Britain 1648 CE

What is happening in Britain in 1648CE

England fell into a long bout of violent political instability in the period known as the Wars of the Roses (1455-85). The main players in these wars were powerful and turbulent nobles, so, when the Tudor Henry VII triumphed (reigned 1485-1507), he set about curbing their power and centralizing government in his own hands. His son, Henry VIII (reigned 1509-47), brought the Reformation to England, which resulted in years of religious strife before a compromise settlement was introduced under Queen Elizabeth (reigned 1553-1603). This confirmed England as a Protestant country but left people by and large to follow their own consciences.

Elizabeth’s reign saw a dangerous war with Spain, in which England came close to being invaded by a great Spanish Armada (1588). The reign also saw a glorious period in English literature, above all in the work of William Shakespeare. In 1603 the Scottish Stuart kings came to the English throne. The early years of their rule saw a continued expansion of trade, the colonization of large areas of Ireland, the beginnings of the settlement of America, and also a growing rift between the extravagant Stuart court and the Puritan-dominated parliament. In 1642 this rift broke out into a series of Civil Wars, which involved England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. By 1648 parliament had triumphed.

Next map, Britain in 1789