Spesc Anglais lists 3 and 4

Predestination

(in Christian theology) the doctrine that God has ordained all that will happen, especially with regard to the salvation of some and not others. It has been particularly associated with the teachings of St Augustine of Hippo and of Calvin.

Bonfire night

(in the UK) 5 November, on which bonfires and fireworks are lit in memory of the Gunpowder Plot, traditionally including the burning of an effigy of Guy Fawkes.

Knight

(in the UK) a man awarded a non-hereditary title by the sovereign in recognition of merit or service and entitled to use the honorific 'Sir' in front of his name.

Calvinist

< Calvinism is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice of John Calvin and other Reformation-era theologians.

Bannockburn

> The Battle of Bannockburn(24 June 1314) was a significant Scottish victory in the First War of Scottish Independence, and a landmark in Scottish history.

Flying buttress

A flying buttress is a specific form of buttressing most strongly associated with Gothic church architecture. Example in the city of Bath, Bath abbey

Cloister

A place were monks and nuns live: a monastery or a convent

County

A political division of the UK or Ireland, forming the largest unit of local administration

Canterbury tales

A varied collection of stories supposedly told one another by a socially mixed group of pilgrims (a knight, a priest, a nun, a Miller, a cook, and so forth) journeying from London to the tomb of St Thomas Becket in Canterbury.

Angevin

Angevin empire, the territories, extending in the latter part of the 12th century from Scotland to the Pyrenees, that were ruled by the English king Henry II and his immediate successors, Richard I and John; they were called the Angevin kings because Henry's father was count of Anjou. Henry acquired most of his continental possessions before becoming king of England

Anne Boleyn

Anne Boleyn was Queen of England from 1533 to 1536 as the second wife of King Henry VIII and Marquess of Pembroke in her own right.Henry's marriage to Anne, and her subsequent execution, made her a key figure in the political and religious upheaval that was the start of the English Reformation.

Canterbury cathedral

Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England and forms part of a World Heritage Site. It is the cathedral of the Archbishop of Canterbury, leader of the Church of England and symbolic leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion.

Katherine of Aragon

Catherine of Aragon was Queen of England from 1509 until 1533 as the first wife of King Henry VIII; she was previously Princess of Wales as the wife of Prince Arthur. Played an important part in battle of Flodden She successfully appealed for the lives of the rebels involved in the Evil May Day, for the sake of their families.[6] Catherine also won widespread admiration by starting an extensive programme for the relief of the poor. She was a patron of Renaissance humanism, and a friend of the great scholars Erasmus of Rotterdam and Thomas More.

Charing Cross

Charing Cross denotes the junction of Strand, Whitehall and Cockspur Street, just south of Trafalgar Square in central London. It gives its name to several local landmarks, including Charing Cross railway station, one of the main London rail terminals.

Glencoe massacre

Early in the morning of 13 February 1692, in the aftermath of the Glorious Revolution and the Jacobite uprising of 1689 led by John Graham of Claverhouse, a massacre took place in Glen Coe, in the Highlands of Scotland. This incident is referred to as the massacre of Glencoe, or in Scottish Gaelic Mort Ghlinne Comhann or murder of Glen Coe. The massacre began simultaneously in three settlements along the glen—Invercoe, Inverrigan, and Achnacon—although the killing took place all over the glen as fleeing MacDonalds were pursued. Thirty-eight MacDonalds from the Clan MacDonald of Glencoe were killed by the guests who had accepted their hospitality, on the grounds that the MacDonalds had not been prompt in pledging allegiance to the new monarchs, William and Mary. Another forty women and children died of exposure after their homes were burned.

Thomas Cromwell

English lawyer and statesman who served as chief minister to King Henry VIII of England from 1532 to 1540. one of the strongest and most powerful advocates of the English Reformation.

William Caxton

English merchant, diplomat, writer and printer. He is thought to be the first English person to work as a printer and the first to introduce a printing press into England, which he did in 1476. He was also the first English retailer of printed books (his London contemporaries in the same trade were all Flemish, German or French)

William Shakespeare

English poet, dramatist, and actor, often called the English national poet and considered by many to be the greatest dramatist of all time.

