Reniassance+Britain

Renaissance Britian [Modern English] (1500 AD- 1650’s AD) The History
 * Renaissance Britain (1500 AD-1650 AD**
 * HISTORY**
 * 1509 || Henry VIII becomes King of England ||
 * 1517 || Martin Luther wrote the 95 Theses ||
 * 1546 || Death of Martin Luther ||
 * 1547 || Rein of King Henry VIII ended ||
 * 1558 || Elizabeth I becomes queen ||
 * 1564 || William Shakespeare is born ||
 * 1603 || Rein of Queen Elizabeth I ended ||
 * 1604 || First dictionary was made ||
 * 1607 || The colony of Jamestown was founded ||
 * 1616 || William Shakespeare dies ||
 * x || xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ||
 * 1625 || Charles I becomes King of England ||
 * 1642 || The English Civil Wars began ||
 * 1649 || Charles I was executed ||

__ King Henry VIII __
=== King Henry VIII ruled from 1509 to 1547. He was the son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. He had 6 siblings but his two brothers and two of his sisters predeceased their father. Of the remaining siblings, Henry was the only son left. After the death of his brother Arthur in 1502 and the Death of his father in 1509, Henry took the throne. King Henry VIII had six wives Queen Catherine of Argon (Divorced), Queen Anne Boleyn (Beheaded), Queen Jane Seymour (Died), Queen Anne of Cleves (Divorced), Queen Catherine Howard (Beheaded), and Queen Katherine Parr (Survived). He also had four children Queen Marie I, Queen Elizabeth I, King Edward VI, and Henry Fitzroy. ===

__ Martin Luther and the 95 Theses __
=== Martin Luther was born in Eisleben, Germany in 1483. In the earlier years of his life, Luther was a monk and a scholar. Later in the year 1517, he wrote a document that attacked the Catholic Church and their selling of “Indulgences,” which were documents that were meant to get rid of your sins. He pinned them on church doors and it became known as the __95 Theses__. The __95 Theses__ proposed two beliefs; the bible was the central authority, and that they could be saved only by their faith in God and not by their supposed religious deeds. After Luther released the __95 Theses,__ the Catholic Church was then divided, and his writings changed history. ===

__ Elizabeth I __
=== Elizabeth I was born in the year 1533, and ruled England from the years 1558 until her death in 1603. The time that Elizabeth I ruled England was called the "Elizabethan Age" because England proved itself as a major power in Europe in politics, commerce (or trade), and the arts. Elizabeth was the daughter of King Henry VIII and his wife at the time, Anne Boleyn. When she was born, her father was extremely disappointed because he was trying to have a son, then when her mother failed to provide the king with a son she was executed on charges of adultery and incest. This, unfortunately, made their marriage null and void and robbing Elizabeth of the throne. When King Henry VIII died in 1547, despite the fact that Elizabeth was his illegitimate child, he had reinstated her in the line of succession making her second in line to take the throne. On January 15th, 1559 Elizabeth was crowned Queen of England. Many believe that she was one of England’s greatest rulers and that during and after her rein England became one of the most powerful and prosperous countries in the world. ===

__ William Shakespeare __
=== William Shakespeare was a playwright that lived from 1564 to 1616. He is one of the most well-known playwrights in history and was known as England’s national poet. Out of all playwrights, Shakespeare had most of his works performed, and revolutionized the world of theatre forever. In his lifetime, Shakespeare wrote at least 37 plays like Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, and Julius Ceaser which you will read more about in our Literature section. Even though William Shakespeare is best known for his plays, he also established the Globe theater and helped transform and modernize the English language. ===

**__The First Dictionary__**
===Many dictionaries were made long ago, but the first ever English dictionary to ever be printed and publised was __A Table Alphabetical__ in 1604! With 3000 words, Robert Cawdrey (the creator) made a remarkable change in the future in which he was carving. To the public, some of the words in his dictionary were considered a bit tough to understand, but that was because the words were taken from other words in foreign lands. Some of those foreign languages include Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and even French.=== ===Thanks to the new literature, arts, and education during the 16th century, new words were being discovered throughout England. Robert Cawdrey wished to enhance man's language and make their vocabulary much better. He also stated that he made the dictionary for "ladies, gentlewoman, and other unskillful persons". During this day and age, not many girls could go to school unless they were rich, so __A Table Alphabetical__ was a great way to learn to get the basics down for them! Overall, the first dictionary was basic, easy to understand, and the greatest thing ever to begin in dictionary history!===
 * Here's a link to a copy of the dicitionary! __A Table Alphabetical__**

__Jamestown__
=== Once upon a June 1606, a king (King James the First) gave permission to a group of London adventurers to travel to start an English settlement! The captain of the ship was John Smith! They settled on James River in Virginia, and the settlement was called Jamestown, Virginia. Although during the beginning of Jamestowns progression, things were not looking so good. With famine and disease happening throughout this time, things seemingly looked hopeless. That was until Captain John Smith stepped in and tried his best to make things better in the settlement. Even if suffering did not completely end in Jamestown, there were still times where peace and happiness were placed into the lands. John Rolfe and Pocahontas married one another during this time! ===

