Some contemporary dates & history
1340-1400 Geoffrey Chaucer, sometimes called the father of English poetry, author of Canterbury Tales.
1429 Joan of Arc raise the siege of Orleans
1431 Joan of Arc burned at Rouen
1440 Gutenberg invents printing
1441 Foundation of Kings College Cambridge
1461-83 Louis XI rules
1470 Sir Thomas Malory, writer of Morte d' Arthur. Old legends of King Arthur translated from French.
1476 Caxton's press at Westminster, where he printed eighty works including "Canterbury Tales" and Malory's "Morte d' Arthur"
1492 Columbus discovers the West Indies
1634 Ship-money introduced Charles 1 needing to improve
the Royal Navy and so Ship-money was introduced, by taxing the coastal towns.
The money was put to good use and during the following two years squadrons
of well equipped ships put to sea. In 1635 and succeeding years it was levied
on inland towns & counties as well.
1637 The Sovereign of the Seas was launched, the first three-decker and for many years the finest man-of-war afloat.
Henry VII King of England
In comparison to his predecessors he was both a civilised
person and a man of business
He ruled through council and developed further the branch councils set up at York and Ludlow.
His 'Star Chamber Act of 1487', against riot, maintenance of council and corruption of juries was not as important as the fact that it's penalties were actually enforced.
Copyright Guy Etchells © 1998 All rights reserved.
Permission is granted for all free personal and non-commercial uses. It is my intention to make all data contained herein freely available for all private, non-profit and non-commercial uses. Commercial use of any portion contained herein is expressly prohibited.