Oliver Cromwell

English soldier and statesman who led parliamentary forces in the English Civil Wars; he was lord protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 1653 to 1658 during the republican Commonwealth

Burn at the stake

Execute someone by tying to a stake and burning; also, punish severely. This expression refers to a method used in the Middle Ages for putting heretics to death, but now it is used as a hyperbolic metaphor for harsh punishment

Chaucer

Father of modern English literature, his best known work is the Canterbury tales

Flora McDonald

Flora MacDonald, Jacobite heroine, was the daughter of Ranald MacDonald of Milton on the island of South Uist in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, and his wife Marion, the daughter of Angus MacDonald.

Golden hind

Golden Hind or Golden Hinde was an English galleon best known for her circumnavigation of the globe between 1577 and 1580, captained by Sir Francis Drake.

Harlech

Harlech Castle, located in Harlech, Gwynedd, Wales, is a medieval fortification, constructed atop a spur of rock close to the Irish Sea. It was built by Edward I during his invasion of Wales between 1282 and 1289

Henry V

Henry V was King of England from 1413 until his death at the age of either 34 or 35 in 1422. He was the second English monarch who came from the house of Lancaster.

Henry VIII

Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later assumed the Kingship, of Ireland, and continued the nominal claim by English monarchs to the Kingdom of France. Henry was the second monarch of the Tudor dynasty, succeeding his father, Henry VII.

Plantagenet

House of Plantagenet: family of French descent originating from Anjou who held the English throne from 1154 until 1485—starting with the accession of Henry II and ending with the death of Richard III. Within that period, some historians identify four distinct royal houses: Angevins, Plantagenet, Lancaster, and York

York, house of

House of York, younger branch of the house of Plantagenet of England. In the 15th century, having overthrown the house of Lancaster, it provided three kings of England—Edward IV, Edward V, and Richard III—and, in turn defeated, passed on its claims to the Tudor dynasty.

Iconoclasm

Iconoclasmis the destruction of religious icons and other images or monuments for religious or political motives. In time, the word, usually in the adjectival form, has also come to refer to aggressive statements or actions against any well-established status quo. It is a frequent component of major political or religious changes. The term does not generally encompass the specific destruction of images of a ruler after his death or overthrow (damnatio memoriae). The destruction of religious icons by a group with another religion or culture is not considered iconoclasm. Some of the Protestant reformers, in particular Andreas Karlstadt, Huldrych Zwingli and John Calvin, encouraged the removal of religious images by invoking the Decalogue's prohibition of idolatry and the manufacture of graven (sculpted) images of God. As a result, individuals attacked statues and images, and others were lost during unauthorised iconoclastic riots.

Benefit of clergy

In English law, it was originally a provision by which clergymen could claim that they were outside the jurisdiction of the secular courts and be tried instead in an ecclesiastical court under canon law. Various reforms limited the scope of this legal arrangement to prevent its abuse. Eventually the benefit of clergy evolved into a legal fiction in which first-time offenders could receive lesser sentences for some crimes. It was abolished in 1823 with the passage of the Judgement of Death Act which gave judges the discretion to pass lesser sentences on the first-time offenders.

James VI & I

James VI and I was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until his death. The kingdoms of Scotland and England were individual sovereign states, with their own parliaments, judiciary, and laws, though both were ruled by James in personal union.

John Dee

John Dee was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, occult philosopher, imperialist and adviser to Queen Elizabeth I. He devoted much of his life to the study of alchemy, divination and Hermetic philosophy.

John Fisher

John Fisher (c. 19 October 1469 - 22 June 1535), venerated by Roman Catholics as Saint John Fisher, was an English Catholic bishop and theologian. He was a man of learning, associated with the intellectuals and political leaders of his day, and eventually became Chancellor of the University of Cambridge. Fisher was executed by order of Henry VIII during the English Reformation for refusing to accept the king as Supreme Head of the Church of England and for upholding the Catholic Church's doctrine of papal primacy. He was named a cardinal shortly before his death. He is honoured as a martyr and saint by the Catholic Church. He shares his feast day with St Thomas More on 22 June in the Roman Catholic calendar of saints and on 6 July in that of the Church of England.