__Charles the First[[image:britishliteraturetimeline/king_charles_the_first_tshirt-p235404648628870577z7tqq_400.jpg width="225" height="255" caption="Charles the First"]]__
===Charles the First was the king of England, Scotland, and Ireland! He caused the Engish Civil War because of his arrogance and lack of compromise. He was the second son of James the Sixth and Anne, born on November 19th, 1600. He loved art and seemed devoted to his religious ways. He believed that it was his God-giving right to rule, as any king's right to rule is. The King's trial opened on January 20th due to the king's high treason on the people. He did not answer the charges because he said he did not understand the charges that were against him. Unfortunately, he was still guilty for the charges and was behedded for them. This shocked Europe entirely! His death caused a cult that encouraged people to buy a book Charles the First published. He may not have been the strongest or too well with military activity, but the King had guts and determination, and during his heir, he tried his very best to be the greatest King in all of England! And Scotland. And Ireland.===

**__English Civil War__**
=== **This war involved many different people and groups including King Charles the First, Parliment, the aristocracy, the middle classes, the army, and even the commoners. It changed the King and his God-given right to rule over all. This war has dealt with not only politics, but religion as well. Also, it gave the King the right to battle against his subjects, and vis versa. It lasted for eight years, starting from August 27th, 1642 until 1650. James the First (father of Charles the First) believed that being King was a "divine right", and he believed that Parliment would do as he says without question because of his "divine right". He was sadly mistakened, and he couldn't do anything about it. This was because Parliment owned James the First financially; James the First usally came up short with money whereas Parliament surpassed him. One day, when he and Parliament sat to have a discussion, they discussed the marriage of his son, Charles the First, to a Spanish woman. Outraged, Parliament thought that the children would live in a Catholic lifestyle. Although the wedding never happened, the damage between the king and Parliment was not mended.** === === **Charles the First, even though did not think the same as his father, followed his footsteps by believing in the divine rights for Kings. He believed Parliament was at fault because of the wrongdoing they placed upon his father. Members of Parliament were locked out of the kingdom for eleven years which was called the Eleven Years Tyranny. With his arrogance and "right to rule", he ordered Scotland to buy new prayer books. Outraged, in 1639, the Scottish invaded England. He was short on money, and ironically, he had to call upon Parliament for money. Eventually, things between Parliament and Charles the First became very bad. He tried to arresst five members of Parliment when he went to them with 300 soldiers. Since that failed, six days afterwards, Charles left London and headed for Oxford to start an army to revolt from Parliment. And thus, civil war began.** ===

From the beginning of the 16th century, British literature has flourished in many ways. The start of the British Literature began the start of love, death, and time. It also began togetherness through the power of theatre. A very famous writer would have to be William Shakespeare, making the literature shine as bright as any lamp. Come on an adventure through the eyes of a British bookworm!
 * The Literature!**


 * // Literature and its’ Nature //**Literature in the Britain Renaissance could be described as the “awakening” from the Dark Ages that just ended during this time. Renaissance literature began many ideas, many of which were of love. Unrequited love, endless love, and even courtly love (an affair between a knight and a Queen) were introduced in Renaissance literature. Not only was love in popular themes, but death and time also played a role. Authors wrote their pieces through poems, sonnets, and most commonly back then, through theatre. Many people, high class and low class, came together to enjoy the dramas of theatre. To name a few, comedies, tragedies, and even things about the past were played in the theatres. Although, not many people believed the theatre was all that great. Some believed it gave people permission to be quite lazy; it lead to children and adults not doing their work and going to see a play instead. Others thought, especially the Puritans, that the theatre was nefarious. Above all, the theatre truly brought people together in some sense.

The most famous author that was ever born in the British Renaissance was William Shakespeare. He could easily be described as the most amazing English writing in the history of ever! He has made more plays than anyone, including the famous __Romeo and Juliet__. He wrote of love and loss, and was so very famous for it. He was known best for changing the themes of his stories from funny to very sad and tragic. To this day, Shakespeare's works have been passed down throughout lips, poems, and his plays.  Other famous piece he has composed would be __Hamlet, Macbeth,__ and __Julius Ceasar__.

Although Shakespeare was very amazing and terrific, as well as many other authors in the Britain Renaissance were, the perfect world of theatre and ideal worlds were beginning to die down just as Queen Elizabeth's era did. The poor Queen could not conceive an heir to her throne, and she was weltering more and more as the days of her years continued. Now that the English’s political circumstances were more important at this time, theatre, literature, and the beauty of art began to descend. Even so, the art left behind in the past still lives on inside of those who wish to relive them.

** The Language! ** During Renaissance Britain, the language spoken was early modern English. This was known as the time of the Great Vowel Shift due to the change in pronunciation. This is also the time when the printing press came about. The printing press was invented by a German known by the name of Johannes Gutenberg in 1454. He was an entrepreneur. The printing press was a machine that transferred lettering and images after having contact with different forms of ink onto paper or similar material. The Bible was the first printed piece of literature made by the printing press. This allowed everyone to read the Bible and make their own interpretations of the Word instead of relying on the pastors. This also granted everyone to have a printed copy of literature, and not just the rich.