Early Modern England: An Abbreviated Timeline
1377
Edward III dies; Richard II ascends to throne
1399
Richard II deposed by Henry Bolingbroke, 2nd duke of Lancaster
Lancaster ascends to throne as Henry IV
1400
Deposed and imprisoned, Richard II dies
1413
Henry IV dies; Henry V ascends to throne
1422
Henry V dies; Henry VI ascends to throne
1454
Richard, 3rd duke of York made Lord Protector of the Realm
1455
Wars of the Roses begins
1460
York lays formal claim to throne
York dies in battle
1461
York’s son ascends to throne as Edward IV
1470
Henry VI returns and deposes Edward IV
1471
Edward IV deposes Henry VI and resumes his reign
1483
Edward IV dies; Edward V ascends to throne
Edward V deposed by Richard, duke of Gloucester, who becomes Richard III
Edward V dies under mysterious circumstances
1485
Richard III deposed by Henry Tudor, 2nd earl of Richmond, who becomes Henry VII
Wars of the Roses ends
1504
Arthur, prince of Wales and heir apparent, marries Catherine of Aragon
Arthur dies
1509
Henry VII dies; Henry VIII ascends to throne
Henry VIII marries Catherine of Aragon
1516
Catherine of Aragon gives birth to Mary
1527
Henry VIII begins to seek divorce from Catherine of Aragon
1533
Act in Restraint of Appeals makes Henry VIII highest authority in all matters in his realm
Henry VIII divorces Catherine of Aragon; marries Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn gives birth to Elizabeth
1534
Act of Supremacy makes Henry VIII head of Church and State
First Succession Act declares Mary illegitimate and makes Anne Boleyn’s future issue Henry VIII’s heirs
1536
Anne Boleyn executed for high treason; Henry VIII marries Jane Seymour
Second Succession Act declares Elizabeth illegitimate and makes Jane Seymour’s future issue Henry VIII’s heirs
Small monasteries dissolved
1537
Jane Seymour gives birth to Edward and dies from postnatal complications
1539
Large monasteries dissolved
1540
Henry VIII marries Anne of Cleves, divorcing her six months later; marries Catherine Howard
1542
Catherine Howard executed
Henry VIII launches victorious campaign against James V of Scotland
James V dies, succeeded by his infant daughter Mary, Queen of Scots
1543
Henry VIII marries Catherine Parr
Third Act of Succession restores Mary and Elizabeth to line of succession after Edward
1544
Henry VIII launches another campaign against Scotland, leaving little chance of future cooperation
1547
Henry VIII dies; Edward VI ascends to throne
Chantries dissolved
1548
Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, produces first Book of Common Prayer
1549
The first Act of Uniformity demands all parishes use Book of Common Prayer
1552
A second, more Protestant Book of Common Prayer commissioned
1553
The Forty-Two Articles of Faith commissioned, outlining doctrines of Church of England
Edward VI falls ill with consumption; Edward and advisors try to divert succession from Mary to Protestant Lady Jane Grey
Edward VI dies; Mary I ascends to the throne
Religious legislation from Edward VI’s reign revoked
1554
Mary I marries Philip of Spain; Sir Thomas Wyatt stages rebellion
Elizabeth implicated in rebellion and briefly imprisoned in Tower of London
1558
Mary I dies; Elizabeth I ascends to the throne
Mary, Queen of Scots, marries Francis II of France
1559
Elizabeth I devises religious compromise between Protestantism and Catholicism Scottish aristocrats establish Scots Presbyterian Church
1560
Francis II of France dies
1561
Mary, Queen of Scots, returns to Scotland
1565
Mary, Queen of Scots, marries Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley
1566
Mary, Queen of Scots, gives birth to James (future King James VI of Scotland and James I of England)
1567
Darnley murdered
Mary, Queen of Scots abducted by James Hepburn, 4th earl of Bothwell and accused murderer of Darnley
Mary marries Bothwell, but forced to abdicate in favor of her son
James VI ascends to the Scottish throne
1568
Mary, Queen of Scots, flees to England, then is taken into custody
1569
The Northern Rebellion conceived, but defeated in 1570
1571
The Ridolfi Plot conceived but never reaches fruition
1585
Act Against Jesuits
1586
The Babington Plot discovered by Lord Walsingham
Mary, Queen of Scots implicated in assassination plot against Elizabeth I
1587
Mary, Queen of Scots, executed for treason
—Brooke Sutter, a graduate of Loyola University, researched and wrote teaching resources for Mary Stuart as an intern with CST’s Education Department.