John of Gaunt

John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster, KG (6 March 1340 - 3 February 1399) was a member of the House of Plantagenet, the third surviving son of King Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault. He was called "John of Gaunt" because he was born in Ghent, then rendered in English as Gaunt. When he became unpopular later in life, scurrilous rumours and lampoons circulated that he was actually the son of a Ghent butcher, perhaps because Edward III was not present at the birth. This story always drove him to fury

Civil war

Known as the War of the Roses. The Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic wars for the throne of England. They were fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet, the houses of Lancaster and York. They were fought in several sporadic episodes between 1455 and 1487, although there was related fighting before and after this period. The conflict resulted from social and financial troubles that followed the Hundred Years' War, combined with the mental infirmity and weak rule of Henry VI, which revived interest in the alternative claim to the throne of Richard, Duke of York.

Law French

Law French is an archaic language originally based on Old Norman and Anglo-Norman, but increasingly influenced by Parisian French and, later, English. It was used in the law courts of England, beginning with the Norman Conquest by William the Conqueror. Its use continued for several centuries in the courts of England.

Magna Carta

Magna Carta, meaning 'The Great Charter', is one of the most famous documents in the world. Originally issued by King John of England (r.1199-1216) as a practical solution to the political crisis he faced in 1215, Magna Carta established for the first time the principle that everybody, including the king, was subject to the law. Although nearly a third of the text was deleted or substantially rewritten within ten years, and almost all the clauses have been repealed in modern times, Magna Carta remains a cornerstone of the British constitution.

Maid of Norway

Margaret (9 April 1283 - 26 September 1290) was a Norwegian princess who reigned as Queen of Scots from 1286 until her death. Her death while traveling to Scotland sparked off the disputed succession which led to the Wars of Scottish Independence. She was the daughter of King Eric II of Norway and Margaret, daughter of King Alexander III of Scotland. Margaret was born in Tønsberg. Her mother died in childbirth.

Minster

Minster is an honorific title given to particular churches in England, most famously York Minster in York, Westminster in London and Southwell Minster in Southwell. The term minster is first found in royal foundation charters of the 7th century.

Feudal

Of or relating to feudalism

Reformed

Of or relating to the chiefly Calvinist Protestant churches formed in various continental European countries

Pilgrim

One of the English colonist settling at Plymouth in 1620

Act of uniformity

Over the course of English parliamentary history there were a number of Acts of Uniformity. All had the basic object of establishing some sort of religious orthodoxy within the English church.

Owen Glendower

Owen Glendower (born c. 1354—died c. 1416), self-proclaimed prince of Wales whose unsuccessful rebellion against England was the last major Welsh attempt to throw off English rule. He became a national hero upon the resurgence of Welsh nationalism in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Perpendicular style

Phase of late Gothic architecture in England roughly parallel in time to the French Flamboyant style. It was characterized by a predominance of vertical lines in stone window tracery, enlargement of windows to great proportions, and conversion of the interior stories into a single unified vertical expanse. Fan vaults, springing from slender columns or pendants, became popular. The oldest surviving example the choir of Gloucester Cathedral. Other major monuments : King's College Chapel, Cambridge, and the chapel of Henry VII in Westminster Abbey. In the 16th century, the grafting of Renaissance elements onto the Perpendicular style resulted in the Tudor style.

Pilgrim Fathers

Pilgrims is a name commonly applied to early settlers of the Plymouth Colony in present-day Plymouth, Massachusetts, United States, with the men commonly called Pilgrim Fathers.

Black Death

Plague or pestilence that struck Europe in the 1340s. It reached England and Wales in 1349, and Scotland and Ireland in 1350, killing about the third of the total population

Plantation of Ireland

Plantations in 16th and 17th century Ireland were the confiscation of land by the English crown and the colonisation of this land with settlers from England (particularly the Border Counties) and the Scottish Lowlands. They followed smaller-scale immigration to Ireland as far back as the 12th century, which had resulted in a distinct ethnicity in Ireland known as the Old English.

Priest hole

Priest hole is the term given to hiding places for priests built into many of the principal Catholic houses of England during the period when Catholics were persecuted by law in England, from the beginning of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I in 1558.

