The Renaissance Introduction to the Literary Period

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The RenaissanceIntroduction to the Literary
Period
Feature Menu
Key Concept The Beginnings of Tudor Rule Key
Concept The Protestant Reformation Key Concept
Englands Greatest Monarch
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Key Concept The Beginnings of Tudor Rule
History of the Times

• Henry Tudor defeats the Yorkist king Richard III
  and establishes the Tudor dynasty, which rules
  for 118 years.

• Henry marries Elizabeth of York to secure his
  position, and acts to ensure peace with foreign
  powers.

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Key Concept The Beginnings of Tudor Rule
History of the Times
By the time of Henry VIIs death in 1509, England
is prosperous and fairly united, the throne
protected. Henry accomplished this by

• expanding commerce

• supporting the English merchant class

• reducing the power of the nobles

• awarding offices to loyal men from the middle
  class

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Key Concept The Beginnings of Tudor Rule
Literature of the Times

• The fifteenth century was a key period for
  literacy in England.

• The printing press is introduced in England.

• Humanism becomes a major influence on English
  literature.

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Key Concept The Beginnings of Tudor Rule
The Printing Press
around 1455

• The printing press is invented by Johannes
  Gutenberg.

in 1476

• William Caxton sets up a press in England.

by 1500

• Books become widely available throughout western
  Europe.

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Key Concept The Beginnings of Tudor Rule
Humanisman intellectual movement that greatly
influenced Renaissance thinkers, writers, and
artists.
The humanists

• revived old Greek and Latin classics

• studied the Bible and the classics to explore
  questions such as What is a good life?

• made history, literature, and philosophy popular
  again

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Key Concept The Beginnings of Tudor Rule
Two FriendsTwo Humanists
Desiderius Erasmus
Sir Thomas More

• English lawyer

• Dutch monk

• traveled throughout Europe

• wrote Utopia

• held important offices

• taught Greek

• beheaded by order of Henry VIII in 1535

Both men wrote in Latin loved life, laughter,
and classical learning were dedicated to the
church.
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Key Concept The Protestant Reformation
History of the Times

• Henry VIII, most famous for his six wives, reigns
  from 1509 to 1547.

• Like his father, Henry VIII knows a male heir is
  essential to securing the throne.

• With no son after 24 years of marriage, Henry
  appeals to pope to annul the marriage.

• Pope Clements denial prompts Henry to reform the
  Catholic Church in England.

• Henry VIII creates Church of England and Royal
  Navy, increasing Englands power.

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Key Concept The Protestant Reformation
Henry VIII (reigned 15091547)

• Renaissance manpoet, musician, athlete, hunter

• supported humanism

• married six wives

• desperate for male heir

• coarse, arrogant in old age

• created Royal Navy, ending foreign invasion and
  spreading Englands power, language, and
  literature around globe

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Key Concept The Protestant Reformation
1533

• Pope refuses Henry VIIIs request for annulment

• Henry breaks from Rome and appoints new
  archbishop of Canterbury, who grants annulment

1534

• Henry declares himself head of the Church of
  England

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Key Concept The Protestant Reformation
Annulment
An annulment cancels or puts an end to a
marriage. The children of an annulled couple
become illegitimate.
Divorce was not allowed, so Henry was looking for
a loophole. He asked Pope Clement VII to annul
his marriage, that is, declare that he was not
properly married to Catherine of Aragon.
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Key Concept The Protestant Reformation
The Reformation in Europe
In various countries

• reformers reject authority of pope and Italian
  churchmen

In Germany

• Martin Luther founds new kind of Christianity,
  based on personal understanding of Bible

In England

• strong national identity makes English people
  resent financial burdens imposed by Vatican

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Key Concept The Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation after 1534

• Henry closes monasteries.

• He seizes the Catholic Churchs assets and sells
  Church land.

• Protestantism begins in England.

Some people want to

• get rid of popish things (bishops, prayer book,
  priests vestments)

• make religion solely a matter between the
  individual and God

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Key Concept The Protestant Reformation
Literature of the Times

• The Renaissance that started in Italy in the 14th
  century begins to flourish in England.

• English writers set about translating Greek and
  Roman classics into English.

• Henry VIII supports development of English
  literature, authorizes translation of Bible into
  English.

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Key Concept The Protestant Reformation
Renaissance Learning
The Renaissance encouraged individual curiosity
and creativity. Bold thoughts, beautiful poetry,
and powerful dramatic works emerged. The
instruments shown in this painting suggest the
ambassadors have mastered astronomy, mathematics,
and music.
The Ambassadors (1533) by Hans Holbein the
Younger. Oil on canvas.
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Key Concept Englands Greatest Monarch
History of the Times

• Elizabeth I inherits kingdom after deaths of her
  brother Edward and sister Mary.

• England under Bloody Mary was torn by religious
  feuds after she restored power to Catholics and
  executed Protestants.

• Elizabeths first task was to restore law and
  order and reestablish Church of England.

• The Virgin Queen foiled several murder plots by
  her cousin Mary, Queen of Scots.

• Queen Elizabeths defeat of the Spanish Armada
  was one of her finest hours.

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Key Concept Englands Greatest Monarch
Heirs of Henry VIII
Edward VI (r. 15471553)
Elizabeth I (r. 15581603)

• sickly boy king
• rules in name only
• dies at age 15

• The Virgin Queen
• brilliant, successful monarch

Mary Tudor (r. 15531558)

• Bloody Mary
• restores popes power
• hunts down and executes Protestants

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Key Concept Englands Greatest Monarch
Elizabeth Iliterary connoisseur beloved symbol
of peace, security, prosperity

• likely most brilliant, successful British monarch

• excommunicated after rejecting popes authority

• Parliament begs her to marry she refuses

• Rebuffs proposal from Philip of Spain unleashes
  navy on his Spanish Armada

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Key Concept Englands Greatest Monarch
Mary, Queen of Scots

• heir to English throne, daughter of James V

• a devout Catholic, shes ousted from throne in
  Protestant Scotland

• engineers several plots to kill Elizabeth

In 1587
After enduring Marys plots for twenty years,
Elizabeth sends her to the chopping block for
treason.
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Key Concept Englands Greatest Monarch
1588

• Philip of Spain sends the Spanish Armada, a vast
  fleet of warships, to invade England.

• Englands smaller ships defeat Armada with help
  from storms in Irish Sea

• Spain might have conquered Britain

• Victory assures Englands independence from
  Catholic countries of the Mediterranean

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Key Concept Englands Greatest Monarch
Spanish Armada
The Spanish Armada was the largest fleet of ships
ever assembled.

• England set eight small frigates, or warships,
  ablaze and sailed them into the Armada.

• Heavy winds wrecked the Spanish ships off the
  stormy coast of Ireland.

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Key Concept Englands Greatest Monarch
Literature of the Times

• Armadas defeat is a catalyst for Renaissance
  writers, who celebrate Elizabeth I as a symbol of
  peace, prosperity, and security.

• Poetry, drama, religious allegory, and
  philosophical works flourish in this golden age.

• Elizabeths court becomes a center of literary
  culture for gifted writers.

• The plays of William Shakespeare and his
  contemporaries are created for the general
  public, rather than aristocratic theater patrons.