Elizabethan Beliefs

Chain Of Being

Rankings

• • The highest rank is God
• • The lowest rank is Rocks
• • There are subdivisions in the human rank (e.g. after god is angels, kings/queens, archbishops, dukes, bishops, etc.)
• • The chain gave order and social stability and reinforces authority

• The higher rank has to defend the lower rank
• The lower rank has to serve higher rank

Beliefs on God

• • They thought God chose the kings/queens
• • If anyone plotted against the king, it was a sin against God

• Actors now are rich and famous and actors then were poor

• We should know what conditions he lived in...

The Four Humours

The Theory:

• Human body contained mixture of:
• • Blood • Black bile • Yellow bile • Phlegm

Treatment

• Imbalance would cause illness
• Doctors Advice
• Message, Bloodletting or Vomiting

Creators

• Hippocrate
• Galen
• Better understanding of sickness and daily life

Today's Theories

• Unreasonable
• Had little knowledge and equipment
• Not used as treatment
• Weather,Eating,Rain

Religion - Catholics, Protestants, and Puritans

Who are the Protestants?

• Their beliefs were referred to as Protestantism
• It is a form of Christian faith
• Formed from the split with Roman Catholicism in the 16th century

Who are the Puritans?

• Their beliefs were referred to as Puritanism
• A name given to the more extreme Protestants within the Church of England
• Tried to become more pure through worship
• Piety- obeying religious rules

Religion

• Based on who was reigning, whether they believed in Catholicism or Protestantism, was the way the religion was chosen
• Not enough freedom to believe in your faith
• Consequences

The Elizabethan Era and Religion

• Once she became queen, she restored the “Protestant Church of England”
• Events leading to restoration is known as “The Elizabethan Religious Settlement”
• Answer religious disputes that formed when Henry VIII, Edward VI and Mary I, wanting to repair all the damage

The two acts consisted of…

• THE ACT OF SUPREMACY - Gave Queen Elizabeth control over the Church of England
• THE ACT OF UNIFORMITY - This was the crux, “establishing a set form of worship” - Everyone must go to Church once a week or be fined 12 pence

The Elizabethan Era and Religion

• As the nation was now Protestant under the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, people of other beliefs/faiths had to be very careful, especially the Catholics
• Queen Elizabeth was wiling to be tolerant of Catholics and Puritans as long as they remained loyal
• • Puritans were not willing to cooperate, which created conflict

• Direct challenge from Thomas Cartwright in 1570
• Stated that the “system of church government based on archbishops, bishops, etc, was wrong
• Puritan preachers attained great fame, and their speeches were known as “prophesying”

• Ordered the Archbishop of Canter bury, Edmund Grindal, to put an end to prophesying
• Grindal refused, and was suspended and replaced by John Whitgift

Differences between Catholics and Protestants/Puritans

Catholics

• The pope or priest could forgive sins
• Church services and the Bible should be in Latin
• The Pope was ordained by God

Protestants/ Puritans

• Only god could forgive sins
• Church services and the Bible should be in the language of the people
• Did not believe the Pope was ordained by God

Catholics

• Priests were to commit their lives to God and stay unmarried
• Churches should be decorated with statues and shrines
• Holy water
• Embrace symbolic actions in worship (rituals, hierarchy)

Protestants/ Puritans

• People could find God without the help of a priest or Pope
• Believed everything should be plain
• No holy water
• Plain and straightforward

Connection to Shakespeare

• Because Puritans lived simply and wasn’t to fond of entertainment, which made them disapprove the Globe Theatre
• • The Globe Theatre was a new form of entertainment, which attracted large crowds
• • It attracted many people like thieves, gamblers, beggars, etc.

• As many of the people were strict Protestant/Puritan, they disgusted anyone who went to theatres
• In 1642 the Puritans shut down the Globe Theatre. The English Parliament suppressed all stage plays in theatres

William Shakespeare

• William Shakespeare wrote some of his most famous plays were on the final decade of Elizabeth’s reign - Titus Andronicus (first tragedy) - The Comedy of Errors

Religion

Why is it important for High School Students?

• It was a major source of conflict during the Elizabethan era
• Shakespeare was himself a Catholic follower
• Students can understand structure of society by understanding the concept

- Students can know the form of interaction between people and the political issues
- It would be easier for students to know the thought process of people form Elizabethan era

What is Catholicism?

• The Catholics were one of the major religions in the Elizabethan Era
• They had to attend EVERY single mass they had on Sundays
• Catholicism is a religion that people didn’t show respect to in the Elizabethan Era

• Following Catholicism at that time was illegal to do so
• The law did however allowed Catholics to follow their beliefs as long as the education system would not be affected.

How were they important in the Elizabethan Era?

• Catholicism was a culture no one showed that much respect to
• Queen Elizabeth I made many rules and regulations that the Catholics had to follow
• The Catholics still kept their culture
• They followed and believed in it a lot

Relation to Shakespeare

• Shakespeare himself was baptised into Catholicism when he was born
• Most of his plays have a background of Catholicism
• The characters in most of his plays are catholic
• Shakespeare’s personal religious beliefs can be seen through his plays

Dr. John Dee

Basics

• July 13, 1547 at 4:02
• He was known to be a mathematician, astrologer, astronomer, occult philosopher.
• He happen to be an adviser and imperialist to the Queen Elizabeth I.

Education

• He went to study at Cambridge University with Galileo, Newton, Kepler, etc.
• Dr. John Dee had a love for numbers and believed they held the secrets to the universe

Relation to Royalty

• He was appointed as the royal astrologer to Queen Mary Tudor, mother of Queen Elizabeth 1
• Philosopher to Queen Elizabeth; did her horoscope; determined her coronation date astrologically;
• Queen Elizabeth and Dr. John Dee were great friends.

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