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Shakespeare's England
The reign of the Tudor Queen Elizabeth I of England extended from 1558 to 1603. It
is regarded as a Golden Age. Queen Elizabeth I was the last Tudor.
Historical context
The Church of England declared independence from the Catholic Church the
same year the Elizabeth took power, and so the queen had absolute power over
both church and state.
Due to the stir caused by the Reformation in Europe, Queen Elizabeth of
England sought to stabilize her country by compromising between the
Protestants and Catholics. In 1580, the pope stated that it would not be a mortal
sin to assassinate the Queen of England. Hereafter, all Catholics, loyal or not,
were under suspicion. Soon, it was discovered that Queen Mary was involved
in an assassination plot and "Elizabeth signed the death warrant in February
1587, and her cousin was beheaded."
During Elizabeths reign there was unprecedented peace and prosperity in
England.
The explorations of the British abroad brought a steady stream of exotic news
and influences. The exploration of the New World and the South Pacific brought
new food items: tomatoes, chili peppers, chocolate, cinnamon...
But England was not yet the world power. Spain dominated the waves under
Phillip II, Catholic ruler. Denied an alliance with England and its ruler
Elizabeth I by marriage, Phillip began to nurture the intent to take England by
force. When the British defeated the Spanish Armada in 1588, it became the
undisputed ruler of the seas. The British navy controlled the world's naval trade.

What was life in Elizabethan England like during Shakespeares life?

England was for the main part a green and pleasant land, predominantly rural.
The population of the entire country was probably around 3 million, compared
to nearly 60 million today. The majority of people lived in the south.
The wool trade became increasingly popular during the Elizabethan age, which
meant that land which had been farmed by peasants was now dedicated to
rearing sheep which required fewer people to work on them.
There were also thriving merchants dealing with the strange and exotic imports
coming to England from overseas potatos from Virginia, sugar and spices from
the Caribbean, India or China. These might be landed in London by the growing
fleets of sailing ships.
People did not travel around a lot during the Tudor and Elizabethan age.
Although there was a move towards town life, people did not venture far away.
The nation's center of power was London, which was home to an increasingly
diverse population of around 200,000. Clearly anyone with a yearning for
political power or the greatest possible audience for their art would find
themselves on the road to London eventually, as would country-born William
Shakespeare.
England was a land of clear divisions: between the old faith and the new,
between the cities and the rural communities.
People's lives were often short. As many as one-half of the children born never
lived beyond fifteen years. the average lifespan of an adult was only thirty years
due to the limited medical knowledge.
The bubonic plague or Black Death often plagued England always appeared
suddenly and spread quickly. Ignorant of the disease, doctors typically
prescribed anything from amulets to sweet-smelling things. In an attempt to
slow the disease's spread, regulations were passed. One was to temporarily close
all London theaters. Another policy was to kill cats and dogs. Since there were
few cats around to hunt rats, which carried the fleas that carried the plague, the
bubonic plague was not hindered. William Shakespeare was known to be
terrified of the Bubonic Plague throughout his lifetime. This terrible disease was

not confined to the main English town of London. In 1564 alone, the bubonic
plague killed one out of seven of the 1,500 inhabitants of Stratford-upon-Avon.
England's food supply was uncertain. The poor could've easily starved if there
was a series of bad harvests. Aristocrats' diets weren't very nutritious either. This
caused the whole population to acquire illnesses caused by vitamin
deficiencies.
Nobody drank water in Elizabethan England. Most British people in the
Elizabethan era drank ale, beer, cider or wine instead of water. Water was
contaminated and not safe to drink, especially in London, and the alcohol
content of alcoholic beverages helped to kill germs and bacteria.
During the time of William Shakespeare, the majority of women had very
limited rights in England. The father and head of the household ruled over his
wife and children. Women were denied formal educations.
Ghosts were common in the Elizabethan Era. Superstitions ran high in
England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and chief among them was the
belief in ghosts and haunted houses. Castles were an especially common haunt
for ghosts; in fact, the ghost of Queen Elizabeth herself has been reported to
haunt Windsor Castle to this day.

A cultural Renaissance...
The Elizabethan era saw a flowering of British culture. There was a rebirth of
poetry, music, theater and literature. This was a period of change between
medieval and modern times.
Queen Elizabeth loved poetry. Some poets even composed in dedication to
Queen Elizabeth herself as a form of flattery
Playgoing in the 16th century was very different from what it is today, and at
first it was not widely accepted. Playacting was seen as deceit and deception and
contrary to the Bible's teachings.

However, Queen Elizabeth poured money into London's arts scene, building the
city's first theaters and sponsoring productions. Because of monarchs like
Queen Elizabeth, leading companies were supported by the lord mayors so that
they could perform for her at Christmas. However, tight control was kept, and
theaters were often closed for reasons such as plague outbreaks. The plays were
never to contain religious or political subject matter in connection with the
leaders of the day. The Master of Revels personally reviewed each play destined
for the stage.
Shakespeare himself grew up and benefited from this atmosphere, and his first
play, "Henry IV," was published near the end of her reign.
Playacting was often accompanied by music and dance. Whether comedy or
tragedy, the music and dances incorporated into the plays.
Plays were attended by the entire spectrum of the London population, from
lords and ladies, to students, artisans, market women and even whores. All saw
plays as a chance to enjoy a period of idle occupation. Standing room for the
poor (the groundlings) was available for one penny. Nobility often attended to be
seen as well as to watch plays.
In 1591, London theatres were banned from performing on Thursdays
because that was the day when bear-baiting took place.
Actors wore make-up made from all kinds of natural ingredients. These
included chalk, poisonous lead.
Some facts about Shakespeares life....
Shakespeares exact date of birth isnt known. But historians do know that he
was baptized on April 26, 1564, in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, close to April
23. He died on April 23, 1616, on or near his 52 nd birthday, in Stratford-uponAvon.
Life in Stratford was pretty much self-sufficient. There was no reason for the
average person to ever travel further than half a day's walk. Everything was
available from the people who lived in the town of Stratford. Water was not
clean so people drank ale which was brewed and sold in Stratford. John

