The Renaissance in England covers the historical period from 1485 to 1660. It is considered a time of "rebirth", especially because of the flowering of English literature, poetry and theater.
Humanism was a new way of looking the word, questioning about authority and faith. During this period there has been the rise of rationalism,skepticism and the emphasis from religious to secular matters. The Great thinkers were Erasmus and More.
Before coming to England, the Renaissance had began in Italy, during the 14th century, It was a time of resurgence of intellectual and artistic energies that charaterized ancient Greek and Roman civilization. The begginers were famous Italian writers and artists, like Petrarch, Boccaccio, Brunelleschi, Michelangelo, ect. Lorenzo De Medici (the Magnificent) encouraged intellectual trends, artistic accomplishments and the goals of Renaissance and Humanism. He also emphasized the capacities of the human mind and the achievement of human culture. Other goals were reached during this period, for example the "discovery" of America by Columbus in 1492, the astronomic discoveries of Copernicus and Gallileo, Thomas More's "Utopia" (1516), the first literary masterpiece of the English Renaissence.
We can analyze the English Renaissence as two periods:
the Elizabethan, from 1485 to 1603;
the Jacobean, from 1603 to 1660.
During the Elizabethan Age five monarchs ruled in England:
Henry VII, the first Tudor king, who has assumed the throne after defeating Richard III in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars fought in medieval England between the House of Lancaster and the House of York;
Henry VIII ruled from 1509 to 1547. He had six wives: Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard, Catherine Parr. He absolutely wanted a male heir. He used the pretext to marry Anne Boleyn, in order to divorce with the Pope and declare himself as the Supreme Head of the Church of England, by the meaning of the Act of Supremacy. So, he founded the Anglican Church. While doing this, he was influenced by the Protestan Reformation, started with the Ninty-Five theses of Martin Lutero in 1517.
Edward VI ruled from 1547 to 1553, when he died. He was Henry VIII and Jane Seymour's son.
Then, Mary I came to the throne. She was Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon's daughter. She married her cousin, Philipp of Spain. Her reign is also known as "reign of terror". Infact, Bloody Mary, as queen Mary I was called, used to suppress and burn the protestant.
Elizabeth I, Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII's daughter reign in England from 1558 to 1603. She ruled longer than any other monarch during the Renaissance, she remained unmarried,saying that she was married with her people. In conseguence of this, no heirs were left, but she attained new heights in word affairs, in art, in literature, and in music. The Spanish Armada sent 130 ships to attack England. In 1558 an eight-day battle in the English Channel was fought. The "Invicibile Armada" was beaten by the rising English navy. This battle marked the decline of Spain and the progress of Enland as a great sea power, even if England used smaller ( but more maneuverable) ships.
One of the most popular entrateinment during the Elizabethan Age was going to theater. The first pulic one was built neaa London in 1576. Theaters were closed in 1593-1594 because of the plaue, but suddently reopened.
The Jacobean Period lasted for about twenty years (1603-1625). James VI of Scotland, son of Mary, Queen of Scots and cousin of Elizabeth I, become the ruler of England too, with the title of James I. During his reign, he wrote his own version of the Bible.
In 1642 the Civil War broke out, accompained by the Puritan movement. Oliver Cromwell was the commander of the Parliamentsry forces. After some years, in 1649, he managed to introduce the Commonwealth in England. He restored the lost prestige of the country and followed a mercantilist policy, also applying a military dictatorship. He died in 1658.
In spite of this, a member of theTudor dinasty, Charles II returned on the throne as king in 1660, restoring the Parliament. This was the beginning of the New Era.