, Luddites, Swing Riots, Chartism, Prison Reformers, Dock Strike........more

Twentieth Century

1900-2000

Suffrage Movement, Conscientious Objectors, General Strike, Hanging, Youth Detention, Fingerprinting, DNA, Surveillance, Drug Crime, Hooliganism, Community Service, Race Crime.........more

Who were?

Robert Aske, Matthew Hopkins, Jonathan Wild, Dick Turpin, John Howard, Elizabeth Fry, Derek Bentley........more

The Tudors: Who's Who

Henry VIII ruled from 1509 until 1547. During this

time he famously had six wives in his quest for a male heir.

In demanding a divorce from his first wife, Catalina de Aragon, he angered the Pope and the Spanish king. They refused his wishes, so Henry being Henry, he set up his own church - the Church of England, and made himself its head in 1534.

This was to cause a massive rebellion called The Pilgrimage of Grace in 1539 led by Robert Aske.

Edward VI was Henry's pride and joy, his son from his third wife, Jane Seymour. Edward was just eight years old when he became king, so his uncle, the Duke of Somerset, made all the decisions. In the late 1540s England was in turmoil - rising food prices and the loss of common lands under the spread of enclosures had increased poverty and hunger.

The spread of rebellious ideas was massive and the authorities stamped down hard on anyone thought to be planning revolt. Even playing football was punishable by hanging because it brought large crowds of people together.

The main event was Kett's Rebellion in 1549, in East Anglia. Hundreds of rebels were executed.

Mary  was the daughter of Catalina de Aragon, so not surprisingly when she became queen in 1553, she began reversing all the changes her father had done, and set about restoring Catholicism in England. Those who refused to 'recant' (admit their errors) were burnt at the stake.

Although only 250 people were executed, propaganda such as Foxe's Book of Martyrs meant that the name 'Bloody Mary' stuck!

Elizabeth tried to set up a compromise Anglican church after she succeeded in 1558, which would appeal to both Catholics and Protestants. However in 1570 she was

ex-communicated by the Pope, which meant that English Catholics' loyalties were questioned, especially in the 1580s when England was at war with Catholic Spain.

In 1588 the Spanish sent an armada of ships and an army to try and invade England. The focus of the persecution of Catholics had changed from heretical (religious) reasons to reasons of treachery and national security.

Elizabeth died in 1603 with no heir, paving the way for her Scottish cousins, the Stuarts, to rule England.