Elizabethan popular culture

Art

Name a famous Elizabethan painter

What did he paint ?

• Nicholas Hilliard was a famous English artist ( creating miniature art pieces )

• Painted portrait of Elizabeth I

Music

What instruments were used in Elizabethan England ?

Why ?

Give an example

• Orpharions were made for Elizabeth to give to courtiers
• One was made in 1580 by John Rose for Elizabeth

Music

Who were famous composers in Elizabethan England ?

What did they compose ?

• Thomas Tallis
• William Byrd
• Composed church music for the Queen's Chapel

Music

What developments in music were made ?

By who ?

1580s

• Important developments in secular ( non religious ) music by composers like Dowland who wrote ayres

Literature

Name some famous poets in Elizabethan England

Philip Sidney
Edmond Spenser

Literature

Name some famous prose writers

What did they write ?

Richard Hakluyt
William Camden

• Produced travel books and biographies

Theatre

Name the most famous playwright from Elizabethan England

How many plays did he write ?

Shakespeare
38 plays

Theatre

Name 2 other famous playwrights from Elizabethan England

Christopher Marlows
Ben Johnson

Theatre

When were theatres built and where ?

What happened before they opened ?

• At the start of Elizabeth's reign, there were no permanent theatres so companies of actors travelled around performing in village squares or courtyards of inns
• The first theatres were built in London in the 1570s ( including The Theatre and The Curtain )

Theatre

When was The Globe built ?

1599

Theatre

Who did theatre appeal to ?

Why ?

How did prices affect this ?

• Appealed to both the rich and poor
• Ticket prices started at 1 penny, so it was affordable for most people
• Different social groups sat in different places and didn't mix

Theatre

Did Elizabeth support theatre ?

What evidence is there to support this ?

• She enjoyed plays
• She never attended a public theatre but often had plays performed at court and had an acting company called the Queen's Men

Theatre

Who were plays performed by ?

Name 2 important people

• Plays performed by acting companies
• The Admiral's Men and The Lord Chamberlain's Men ( Shakespeare's Company ) were very popular
• Women weren't allowed to perform on stage so all actors were male

Theatre

Who was a very popular actor ?

Whose company did he work for ?

Richard Burbage

• Member of the Lord Chamberlain's Men
• Played the lead role in many of Shakespeare's plays

Theatre

How did the purpose of theatre change in Elizabethan England ?

• In medieval times plays were put on by the church to educate the public about religion, often acting Bible stories to show struggles between good and evil
• Elizabethan plays became a form of entertainment, losing their religious focus becoming a way to make money for theatre owners

Theatre

What religious group opposed theatre ?

Why ?

• Puritans opposed theatre, believing that the establishment of theatres encouraged immoral activities like gambling and dancing
• Some also associated plays with Paganism as they originated in ancient times
• They also believed it was a sin for male actors to play females

Theatre

How did the Puritans respond to theatre ?

Give an example

• Puritans wrote pamphlets against plays
• John Stubbes ( a Puritan ) wrote a pamphlet in 1583

Theatre

What beliefs did Puritans generally have ?

• Believed that Christians should live a restrained lifestyle
• They opposed anything encouraging playfulness or idleness, including sports and popular past times like cock-fighting and drinking
• They also disliked public celebrations even for religious events

Theatre

Why did the authorities oppose theatre ?

What did this cause ?

• The City of London authorities though theatres were disruptive and encouraged crime
• The large crowds attracted pickpockets and were seen as a threat to public order
• Mayors and aldermen worried that theatres drew servants and apprentices away from work
• This meant many theatres ( eg The Globe ) were built just outside the city in Southwark

Theatre

How did authorities oppose theatre ?

When ?

• Authorities wrote many letters to the Privy Council asking for the closure of theatres
• During major outbreaks of the plague eg 1581-2, 1592,3 and in 1603 the government ordered playhouses to close
• In the 1560s and 70s the Elizabethan Privy Council banned miracle plays as they saw them as a Catholic tradition

Past Times

What was the alehouse ?

Who and why did people go there ?

• Middling sort and labouring poor went to the pub ( most popular pasttime )
• Centre of village life and numbers increased after 1580
• People sang and drank with neighbours
• Place of drunkness, gambling and prostitution

Past Times

What were Parish Feasts ?

What did they celebrate ?

• Festivals which celebrated the saint of the local parish church
• Usually lasted several days and had a procession followed by eating, drinking and dancing in the churchyard
• Many people got drunk and played rough sports

Past Times

What sports were popular in Elizabethan England ?

Who played them ?

• Bare-knuckle fighting, wrestling and cudgelling were common
• Football was the most popular sport with large groups kicking an inflated pig bladder in the street
• Abusing animals was also popular in games eg bear, bull and badger baiting where animals were tied up and killed by dogs with people placing bets on who would win the fight

Past Times

What were some popular calendar customs ?

• Christmas
• Shrove Tuesday
• Whitsun ( carting )
• Midsummer's Eve
• May Day ( maypoles, dancing with summer kings and queens)
• Harvest Home ( feasting after a good harvest )

Past Times

Why did past times decline during the later part of Elizabeth's reign ?

• Puritan ministers began to gain control of some parishes
• They campaigned to improve people's behaviour, preaching sermons and releasing pamphlets attacking popular culture
• In some areas Puritan ministers gained the support of the local gentry, JPS and the middling sort
• Areas ran by the Puritan elite suffered the most

Past Times

Give an example of Puritan impact on past times

When ?

Where ?

Who ?

Lancashire
1587

• Puritan preacher Edward Fleetwood persuaded the local gentry to ban all music, dancing and drinking on Sundays

Witchcraft

How was magic important in Elizabethan England ?

Did the church approve of it ?

• Most people believed in magic
• Shared beliefs helped people cope with challenges
• The church tolerated magic ( it wasn't seen as an alternative religion )

Witchcraft

Who were cunning folk or wise women ?

• People known to have special magic powers which they had inherited
• People used their knowledge of herbs, spells and remedies for medical reasons
• These people weren't seen negatively at first however as witches were persecuted these practises were banned

Witchcraft

What was witchcraft ?

What did people believe about it ?

• Witchcraft involved a special type of magic which caused harm to people and their property
• In Europe people were accused of obtaining witch powers from the devil
• Thought that witches met the devil at sabbath where they feasted, danced and had sex with him
• Popular belief that witches used small animals called 'familiars' to commit evil acts

Witchcraft

What was the Witchcraft Act ?

Which monarch passed it ?

When ?

1562
Elizabeth I

• Made all acts of witchcraft a crime
• Accused witches were given a trial in a court
• Witches found guilty of causing death would be hanged and less serious offences could lead to a prison sentence eg providing herbal remerdies

Witchcraft

Where did many witchcraft trials take place ?

How many ?

• County of Essex
• Many Puritan ministers tried to establish 'godly communities'
• 172 cases in Essex during Elizabeth's reign

Witchcraft

How did witchcraft trial usually begin ?

• Local neighbours would report suspicions and report them to a local magistrate

Witchcraft

Who was Ursula Kemp and where was she from ?

What was she accused of and when ?

1582

• Ursula Kemp claimed she used her healing powers to heal the son of Grace Thurlow in Essex
• Grace and Ursula then fell out and Grace's daughter died
• Ursula Kemp was accused of being a witch who killed Joan Thurlow and 2 other children
• Brian Darcy the local JP claimed Kemp confessed to him and along with 5 other 'witches' she was hang