Richard III

Richard III (2 October 1452 - 22 August 1485) was King of England from 1483 until his death in 1485 in the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat at Bosworth Field, the last decisive battle of the Wars of the Roses, marked the end of the Middle Ages in England. He is the subject of the fictional historical play Richard III by William Shakespeare.

Warwick the kingmaker

Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick KG (22 November 1428 - 14 April 1471), known as Warwick the Kingmaker, was an English nobleman, administrator, and military commander. The son of Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury, Warwick was the wealthiest and most powerful English peer of his age, with political connections that went beyond the country's borders. One of the Yorkist leaders in the Wars of the Roses, he was instrumental in the deposition of two kings, a fact which later earned him his epithet of "Kingmaker" to later generations.

Robert Bruce

Robert I (11 July 1274 - 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce was King of Scots from 1306 until his death in 1329. Robert was one of the most famous warriors of his generation, and eventually led Scotland during the Wars of Scottish Independence against England. He fought successfully during his reign to regain Scotland's place as an independent nation and is today remembered in Scotland as a national hero.

Robin Hood

Robin Hood is a heroic outlaw found in English folklore who, according to legend, was also a highly skilled archer and swordsman. Traditionally depicted as being dressed in Lincoln green, he is often portrayed as "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor" alongside his band of "Merry Men". Robin Hood became a popular folk figure in the late-medieval period, and continues to be widely represented in modern literature, films and television.

Stuart

Scottish royal family

Francis drake

Sir Francis Drake, vice admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Drake carried out the second circumnavigation of the world in a single expedition, from 1577 to 1580.His exploits were legendary, making him a hero to the English but a pirate to the Spaniards to whom he was known as El Draque. King Philip II was said to have offered a reward of 20,000 ducats, about £4 million (US$6.5M) by modern standards, for his life.

Foxe's book of martyrs

The Actes and Monuments is a work of Protestant history and martyrology by John Foxe, first published in English in 1563 by John Day. It includes a polemical account of the sufferings of Protestants under the Catholic Church, with particular emphasis on England and Scotland. The book was highly influential in those countries, and helped shape lasting popular notions of Catholicism there.

Apprentice boys of Derry

The Apprentice Boys of Derry is a Protestant fraternal society with a worldwide membership of over 10,000, founded in 1814 and based in the city of Derry, Northern Ireland.

Agincourt

The Battle of Agincourt was a major English victory in the Hundred Years' War. This battle is notable for the use of the English longbow in very large numbers, with English and Welsh archers forming most of Henry's army.

Battle of Bosworth

The Battle of Bosworth Field (or Battle of Bosworth) was the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the Houses of Lancaster and York that raged across England in the latter half of the 15th century. Fought on 22 August 1485, the battle was won by the Lancastrians. Their leader Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond, by his victory became the first English monarch of the Tudor dynasty. His opponent, Richard III, the last king of the House of York, was killed in the battle.

Culloden

The Battle of Culloden was the final confrontation of the 1745 Jacobite Rising.

Battle of boyne

The Battle of the Boyne was fought in Ireland between William of Orange and James II in July 1690. It was the last time two crowned kings of England, Scotland and Ireland faced each other on the battlefield. William of Orange won a crushing victory, which secured the Protestant ascendancy in Ireland for generations. It retains huge symbolic importance in Northern Ireland, where it is celebrated by the Orange Order every 12.

Bill of Rights

The Bill of Rights is an Act of the Parliament of England passed on 16 December 1689 in the wake of the Glorious Revolution.

Church of England

The Church of England is the officially-established Christian church in England and the mother church of the worldwide Anglican Communion.

Covenanter

The Covenanters were a Scottish Presbyterian movement that played an important part in the history of Scotland, and to a lesser extent that of England and Ireland, during the 17th century.

Elizabethan era

The Elizabethan era was the epoch in English history of Queen Elizabeth I's reign (1558-1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history, represented the apogee of the English Renaissance and saw the flowering of poetry, music and literature, most famous for theatre, as William Shakespeare and many others composed plays that broke free of England's past style of theatre. It was an age of exploration and expansion abroad, while back at home, the Protestant Reformation became more acceptable to the people, most certainly after the Spanish Armada was repulsed. It was also the end of the period when England was a separate realm before its royal union with Scotland.

