The tudor period

THE TUDOR PERIOD

Tudor England signified the end of medioeval system, signified the start of modern age.

The most important changes were:

- the introduction of The New Learning

- the English Reformation (Church)

- the importance of the new active middle class

- the growth of the city of London

- England became a national state

- overseas trade developed

HENRY VII

- he was a diplomat, reserved, suspicious but he understood his people

- he changed the custom of important families of keeping private soldiers

- he used middle class people, country gentleman who had a university education as his loyal servants

- new classes developed the gentry: countryman, gentleman, yeoman (small land owners) and merchants (businessman)

- during Henry's reign, there were great geographical explorations. In 1492 America was discovered by Cristoforo Colombo

- Henry challenged the supremacy of Spain by paying for exploration to the new land.

- He increased his power in Europe by: marryng his eldest son with the daughter of the king of spain Catherine of Aragon and marryng his daughter Margaret with James IV of Scotland

HENRY VIII

- he was educated, a poet, a sportsman and a musician

- Henry tried to maintain the balance of power between France and Spain

- the most important event was the breach of England from the Catholic Church (Rome)

- many english people respected religion but did not like the way the church extorted money and thought that the Church was immoral and corrupted (lollard movement)

THE ENGLISH REFORMATION OF THE CHURCH

- Martin Luther (lollard movement) was an important critic of the roman Catholic Church

- initially Henry VIII defended the roman Catholic church against Martin Luther

- Henry thanks to permission from the pope had married Catherine of Aragon, his brother's widow

- she gave him a doughter (Mary)

- Henry was in love with Anne Boleyn, a servant of the queen

- Henry asked the pope to annull his marriage with Catherine

- the pope refused because he was under the power of Spain

- he replaced Cardinal Wolsey with Thomas More

- he made Thomas Crammer the Archibiscop of Chanterbury

- parliament decleared the king's marriage void

- England was decleared an Empire: civil and religious problems were to be decided without foreign interferences

- parliament decleared the king the head of the english church (act of supremacy)

- Thomas More (canceller) did not accept the king's decision and was beheaded in 1545

THE ROYAL FLEET

Henry produced a fighting fleet, this consisted of modern ships that were long, narrow with heavy cannons

EDWARD VI

-he was the son of Henry VIII, became king at the age of 9 years  of age

- became ill and died and Mary Tudor, the doughter of Catherine of Aragon, became queen

MARY TUDOR

- she was veri lonely and unhappy

- she wanted England to retourn to the Catholic religion

- she reintroduced latin in the church

- she married Phillippe II of Spain who promised not to include England in a war against France

- his promise was broken and England lost his last piece of teritory in France during the war between Spin and England

- Mary dies in 1558 and her sister Elisabeth I became queen

ELISABETH I

- the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn

- she reinstabilished the anglican church

- parliament past a second act of supremacy giving religious power to the king/queen

- Elisabeth with the act of supremacy stated that no foreign prince, State could have spiritual or temporal power in England

- with the act of uniformity said that only one prayer book was to be used by the english people (Cranners)

- she was a tollerant queen but she was severe with any criticism of Crown

MARY STUART

- she was the cousin of Elisabeth

- she married the Dolphin (the king of France) but he died one year later

- she retourned to Scotland where french soldiers were controlling Scotland in Mary's absence

- the scottish people did not like the french insolence

- John Knox tried to persuade the scottish people to became protestant

- when Mary returned found Scotland a protestant country

- Mary had many problems in her private life

- she was imprisoned by the scottish lords, she escaped and found refuge in England

- Elisabeth kept her prisoner for 19 years

- the english people asked for the excution of Mary

- Elisabeth didn't refused because she knew that if she killed Mary, this would create a war between England and Spain

- later, after the discovery of America, Elisabeth consented  to the execution of her cousin

ENGLAND AND SPAIN

- Mary's death coused a war between England and Spain

- there were other reasons for this war: Philippe of Spain wanted to become the king of England because he was the husband of the previous queen of England but this would have ruined the work of the reformation and given the power to Spain and taken from England its indipendent, its trade and its potential for colonization

ENGLAND AND AMERICA

- the desire for adventure, for explorations, for colonization rich ita highest point during the reign of Elisabeth

- Sir Walter Rolgich formed a colony in north America called Virginia

- he imported tabacco and potatoes in England

- Elisabeth financed Sir Frances Drake and he saled to America

- he returned 3 months later across the pacific ocean with a large sum of money

- the queen knighted him and he became the greatest english admiral in tha war against Spain

THE INVINCIBLE ARMADA

- relations between England and Spain were very bad particulary after the execution of Mary Stuart

- in 1588 tha spanish Armada sailed towards England

- the Armada consisted of big heavy ships armed for the old style of fighting

- the english fleet had smaller and faster ships with large cannons that could fire a long distance

- the english won the spanish

- with this victory England optained indipendence and had a secure future as a great naval power