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TIMELINE OF
EVENTS |
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The best chronology
of Elizabeth's life and reign may be found at The
Life and Times of Queen Elizabeth I, a remarkable year-by-year
compendium of events throughout Europe. This simpler timeline
is offered solely for dates important to Elizabeth's life.
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Jan 25, 1533
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Henry VIII marries Anne Boleyn (although
his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, will live another three
years) under an annulment supported by Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop
of Canterbury. She is pregnant.
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7 Sept 1533
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Elizabeth I born at Greenwich Palace, christened
on September 10.
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19 May 1536
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Anne Boleyn executed at Tower of London.
Henry marries Jane Seymour May 30.
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1 July 1536
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Parliament declares Princess Mary and Princess
Elizabeth illegitimate.
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12 Oct 1537
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Birth of Edward, Prince of Wales. Elizabeth
attends his christening (age 4) with her half-sister Mary,
October 15. Jane Seymour dies October 24.
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6 Jan 1540
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Henry marries Anne of Cleves for political
reasons. The marriage is annulled within months.
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28 July 1540
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Henry marries teenaged Catherine Howard,
his "rose without a thorn." Thomas Cromwell executed
the same day.
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9 Nov 1541
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Catherine Howard, accused of adultery, sent
to the Tower. She is executed in February, 1542.
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12 July 1543
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Henry marries Katherine Parr, the last of
his wives and the only one to survive him. Elizabeth brought
into closer contact with her father and half-siblings at Court.
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28 Jan 1547
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Henry VIII dies. 9-year-old Edward is proclaimed
Edward VI, with his uncle, Edward Somerset, as Protector.
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1547-1548
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Elizabeth lives with Katherine Parr through
most of 1547 and 1548. Parr marries Thomas Seymour in April,
1547, and Elizabeth lives with Seymour and the Queen. Elizabeth
sent away from the Queen's household in the summer of 1548,
allegedly due to Seymour's attentions. On September 5, Katherine
Parr dies following childbirth.
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Jan, 1549
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Thomas Seymour intrigues to marry Mary and
then Elizabeth. Botched efforts to seize the person of King
Edward lead to his imprisonment for treason. Elizabeth's household
invaded by Tyrrwhit, seeking evidence of her involvement in
Seymour's actions. Seymour executed March 20, 1549.
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July 1553
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Edward VI dies on July 6. The Earl of Northumberland
(John Dudley), who has married his eldest son to Lady Jane
Grey, seizes the throne in her name, proclaiming her Queen
on July 10. By July 20, support for the Earl has collapsed
and Mary is proclaimed Queen. Jane Grey imprisoned; Dudley
executed. Elizabeth comes to live at Court in attendance upon
the Queen but tensions grow between the sisters over religious
practice.
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30 Oct 1553
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Coronation of Mary I. Elizabeth attends.
Shortly afterwards Elizabeth withdraws from Court.
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Jan -May 1554
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Aborted rebellion headed by Sir Thomas Wyatt
in protest against Mary's announced plans to marry Philip
of Spain. Princess Elizabeth implicated, brought to Court,
placed under house arrest. On 18 March, she is sent to the
Tower under suspicion of treason. Wyatt is executed in April,
proclaiming Elizabeth's innocence. Elizabeth, released from
the Tower on May 19, placed under house arrest in Woodstock
for balance of 1554.
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1555-1558
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For balance of Mary's reign, Elizabeth largely
absent from Court under the Queen's displeasure. Elizabeth
has returned to live in seclusion at Hatfield while Mary's
efforts to return England to Catholicism consign martyrs to
the flames. Elizabeth returns to Court briefly during Mary's
false pregnancies as a precautionary measure. The Queen is
increasingly ill throughout 1558. She refuses to name Elizabeth
as her heir.
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Nov 17, 1558
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Mary I dies, finally acknowledging Elizabeth,
who is brought word at Hatfield that she is now Queen. This
date will be celebrated with increasing pomp throughout her
reign as "Accession Day."
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1559
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Coronation of Elizabeth on January 15. On
May 8 the Acts of Supremacy and Uniformity passed securing
the services of the Church of England. Elizabeth named "Supreme
Governor" (not Supreme Head) of the Church in England.
