Islamic University

College of Education
Department of English

The 16th Century English Poetry

Historical Background

Third Year Students

By
Abdullah Al Yassery
Queen Mary
-She was a Roman Catholic.

-Mary’s intention was to marry Philip of Spain. A rebellion by Sir Thomas Wyatt against
Mary’s marriage. But the rebellion was defeated and Sir Thomas was prisoned and executed.

-Philip of Spain came to England and married Mary and he became a king.

-Philip persuaded the queen Mary to declare war against France.

-The French, led by the Duke of Guise, invaded Calais, the last English possession on the
continent and captured it.

-Mary was grieved at this national loss and died in 1558.

Elizabeth 1558-1603

-She is the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Baleyn.

-She came to throne when she was 25.
She became queen at a difficult time ?: England was in war with France, the treasury was
empty and taxes were heavy, job was not available, there were poverty and misery in
England, Bands of thieves robbed travelers and terrorized the countryside.

-Elizabeth made peace with France and she became a protestant.

-She stayed in a middle course: in order to unite the English people she allowed both
protestants and Catholics to practice their religion.
-She encourage sea voyages to discover new lands. This increased commerce and opened
careers for the English men.
-As a result, poverty and misery were replaced by prosperity and industry.
Elizabeth 1558-1603

Spain sent 134 ships and 30,000 men against England in 1588. But
they could not defeat the English army and came back to Spain.

-In Elizabeth’s reign:

1. farming improved
2. trade and manufactures grew
3. the poor were better looked after
4. there was more money and more food than ever before
5. England became “Merrie England” or utopian England.
General Characteristics of the 16th Century
-Renaissance is the most significant movement in England which started in the
16th century. There are many major influences that made Renaissance very
important:

1. The Fall of Constantinople

2. Geographical Discoveries

3. The Invention of Printing

4. The Copernican System

5. The Reformation
The Rise of England into Power in Europe

-In the 16 century, England grew up from relative inferiority into a major power in Europe.
th

- In the sixteenth century, England continued to advance economically and it was adjusting itself
to new social and religious conditions without civil wars.

While in Spain the reign of rigid monarchs (like Philip)impoverished and disrupted the richest
empire in the world.

France was in a period of turmoil and religious civil war.