Longbow

The English / Welsh longbowis a powerful type of medieval longbow (a tall bow for archery) about 1.8 m long used by the English and Welsh for hunting and as a weapon in medieval warfare. English use of longbows was effective against the French during the Hundred Years' War, particularly at the start of the war in the battles of Sluys (1340), Crécy (1346), and Poitiers (1356), and perhaps most famously at the Battle of Agincourt (1415). The earliest longbow known from England, found at Ashcott Heath, Somerset, is dated to 2665 BC. More than 3,500 arrows and 137 whole longbows were recovered from the Mary Rose, a ship of Henry VIII's navy that sank at Portsmouth in 1545.

Globe theatre

The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, on land owned by Thomas Brend and inherited by his son, Nicholas Brend and grandson Sir Matthew Brend, and was destroyed by fire on 29 June 1613.A second Globe Theatre was built on the same site by June 1614 and closed in 1642 A modern reconstruction of the Globe, named "Shakespeare's Globe", opened in 1997 approximately 230 mfrom the site of the original theatre. From 1909, the current Gielgud Theatre was called "Globe Theatre", until it was renamed in 1994.

Glorious revolution

The Glorious Revolution was an event in the history of England and Scotland in 1688. The people of England and Scotland did not like the king, King James II because he would not let them vote or practice the religion of their choice. They invited William III of Orange-Nassau to take over as king. William was King James II's nephew and Mary's first cousin. He came to England with his wife Queen Mary, the daughter of King James II. They let the old king escape, so he moved to France out of fear.

Gunpowder plot

The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I of England and VI of Scotland by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby. The thwarting of the Gunpowder Plot was commemorated for many years afterwards by special sermons and other public events such as the ringing of church bells, which have evolved into the Bonfire Night of today.

House of Commons

The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland which, like the House of Lords (the upper house), meets in the Palace of Westminster.The House is an elected body consisting of 650 members known as members of parliament (MPs). Members are elected to represent constituencies by first-past-the-post and hold their seats until Parliament is dissolved. Under the Parliament Act 1911, the Lords' power to reject legislation was reduced to a delaying power. The Government is primarily responsible to the House of Commons and the prime minister stays in office only as long as he or she retains the support of a majority

Lancaster, house of

The House of Lancaster was a cadet branch of the royal House of Plantagenet. Henry III of England created the Earldom of Lancaster—from which the house was named—for his second son Edmund Crouchback in 1267.The Lancastrians left a legacy through the patronage of the arts—most notably in founding Eton College and King's College, Cambridge

House of the lords

The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster. Bills can be introduced into either the House of Lords or the House of Commons. Members of the Lords may also take on roles as Government Ministers. The House of Lords has its own support services, separate from the Commons, including the House of Lords Library.

Hundred year's war

The Hundred Years' War was a series of conflicts waged from 1337 to 1453 between the House of Plantagenet, rulers of the Kingdom of England, against the House of Valois, rulers of the Kingdom of France, for control of the latter kingdom. Each side drew many allies into the war.

Jacobean

The Jacobean era refers to the period in English and Scottish history that coincides with the reign of James VI of Scotland (1567-1625), who also inherited the crown of England in 1603 as James I. The Jacobean era succeeds the Elizabethan era and precedes the Caroline era, and specifically denotes a style of architecture, visual arts, decorative arts, and literature that is predominant of that period.

King James Bible

The King James Version (KJV), commonly known as the Authorized Version (AV) or King James Bible (KJB), is an English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England begun in 1604 and completed in 1611. First printed by the King's Printer Robert Barker, this was the third translation into English to be approved by the English Church authorities.

Lords spiritual

The Lords Spiritual of the United Kingdom, also called Spiritual Peers, are the 26 bishops of the established Church of England who serve in the House of Lords along with the Lords Temporal. The Church of Scotland, which is Presbyterian, is not represented by spiritual peers. The Anglican churches in Wales and Northern Ireland are no longer established churches and are therefore not represented either.

Mary rose

The Mary Rose was a carrack-type warship of the English Tudor navy of King Henry VIII.