She sends support to Scottish rebels against Mary of Guise
while the new Queen of France, Mary of Scotland, proclaims
herself England's rightful queen.
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1560
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Since her accession, Elizabeth dodges the
question of her marriage and becomes increasingly intimate
with Robert Dudley, an old friend and her Master of Horse.
On 8 September, Dudley's wife is found dead in mysterious
circumstances, effectually placing him under suspicion, later
cleared by the inquest.
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Aug, 1561
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Now a widow, Mary of Scotland returns to
her country from France. Diplomatic efforts and conflicts
continue between the two queens but there is no open breach.
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Oct, 1562
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While secretly negotiating to provide assistance
to French Huegenots, Elizabeth nearly dies from smallpox,
naming Dudley as protector of the realm. She finally recovers
to renewed pressure on her to marry and provide an heir.
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1563
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While the "39 Articles" of the
Anglican Church define its dogma, John Fox's so-called "Book
of Martyrs" published, inflaming Protestant horror at
Catholic persecutions throughout Europe.
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1565-1567
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Scotland desintegrates following Mary's
marriage with Darnley in July, 1565. On March 9, 1566, Mary
present when her secretary, David Rizzio, is murdered; she
bears James, future king of Scotland and England, on June
19. Plots increase against Darnley in latter 1566. Darnley
murdered February 10, 1567; Mary marries his accused murderer,
Bothwell, by Protestant rite on May 15. She is forced to abdicate
in favor of her infant son on 24 July and is imprisoned in
Lochleven Castle.
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May, 1568
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On May 2, Mary of Scotland escapes from
Lochleven. After a military defeat, she flees across the border
to England on May 16. She is almost immediately placed in
informal custody while her involvement in Darnley's murder
is debated. In this year, William Allen founds what will become
the center of Counter-reformation attempts against England,
in Douai, France.
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1569-1572
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In November, 1569, a Catholic-centered rebellion
of northern earls against Elizabeth's Protestant injunctions
breaks out but is quickly quashed. However, danger to Elizabeth
grows in 1570 when she is excommunicated by the Pope. In 1571,
the Ridolfi Plot to overthrow Elizabeth discovered. In 1572,
the Duke of Norfolk, involved in the Ridolfi plot and with
the captive Mary of Scotland, executed. On August 22-24 in
Paris and throughout France, in what is later called the St.
Bartholemew's Day Massacre, thousands of Huegenots are spontaneously
murdered. Agitation grows in the Netherlands against Catholic,
Spanish rule. Its leaders look to Elizabeth for support.
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Dec, 1577
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Sir Francis Drakes sets sail in The Golden
Hind to circumnavigate the Globe. Elizabeth is a secret
shareholder in his enterprise. Drake returns in triumph on
September 26, 1580, having completed his transit, with extraordinary
plunder for his shareholders.
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1579-1581
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Elizabeth negotiates with France to marry
Catherine di Medici's younger son, the Duc d'Alencon. She
is 47. Although a marriage contract is signed in November,
1581, it is not pursued. It will be her last serious attempt
at marriage negotiations. In December, 1581, Edmund Campion
- a priest from Douai symbolic of counter-Reformation activities
in England - is executed.
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1582-1583
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In March, 1582, the attempted assassination
of William of Orange, leader of the Dutch revolt against Catholic
Spanish rule. Appointment of Archbishop Whitgift, Archbishop
of Canterbury. Elizabeth and Whitgift work to restrain influence
of more extreme Puritan element within Church of England.
In December, John Somerville is executed for a plot to assassinate
Elizabeth and place Mary of Scotland on the throne.
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1584
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A plot by Fancis Throckmorton is discovered
for a Spanish invasion of England and Elizabeth's overthrow.
The Bond of Association is formed, in which loyal subjects
of the Queen pledge allegiance to her, and promise to avenge
her murder if it takes place. Wording of the bond makes it
possible to hold Mary, Queen of Scots, responsible for plots
made in her name. On July 10, the Protestant ruler of the
Netherlands, William of Orange, is assasinated by Catholic
agents. Frockmorton is executed for treason the same day.
Fears of Elizabeth's assassination increase in England. Sir
Walter Ralegh sails to found an English colony in the new
world territories named after the Queen, "Virginia."
