English History Timeline Quiz

The Battle of Bosworth Field

• The Battle of Bosworth Field, which took place on August 22, 1485, marked the end of the War of the Roses and the beginning of the Tudor dynasty.
• King Richard III was defeated and killed in the battle and Henry Tudor was crowned King Henry VII of England.

The Discovery of the New World

• In 1492 Christopher Columbus sailed from Palos de la Frontera, Spain, to the Americas.
• He believed he had reached the East Indies but had instead landed on the islands of the Caribbean.
• Columbus’s journey led to the discovery of the New World and initiated the Age of Exploration.

The Reign of Henry VII

• Henry VII, who was crowned King of England in 1485, reigned until 1509.
• He was the founder of the Tudor Dynasty
• Henry VII focused on consolidating his power after years of civil war.

The Reign of Henry VIII

• Henry VIII became King of England in 1509.
• Henry VIII’s reign was marked by significant changes, including the English Reformation.

The Fall of Cardinal Wolsey

• Cardinal Thomas Wolsey was sacked by Henry VIII in 1528.
• Wolsey, who was the King’s chief advisor and Lord Chancellor, had failed in his attempt to get the Pope to annul Henry VII's marriage to Catherine of Aragon so that Henry could marry Anne Boleyn.

The Act of Supremacy

• In 1534, Henry VIII declared himself the Supreme Head of the Church of England, effectively breaking away from the Catholic Church.

The First English Bible

• The first complete English translation of the Bible, known as the ‘Great Bible’, was printed in 1539.

The Laws in Wales Act

• The Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 completed the legal union of Wales with England.
• The Acts made Wales part of the English legal system.

The Dissolution of the Monasteries

• In 1536, Henry VIII ordered the dissolution of the monasteries in England and Wales.
• The dissolution resulted in the confiscation of the monasteries' lands and wealth, which was used to finance the King's wars and other projects.

The Birth of Mary, Queen of Scots

• Mary, Queen of Scots, was born on December 8, 1542 at Linlithgow Palace in Scotland.
• Mary became Queen of Scotland, at only six days old, after the death of her father, King James V.
• Mary, Queen of Scots was a significant figure in both Scottish and English history.

The Mary Rose

• The Mary Rose, one of Henry VIII’s warships, sank in 1545 during the Battle of the Solent.
• The ship was salvaged and became a popular tourist destination, but it was destroyed in a fire.

The Accession of Queen Elizabeth I

• Elizabeth I became Queen of England in 1558 after the death of her sister, Mary I.
• Elizabeth’s reign was a golden age for England, marked by cultural and economic growth, as well as a period of intense religious turmoil.

Mary, Queen of Scots' Exile

• Mary, Queen of Scots, who had inherited the Scottish throne in 1542, returned to Scotland from exile in France in 1561.
• Mary’s reign was marked by controversy, including her marriage to Lord Darnley and the murder of her second husband.

Francis Drake’s Circumnavigation

• Francis Drake, a renowned English explorer, completed the second successful circumnavigation of the globe in 1580.

William Shakespeare

• William Shakespeare, one of the greatest writers in the English language, began his playwrighting career as a young man in London, probably in the late 1580s.

Sir Walter Raleigh's Lost Colony

• In 1585, Sir Walter Raleigh began the colonization of Roanoke Island in North Carolina.
• The colony failed and disappeared in 1590.

The Spanish Armada

• The Spanish Armada, a fleet of Spanish ships, sailed to England in 1588 to invade.
• The Armada was defeated by the English navy, considered a significant victory and a turning point in European history.