Peasants' revolt

The Peasants' Revolt, also called Wat Tyler's Rebellion or the Great Rising, was a major uprising across large parts of England in 1381. The revolt had various causes, including the socio-economic and political tensions generated by the Black Death in the 1340s, the high taxes resulting from the conflict with France during the Hundred Years' War, and instability within the local leadership of London. The final trigger for the revolt was the intervention of a royal official, John Bampton, in Essex on 30 May 1381.

Pilgrimage of grace

The Pilgrimage of Grace is the title given to a widespread revolt against the rule of Henry VIII. The Pilgrimage of Grace started in late 1536 and finished in early 1537. Much is known about this revolt as it was well documented at the time. Between late 1536 and 1537 a number of revolts against the king took place in Northern England. These were collectively known as the 'Pilgrimage of Grace'. However, strictly, the Pilgrimage of Grace only refers to the revolt that occurred in Yorkshire between October and December 1536.

Rising of the North

The Rising of the North of 1569(Revolt of the Northern Earls or Northern Rebellion)was an unsuccessful attempt by Catholic nobles from Northern England to depose Queen Elizabeth I of England and replace her with Mary, Queen of Scots.

Royal Oak

The Royal Oak was the tree in which Charles II of England hid to escape the Roundheads following the Battle of Worcester in 1651.

Swan theatre

The Swan (theatre), an Elizabethan playhouse Swan Theatre (Stratford), a theatre belonging to the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon, England The Swan Theatre, a theatre in Worcester, England

Tudor rose

The Tudor rose (sometimes called the Union rose) is the traditional floral heraldic emblem of England and takes its name and origins from the Tudor dynasty.

Wars of roses

The Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic wars for the throne of England. They were fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet, the houses of Lancaster and York. They were fought in several sporadic episodes between 1455 and 1487, although there was related fighting before and after this period. The conflict resulted from social and financial troubles that followed the Hundred Years' War, combined with the mental infirmity and weak rule of Henry VI, which revived interest in the alternative claim to the throne of Richard, Duke of York.

Wild geese

The Wild Geese is a British 1978 adventure film directed by Andrew V. McLaglen about a group of mercenaries in Africa.

Act of supremacy

The first Act of Supremacy was legislation in 1534 that granted King Henry VIII of England Royal Supremacy, which means that he was declared the supreme head of the Church of England. It is still the legal authority of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. Royal Supremacy is specifically used to describe the legal sovereignty of the civil laws over the laws of the Church in England.

Wat Tyler

The peasants leader

Hand, draw and quarter

The penalty for high treason in England, to be hanged, drawn and quartered was a common occurrence during medieval times. Although it was abolished in 1814, this form of execution was responsible for hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of deaths. First, the victim is dragged on a wooden frame, called a hurdle, to the place of the execution. Second, the victim is hanged by the neck for a short period of time until nearly dead (hanged). Third, the disembowelment and castration occur, where afterward, the entrails and genitalia are burned in front of the victim (drawn). Finally, the body is divided into four separate parts and beheaded (quartered).

William and Mary

The phrase William and Mary usually refers to the coregency over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland, of spouses (and first-cousins) King William III & II and Queen Mary II.

Siege of droghera

The town of Drogheda in eastern Ireland was held by the Irish Catholic Confederation and English Royalists when it was besieged and stormed by English Parliamentarian forces under Oliver Cromwell.

William Tyndale

William Tyndale, (born c. 1490-94, near Gloucestershire, Eng.—died Oct. 6, 1536, Vilvoorde, near Brussels, Brabant), English biblical translator, humanist, and Protestant martyr.

Earl / countess

a British nobleman of a rank below that of marquis and above that of viscount: called count for a time after the Norman conquest. The wife of an earl is a countess. 2. (in Anglo-Saxon England) a governor of one of the great divisions of England, including East Anglia, Mercia, Northumbria, and Wessex.

Clan

a Celtic group especially in the Scottish Highlands comprising a number of households whose heads claim descent from a common ancestor

Vestment

a chasuble or other robe worn by the clergy or choristers during services. "a priest in green vestments came and preached a long sermon" a garment, especially a ceremonial or official robe.

Shire

a county, especially in England.