Shakespeare, Williams father, owned a shop and traded in wool and farm
produce and worked as a glover. Money was is short supply so the people would
barter. There were local market fairs when trade was brisk to obtain items in
short supply.
Family entertainment in William Shakespeare's Stratford: Life changed
with the seasons and the market fairs were not the only form of distraction or
entertainment available to the folk of Stratford. It was the custom of the
reigning monarch to go on ' progresses ' throughout the land. Royalty would
progress from town to town stopping at various castles and manor houses
throughout England. Queen Elizabeth I was known to have visited Kenilworth
Castle, near Stratford, when William Shakespeare was eleven years old. The
Shakespeare family would have travelled to Kenilworth castle to see the Queen
and the colourful scenes, sports and jousting which would have been arranged
for her amusement. Stratford was often visited by travelling troupes of
professional actors. Stratford was quiet after sundown and evenings were spent
in talk and games. On Sunday there was some free time. The townsmen met for
church in the morning, with time to gossip, play games and enjoy a few pints of
ale after the service was over. Women worked communally at sewing or
spinning whilst men bowled, played skittles or ball games. Many enjoyed
board games like nine man's morris, chess or draughts (checkers).
In November 1582, 18-year-old Shakespeare wed Anne Hathaway. She was
eight years older than he and was three months pregnant at the time they were
married. Shakespeare disappears from historical records between 1585 and
1592.
As for William and Anne, it is believed that the couple lived apart for most of
the year while Shakespeare pursued his writing and theater career in London. In
1613, Shakespeare retired from the theater and moved back to Stratfordupon-Avon. It was not until the end of his life that Shakespeare moved back in
with Anne in their Stratford home.
In 1594 he began writing and acting for a troupe known as the Lord
Chamberlains Men (renamed the Kings Men when James I appointed himself

its patron), ultimately becoming its house playwright and partnering with other
members to establish the legendary Globe theater in 1599.
Shakespeare wrote a total of 37 plays. Shakespeares first plays, believed to
have been written before or around 1592. The dramatic genres included: tragedy
comedy and history.
Shakespeare is credited for creating several given names, including Miranda,
Olivia, Jessica and Cordelia.
Shakespeare wrote a total of 154 sonnets. Shakespeares famed collection of
sonnets, which address themes ranging from love and sensuality to truth and
beauty, was printed in 1609, possibly without its writers consent.
In his play Romeo and Juliet, the word love appears 150 times.
Shakespeare is believed to have influenced the English language more than
any other writer in history, coiningor, at the very least, popularizingterms
and phrases that still regularly crop up in everyday conversation.

Resources
Web pages
o Alchin, Linda. (2015) William Shakespeare. In elizabethan-era.org.uk.
Retrieved April 2 2015, from http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/williamshakespeare.htm
o Alchin,
Linda.
(2014).
Life
in
Elizabethan
Stratford upon Avon. Retrieved April 2 2015, from http://www.williamshakespeare.info/william-shakespeare-biography-stratford.htm
o Flores, Stephan (1997). Shakespeare's world/stage. Retrieved April 2 2015, from
http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~sflores/345world.html
o Green, Treye. (April 22 2014) Shakespeare's 450th Birthday: 20 Facts About
William
Shakespeare.
Retrieved
April
2
2015,
from
http://www.ibtimes.com/shakespeares-450th-birthday-20-facts-about-williamshakespeare-1575062
o Life in Shakespeares Time (2015) In Shakespeare's Globe. Retrieved April 2
2015, from http://www.shakespearesglobe.com/playground/read/facts/life-inshakespeares-time
o Shakespeare's England (2003). In pbs.org. Retrieved April 2 2015, from
http://www.pbs.org/shakespeare/locations/location153.html
o Ten Facts on the Elizabethan Times (June 04, 2014).In e-How. Retrieved April 2
2015, from http://www.ehow.com/list_7732782_ten-elizabethan-times.html
o William Shakespeare.(n.d). William Shakespeare. Retrieved April 2 2015, from
http://www.history.com/topics/british-history/william-shakespeare
YouTube

o Biography Channel.(Apr 29, 2014) William Shakespeare Biography [Video file].

Retrieved April 1 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xc2MQh_GwkQ

o Reidcatherine. (Nov 16, 2010).Elizabethan Era. [Video file]. Retrieved April 1

2015,
from
v=aJ1BZMcUBxo&feature=youtu.be

https://www.youtube.com/watch?

o Timelines.tv. (Feb 2, 2013 ). Shakespeare's World - Timelines.tv History of

Britain
A08
[Video
file].
Retrieved
April
1
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=https%3A%2F
%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D9P1IJqNDYjQ

2015,

from

o UK Visit TV. (Feb 17, 2014). [Interview8] Shakespeare's England, At Anne

Hathaway's Cottage and Gardens(Visit Great Britain!) [Video file]. Retrieved
April 1 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8_MavXzpLI