istoryworld
Events relating to literature
English poet Edmund Spenser celebrates the Protestant Elizabeth I as The Faerie Queene
After tentative beginnings in the three parts of Henry VI, Shakespeare achieves his first masterpiece on stage with Richard III
The writings of Matteo Ricci introduce Kung Fu Tzu to Europe under a Latin version of his name - Confucius
Shakespeare's central character in Hamlet expresses both the ideals of the Renaissance and the disillusion of a less confident age
James I commissions the Authorized version of the Bible, which is completed by forty-seven scholars in seven years
William Shakespeare's name appears among the actors in a list of the King's Men
Ben Jonson writes The Masque of Blackness, the first of his many masques for the court of James I
Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes publishes the first part of his satirically romantic novel Don Quixote
The satirical voice of the English playwright Ben Jonson is heard to powerful effect in Volpone
Shakespeare's sonnets, written ten years previously, are published
Shakespeare's last completed play, The Tempest, is performed
John Smith publishes A Description of New England, an account of his exploration of the region in 1614
William Shakespeare dies at New Place, his home in Stratford-upon-Avon, and is buried in Holy Trinity Church
William Bradford begins a journal of the Pilgrims' experience in New England, subsequently published (in 1856) as History of Plymouth Plantation
John Donne, England's leading Metaphysical poet, becomes dean of St Paul's
John Heminge and Henry Condell publish thirty-six Shakespeare plays in the First Folio
George Herbert's only volume of poems, The Temple, is published posthumously
Pierre Corneille's play Le Cid, popular with Paris audiences, hinges on the conflict between duty and love
John Milton's Lycidas is published in memory of a Cambridge friend, Edward King
In his Principles of Philosophy Descartes gives priority to reason, summed up in his famous phrase cogito ergo sum
The poems of Massachusetts author Anne Bradstreet are published in London under the title The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America
Devoted fisherman Izaak Walton publishes the classic work on the subject, The Compleat Angler
On the first day of the new year Samuel Pepys gets up late, eats the remains of the turkey and begins his diary
French dramatist Jean Racine's first great success, Andromaque, finds tragic drama in a quadrangle of love
Paradise Lost is published, earning its author John Milton just £10
