Hamlet - Historical and Political Context

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Historical and Political Context

The political and religious upheavals before and after the death of Henry VIII had left their mark on the people of England. The King had done previous un-heard of things:

He had divorced two wives and had had two executed. In the brief reigns which followed, persecution, first of the Catholics and then of Protestants, split family allegiances and brought very real danger - of imprisonment, torture, even execution. Claimants for the thrown jockeyed for position.

Queen Elizabeth I came to the throne in 1558 the first successor to her father, Henry Viii had been his young son Edward, ten years of age. As he was still very much under age, he had to 'rule' through Regents.

They persisted with the Protestant reforms instituted by his father after his break with the Roman Catholic.

Edward died six years after coming to the throne.

He was succeeded by his half-sister Mary (Tudor), who died childless after five years as Queen. She had tried to reinstate Roman Catholicism as the state religion.

Elizabeth, Mary's half sister, although not considered a legitimate heir to the throne, became Queen in 1558 and ruled for 45 years. Although she had been brought up as a Protestant she understood that in view of the recent religious upheaval some compromises some compromises had to be made. The country needed stability and a strong ruler.

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Her life had been in danger before she became Queen and there were the inevitable conspiracies to usurp her position.

The tragic figurehead of one of these and the object of Elizabeth's suspicion and jealousy for many years was Mary, Queen of Scots; Elizabeth at first kept her under arrest but eventually had her executed in 1587.

Late in her reign, in 1601, the Earl of Essex, formerly her favorite, made his bid for power. He failed in his attempt to cause a popular up rising, was imprisoned and executed.

It is not difficult ...

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