Pestilence

a fatal epidemic disease, especially bubonic plague. synonyms: plague, bubonic plague, the Black Death

Liturgy

a form or formulary according to which public religious worship, especially Christian worship, is conducted. "the Church of England liturgy"

Manor

a landed estate or territorial unit, originally of the nature of a feudal lordship, consisting of a lord's demesne and of lands within which he has the right to exercise certain privileges, exact certain fees, etc.

Fief

a large area of land that was ruled over by a lord in medieval times : a feudal estate

Westminster abbey

a large, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the most notable religious buildings in the United Kingdom and has been the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English and, later, British monarchs. Between 1540 and 1556 the abbey had the status of a cathedral. Since 1560, however, the building is no longer an abbey nor a cathedral, having instead the status of a "Royal Peculiar" - a church responsible directly to the Sovereign.

Nonconformist

a member of a Protestant Church which dissents from the established Church of England. "originally a Nonconformist, he was later converted to Anglo-Catholicism"

Puritan

a member of a group of English Protestants of the late 16th and 17th centuries who regarded the Reformation of the Church under Elizabeth I as incomplete and sought to simplify and regulate forms of worship.

Quacker

a member of the Religious Society of Friends, a Christian movement founded by George Fox circa 1650 and devoted to peaceful principles. Central to the Quakers' belief is the doctrine of the 'Inner Light', or sense of Christ's direct working in the soul. This has led them to reject both formal ministry and all set forms of worship. "a Quaker burial ground"

Baron

a member of the lowest order of the British nobility. Baron is not used as a form of address, barons usually being referred to as 'Lord' synonyms:

Vault

a roof in the form of an arch or a series of arches, typical of churches and other large, formal buildings.

Bishop

a senior member of the Christian clergy, usually in charge of a diocese and empowered to confer holy orders.

Jacobite

a supporter of the deposed James II and his descendants in their claim to the British throne after the Revolution of 1688. Drawing most of their support from Catholic clans of the Scottish Highlands, Jacobites made attempts to regain the throne in 1689-90, 1715, 1719, and 1745-6, finally being defeated at the Battle of Culloden.

Presbyterian

adjective 1. relating to or denoting a Christian Church or denomination governed by elders according to the principles of Presbyterianism. "a Presbyterian minister" noun 1. a member of a Presbyterian Church.

Gothic

adjective 1.relating to the Goths or their extinct language, which belongs to the East Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family. It provides the earliest manuscript evidence of any Germanic language (4th-6th centuries AD). 2. of or in the style of architecture prevalent in western Europe in the 12th-16th centuries (and revived in the mid 18th to early 20th centuries), characterized by pointed arches, rib vaults, and flying buttresses, together with large windows and elaborate tracery. English Gothic architecture is divided into Early English, Decorated, and Perpendicular. noun 1. the extinct language of the Goths. 2. the Gothic style of architecture.

Anglican

adjective : relating to or denoting the Church of England or any Church in communion with it. noun: a member of any of the Anglican Churches.

Plague

any contagious disease that spreads rapidly and kills many people.--> the Black Death that struck Englamd and Wales in 1340s and Scotland and Ireland in 1349

Paston letters

collection of letters and papers consisting of the correspondence of members of the Paston family of Norfolk gentry, and others connected with them in England, between the years 1422 and 1509. The collection also includes some state papers and other important documents.

Pillory

device made of a wooden or metal framework erected on a post, with holes for securing the head and hands, formerly used for punishment by public humiliation and often further physical abuse.The pillory is related to the stocks. After 1816, use of the pillory was restricted in England to punishment for perjury or subornation.The pillory was formally abolished as a form of punishment in England and Wales in 1837, but the stocks remained in use, though extremely infrequently, until 1872. The last person to be pilloried in England was Peter James Bossy, who was convicted of "wilful and corrupt perjury" in 1830. He was offered the choice of seven years' penal transportation or one hour in the pillory, and chose the latter.

Cavalier

historical: a supporter of King Charles I in the English Civil War. archaic: a courtly gentleman, especially one acting as a lady's escort.

Sheriff

in England and Wales: the chief executive officer of the Crown in a county, having various administrative and judicial functions. in Scotland: a judge.

