| 1533 |
Henry VIII marries Anne Boleyn and is excommunicated by the Pope. |
1534
|
Henry VIII enacts The Act of Supremacy, naming himself the head of the Church of England. |
| 1553 |
Mary Tudor, Henry VIII’s daughter, is crowned Queen of England and restores the Catholic religion to the country. |
1558
|
Elizabeth Tudor, Mary I’s half-sister, becomes Queen of England. Elizabeth reverses Mary’s religious reform and re-establishes Protestantism as the official church of England. |
1570
|
The Pope excommunicates Elizabeth I. In retaliation, Elizabeth's government declares all Catholic priests to be guilty of treason. |
1585
|
Shakespeare’s twins, Judith and Hamnet, are born. |
1594
|
The Lord Chamberlain’s Men, a theatre company which included principal actor Richard Burbage, first performs with William Shakespeare as a member. |
1596
|
Shakespeare’s son Hamnet dies of the Black Plague. |
1601
|
Robert Cecil, then Secretary of State to Elizabeth I, enters into secret negotiations with James VI of Scotland to arrange his accession to the English throne. |
1603
|
Queen Elizabeth I dies without naming a successor. James VI of Scotland is crowned King of England.
King James grants Shakespeare’s company, The Chamberlain’s Men, a royal patent to perform. In honor of James I, the company renames itself The King’s Men and is a favorite of the new king. |
1604
|
Robert Catesby, John Wright and Thomas Wintour, staunch Catholic defenders, meet in London and begin to develop the Gunpowder Plot.
Wintour recruits Guy Fawkes in Flanders.
The group is then joined by Thomas Percy—these five men form the original members of the Gunpowder Plot. |
1605
|
Guy Fawkes is captured by the King’s Officers beneath Parliament with 36 barrels of gunpowder.
Robert Catesby, Thomas Percy and John and Christopher Wright are killed when the King’s Officers try to capture them. The remaining conspirators are imprisoned in the Tower of London. |
| 1606 |
The trial and execution of the Gunpowder Plot conspirators takes place.
Henry Garnet is executed for treason.
On August 7th, Macbeth is first performed by The King’s Men, and on December 26th King Lear makes its debut. |
