Context for A2 and AS English. Can be applied to Poems (AS), Non-fiction (A2) etc for the WJEC Board (or any other)

1. Context
A2 English

2. 16th Century
• The Protestant Reformation was a European movement aimed
initially at reforming the beliefs and practices of the Roman Catholic
Church. In the eyes of many historians, this Reformation signaled the
beginning of the modern era. This included rationalisation, in which
religious ideas began to lose influence as scientific explanations
grew.
• 1577: Elizabeth I Proclamation against Excess: Queen Elizabeth I
passed a series of strict laws relating to dress codes. People had to
dress according to their rank and class to avoid a fine. Many people
lived at subsistence level.
• 1588: The defeat of the Spanish Armada (one of England’s greatest
Military achievements)
• The 16th Century was also the Age of Exploration. Europeans
began exploring the world by sea in search of trading partners, new
goods and new trade routes. Trade began to emerge on a social

3. 16th Century
Sir Thomas More became the first person to write of a
‘utopia’ (a perfect, imaginary world)
This century was the start of the Renaissance period and
included writers such as Shakespeare who in this century
wrote Richard III. Shakespeare and Renaissance carried
on into the 17th Century
1509: Henry VIII ascends the throne
1558: Queen Elizabeth I takes the throne until 1603

4. 17th Century
Newspapers were founded in the 17th Century and the printing press
meant more people were able to get hold of literature. In 1604, the
first English dictionary was published
1605: Guy Fawkes, a Catholic, becomes famously known for plotting
to bomb parliament (‘The Gun Powder Plot’). Consequently, he is
tortured, hanged and quartered (this was the types of punishment at
the time). Catholics were feared after that.
Witch hunts and the hanging of witches began in this century when
James I stated his belief in witches. People suspected James I was
doing it to target Christians after the Gun Powder plot

5. 17th Century
The English Civil War took place (1642), which involved
Parliamentarians and Royalists fighting over how the
country should be run. Charles I didn’t agree with the
rising taxes and tried to stop them by arresting members
of Parliament. However, the Divine Right was no longer in
use. Charles fled after numerous battles but was
eventually captured and sentenced to death for war
against his kingdom.
September 1666 saw the Great Fire of London
1665-1666: Great Plague of London

6. 18th Century
1740: English War of Succession began (England vs. Spain)
1751: Tax is imposed on Gin. Gin was easy to sell and get hold of, so
people were ruining their health by drinking it. The tax stopped this.
(search for William Hogarth’s piece ‘Beer Street and Gin Lane’)
1756 – 1763: The Seven Years’ War
1776 – 1783: The American Revolutionary War (War of
Independence) resulting in the formation of the United States.
1782: England lost it’s “hanged, drawn and quartered” execution
1789 – 1799: The French Revolution. A social and political
upheaval. Like the American revolution, it was centered around
Enlightenment ideas of progress, reason and liberty.

7. 18th Century
1794: William Blake’s ‘Songs of Innocence and Experience’ were
published
1798: The Irish Rebellion occurred; 100,000 peasants revolt and
25,000 died
Around 1970, a group of Evangelical Christians form the Clapham
Sect and campaigned for an end to slavery and cruel sports
Also in the 1700s, Mary Wollstonecraft wrote the ‘Rights of
Women’, and Thomas Paine write the ‘Rights of Men’

8. 19th Century
The Industrial Revolution – in 1801, only 20% of the population lived in
towns but by 1851 over two-thirds of the population lived in towns. It also
created a demand for female and child labour, especially in textile factories
working up to 12 hour shifts.
The Clapham Sect continued until around 1830.
1812: Spencer Perceval became the first British Prime Minister to ever be
assassinated
1807: Slave Trade was made illegal and by 1833, The Slavery Abolition
Act was passed in Britain.
1861-65: The American Civil War
During this century, Marxism. Marxists believe society is split into two
classes, the working (proletariats) and the upper (bourgeoisie/capitalist).
They believe the upper class oppress and dominate the working class.

9. 20th Century
1912: Sinking of the Titanic
1914-1918: World War 1
1928: Wall Street Crash, and Women can vote on the same terms
as men
1929: Great Depression
1939-1943/44: World War 2
1948: the NHS and Welfare state was set up. Class boundaries
started to become blurred
Civil Rights Movements (e.g. the American Civil Right movement)
took place. Such movements fought for racial and sexual equality
1949: Ireland gained independence from Britain

10. 20th Century
1960s: All children received full time education
1961: the introduction of the Contraceptive Pill
1969: Divorce Reform Act
1975: Sex Discrimination Act, given women equal rights
Society increasingly became secular and immigration saw
the increase of other religious beliefs in society
Important books written during this century included 1984
(Orwell), To Kill a Mockingbird, Lord of the Flies, Sherlock
Homes