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1585
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Elizabeth refuses the offered sovereignty
of the Netherlands but formally takes it under her protection.
The Earl of Leicester's botched campaign in the Netherlands
in support of Protestant forces fighting Spain.
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1586
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The Treaty of Berwick, by which Protestant
rulers Elizabeth and James VI of Scotland agree to mutual
support. Plot discovered by Francis Babington to assassinate
the Queen, with the express knowledge and approval of the
Queen of Scots, to replace Elizabeth on the throne. Babington
and his co-conspirators are executed in September; Mary is
in custody to be tried for treason and conspiracy to murder.
She is tried by Englishmen at the end of the year and found
guilty.
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1587
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After months of hesitation, Elizabeth signs
the death warrant for Mary of Scotland on February 1; the
queen is executed at Fotheringay Palace on February 8. Relations
with Spain notably worsen; Drake attacks Cadiz.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588, England
waits for the rumored invasion; in a series of naval actions
in early August, the Armada is dispersed and defeated, its
remnants returning to Spain. Elizabeth's "Tilbury"
speech before the battles; nationwide celebrations after the
Armada is dispersed. In the midst of these, Robert Dudley
dies on September 4.
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1589
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With the murder of France's Henry III, France
is engulfed in religious wars of succession with the protestant
claimant, Henri of Navarre. Elizabeth provides tacit aid to
Henri. English forces continue to fight in the bogged-down
action in The Netherlands. Ireland is increasingly a trouble
spot, particularly in terms of its Catholicism and possible
use as a landing stage for English invasion.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588, England
waits for the rumored invasion; in a series of naval actions
in early August, the Armada is dispersed and defeated, its
remnants returning to Spain. Nationwide celebrations. In
the midst of these, Robert Dudley dies on September 4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first three
books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated to Elizabeth;
Shakespeare is playing in London and possibly already creating
plays; Christopher Marlowe's "high, astounding terms"
take London theater by storm. Sir Francis Walsingham, Elizabeth's
spymaster, dies.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588,
England waits for the rumored invasion; in a series
of naval actions in early August, the Armada is dispersed
and defeated, its remnants returning to Spain. Nationwide
celebrations. In the midst of these, Robert Dudley
dies on September 4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first
three books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated to
Elizabeth; Shakespeare is playing in London and possibly
already creating plays; Christopher Marlowe's "high,
astounding terms" take London theater by storm.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588,
England waits for the rumored invasion; in a series
of naval actions in early August, the Armada is
dispersed and defeated, its remnants returning to
Spain. Nationwide celebrations. In the midst of
these, Robert Dudley dies on September 4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first
three books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated
to Elizabeth; Shakespeare is playing in London and
possibly already creating plays; Christopher Marlowe's
"high, astounding terms" take London theater
by storm.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588,
England waits for the rumored invasion; in a series
of naval actions in early August, the Armada is
dispersed and defeated, its remnants returning to
Spain. Nationwide celebrations. In the midst of
these, Robert Dudley dies on September 4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first
three books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated
to Elizabeth; Shakespeare is playing in London and
possibly already creating plays; Christopher Marlowe's
"high, astounding terms" take London theater
by storm.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588,
England waits for the rumored invasion; in a series
of naval actions in early August, the Armada is
dispersed and defeated, its remnants returning to
Spain. Nationwide celebrations. In the midst of
these, Robert Dudley dies on September 4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first
three books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated
to Elizabeth; Shakespeare is playing in London and
possibly already creating plays; Christopher Marlowe's
"high, astounding terms" take London theater
by storm.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588, England
waits for the rumored invasion; in a series of naval actions
in early August, the Armada is dispersed and defeated,
its remnants returning to Spain. Nationwide celebrations.
In the midst of these, Robert Dudley dies on September
4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first three
books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated to Elizabeth;
Shakespeare is playing in London and possibly already creating
plays; Christopher Marlowe's "high, astounding terms"
take London theater by storm.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588, England
waits for the rumored invasion; in a series of naval actions
in early August, the Armada is dispersed and defeated,
its remnants returning to Spain. Nationwide celebrations.