Siege of Derry

involved a pre-emptive lockdown of the city gates in December 1688 and a violent defensive action lasting from 18 April to 28 July 1689, during the Williamite War in Ireland. The city, a Williamite stronghold, was besieged by a Jacobite army until it was relieved by Royal Navy ships. The siege is commemorated yearly in August by the Apprentice Boys of Derry.

Sir Gawain and the green knight

late 14th-century Middle English chivalric romance. It is one of the best known Arthurian stories, and is of a type known as the "beheading game"

Thomas Cranmer

leader of the English Reformation and Archbishop of Canterbury during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI and, for a short time, Mary I. He helped build the case for the annulment of Henry's marriage to Catherine of Aragon, which was one of the causes of the separation of the English Church from union with the Holy See. Along with Thomas Cromwell, he supported the principle of Royal Supremacy, in which the king was considered sovereign over the Church within his realm.

Crusade

military campaigns sanctioned by the Latin Roman Catholic Church during the High Middle Ages and Late Middle Ages. In 1095, Pope Urban II proclaimed the First Crusade with the stated goal of restoring Christian access to holy places in and near Jerusalem. Following the First Crusade there was an intermittent 200-year struggle for control of the Holy Land, with seven more major crusades and numerous minor ones. In 1291, the conflict ended in failure with the fall of the last Christian stronghold in the Holy Land at Acre, after which Roman Catholic Europe mounted no further coherent response in the east.

Roundhead

name given to the supporters of the Parliament during the English Civil War. Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I and his supporters, the Cavaliers (Royalists), who claimed absolute power and the divine right of kings. The goal of the Roundhead party was to give the Parliament supreme control over executive administration.

Duke / duchess

nobleman / woman of the highest hereditary rank; especially : a member of the highest grade of the British peerage

William Wallace

one of Scotland's greatest national heroes, leader of the Scottish resistance forces during the first years of the long, and ultimately successful, struggle to free Scotland from English rule.

Book of common prayer

short title of a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion, as well as by the Continuing Anglican, "Anglican realignment" and other Anglican churches. The original book, published in 1549 (Church of England 1957), in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English Reformation following the break with Rome.

Pretender

someone who claims to have the right to a particular title or position (such as king or queen) when others do not agree

Parish

the smallest unit of local government, constituted only in rural areas. noun: civil parish; plural noun: civil parishes "the parish of Poplar in East London"

Parliament

the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories. It alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all other political bodies in the UK and its territories. Its head is the Sovereign of the United Kingdom (currently Queen Elizabeth II) and its seat is the Palace of Westminster in Westminster, London. The parliament is bicameral, consisting of an upper house (the House of Lords) and a lower house (the House of Commons).[4] The Sovereign forms the third component of the legislature (the Queen-in-Parliament). Look at notes in overview specs

Restoration

used to describe both the actual event by which the monarchy was restored, and the period of several years afterwards in which a new political settlement was established. It is very often used to cover the whole reign of Charles II (1660-1685) and often the brief reign of his younger brother James II (1685-1688). In certain contexts it may be used to cover the whole period of the later Stuart monarchs as far as the death of Queen Anne and the accession of the Hanoverian George I in 1714

Thomas becket

was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his murder in 1170. He is venerated as a saint and martyr by both the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion. He engaged in conflict with Henry II of England over the rights and privileges of the Church and was murdered by followers of the king in Canterbury Cathedral. Soon after his death, he was canonised by Pope Alexander III.

Thomas More

was an English lawyer, social philosopher, author, statesman and noted Renaissance humanist. He was also a councillor to Henry VIII and Lord Chancellor from October 1529 to 16 May 1532. He wrote Utopia, published in 1516, about the political system of an ideal and imaginary island nation. More opposed the King's separation from the Catholic Church, refusing to accept him as Supreme Head of the Church of England, and what he saw as Henry's bigamous marriage to Anne Boleyn. Tried for treason, More was convicted and beheaded.

Bonnie prince Charlie

was the second Jacobite pretender to the thrones of England, Scotland, and Ireland (as Charles III of England, Scotland and Ireland) from the death of his father in 1766. Charles is perhaps best known as the instigator of the unsuccessful Jacobite uprising of 1745, in which he led an insurrection to restore his family to the throne of the Kingdom of Great Britain, which ended in defeat at the Battle of Culloden that effectively ended the Jacobite cause.