In the midst of these, Robert Dudley dies on September
4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first three
books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated to Elizabeth;
Shakespeare is playing in London and possibly already creating
plays; Christopher Marlowe's "high, astounding terms"
take London theater by storm.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588, England
waits for the rumored invasion; in a series of naval actions
in early August, the Armada is dispersed and defeated,
its remnants returning to Spain. Nationwide celebrations.
In the midst of these, Robert Dudley dies on September
4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first three
books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated to Elizabeth;
Shakespeare is playing in London and possibly already creating
plays; Christopher Marlowe's "high, astounding terms"
take London theater by storm.
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1591
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Earl of Essex and English expedition to
assist Henry of Navarre by fighting in Britanny. War in the
Netherlands drags on. Elizabeth's old favorite, Sir Christopher
Hatton, dies. Increasing penalties for English recusants (secret
Catholics).
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588, England
waits for the rumored invasion; in a series of naval actions
in early August, the Armada is dispersed and defeated,
its remnants returning to Spain. Nationwide celebrations.
In the midst of these, Robert Dudley dies on September
4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first three
books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated to Elizabeth;
Shakespeare is playing in London and possibly already creating
plays; Christopher Marlowe's "high, astounding terms"
take London theater by storm. Sir Francis Walsingham, Elizabeth's
spymaster, dies.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588,
England waits for the rumored invasion; in a series
of naval actions in early August, the Armada is
dispersed and defeated, its remnants returning to
Spain. Nationwide celebrations. In the midst of
these, Robert Dudley dies on September 4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first
three books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated
to Elizabeth; Shakespeare is playing in London and
possibly already creating plays; Christopher Marlowe's
"high, astounding terms" take London theater
by storm.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout
1588, England waits for the rumored invasion;
in a series of naval actions in early August,
the Armada is dispersed and defeated, its remnants
returning to Spain. Nationwide celebrations. In
the midst of these, Robert Dudley dies on September
4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first
three books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated
to Elizabeth; Shakespeare is playing in London and
possibly already creating plays; Christopher Marlowe's
"high, astounding terms" take London theater
by storm.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout
1588, England waits for the rumored invasion;
in a series of naval actions in early August,
the Armada is dispersed and defeated, its remnants
returning to Spain. Nationwide celebrations. In
the midst of these, Robert Dudley dies on September
4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first
three books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated
to Elizabeth; Shakespeare is playing in London and
possibly already creating plays; Christopher Marlowe's
"high, astounding terms" take London theater
by storm.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout
1588, England waits for the rumored invasion;
in a series of naval actions in early August,
the Armada is dispersed and defeated, its remnants
returning to Spain. Nationwide celebrations. In
the midst of these, Robert Dudley dies on September
4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first
three books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated
to Elizabeth; Shakespeare is playing in London and
possibly already creating plays; Christopher Marlowe's
"high, astounding terms" take London theater
by storm.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588,
England waits for the rumored invasion; in a series
of naval actions in early August, the Armada is dispersed
and defeated, its remnants returning to Spain. Nationwide
celebrations. In the midst of these, Robert Dudley dies
on September 4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first three
books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated to Elizabeth;
Shakespeare is playing in London and possibly already
creating plays; Christopher Marlowe's "high, astounding
terms" take London theater by storm.
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|
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588,
England waits for the rumored invasion; in a series
of naval actions in early August, the Armada is dispersed
and defeated, its remnants returning to Spain. Nationwide
celebrations. In the midst of these, Robert Dudley dies
on September 4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first three
books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated to Elizabeth;
Shakespeare is playing in London and possibly already
creating plays; Christopher Marlowe's "high, astounding
terms" take London theater by storm.
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1588
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The Armada Year. Throughout 1588,
England waits for the rumored invasion; in a series
of naval actions in early August, the Armada is dispersed
and defeated, its remnants returning to Spain. Nationwide
celebrations. In the midst of these, Robert Dudley dies
on September 4.
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1590
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Edmund Spencer publishes the first three
books of The Faerie Queen, dedicated to Elizabeth;
Shakespeare is playing in London and possibly already
creating plays; Christopher Marlowe's "high, astounding
terms" take London theater by storm.
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