Events

  • 1533: Cranmer declares Henry VIII’s marriage to Anne Boleyn valid

    On 28 May 1533, Thomas Cranmer declared Henry VIII’s marriage to Anne Boleyn good and valid. The ruling did not begin the marriage. Henry and Anne had already married. Cranmer’s judgement gave the marriage formal standing in England, at a moment when Henry needed more than private agreement, royal will or court loyalty. Five days…

  • 1533: Anne Boleyn is crowned queen at Westminster Abbey

    Anne Boleyn was crowned queen of England at Westminster Abbey on 1 June 1533. The ceremony followed Henry VIII’s decision to set aside his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. Thomas Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury, had declared Henry’s marriage to Catherine invalid and had recognised Henry’s marriage to Anne. In England, those rulings gave Anne the…

  • 1536: Henry VIII marries Jane Seymour

    On 30 May 1536, Henry VIII married Jane Seymour. The wedding came eleven days after the execution of Anne Boleyn. Henry had removed one queen and taken another almost at once. The main issue was succession. Henry still had no legitimate son. Mary, his daughter by Catherine of Aragon, had been pushed out of the…

  • 1578: Martin Frobisher leaves Harwich on his third Arctic voyage

    On 31 May 1578, Martin Frobisher left Harwich with a fleet of 15 ships. It was his third voyage to the Arctic, and it was much larger than his earlier attempts. The voyage still carried the old aim of finding a North-West Passage. English backers hoped the route might open trade with Asia by sailing…

  • 1649: England is declared a Commonwealth

    On 19 May 1649, Parliament declared England to be a Commonwealth and Free State. The old order had already been broken. Charles I had been tried and executed in January. In March, Parliament abolished the monarchy and the House of Lords. By May, the new regime needed legal form. The Act of 19 May gave…

  • 1659: Richard Cromwell resigns as Lord Protector

    Richard Cromwell resigned as Lord Protector on 25 May 1659. The Protectorate, which had seemed the strongest alternative to monarchy after the execution of Charles I, was over. Richard had inherited the office after Oliver Cromwell died in 1658. He had the title, but little of the authority that had made his father powerful. Oliver…

  • 1660: Charles II lands at Dover

    Charles II landed at Dover on 25 May 1660 after years in exile, as the political order that had replaced his father was breaking apart. His return was not a military conquest. That is what makes the date useful. Charles returned because enough people in England had decided that monarchy was once again the least…

  • 1660: Charles II enters London at the Restoration

    Charles II entered London on 29 May 1660, his thirtieth birthday. The Restoration now had a public centre: the king in the capital, recognised in the streets, with monarchy visibly returned after eleven years without a ruling king in England. The road back had been long and violent. Charles I had been tried and executed…

  • 1662: Charles II marries Catherine of Braganza

    On 21 May 1662, Charles II and Catherine of Braganza were formally married at Portsmouth. Charles had been restored to the throne two years earlier, after civil war, republic and exile. His marriage was part of the effort to restore the Stuart monarchy to European politics. Catherine was a Portuguese princess, and the match tied…

  • 1669: Samuel Pepys writes the final entry in his diary

    On 31 May 1669, Samuel Pepys wrote the final entry in his diary. He stopped because he feared that continuing to write was damaging his eyesight. The reason was practical and personal. Pepys was not bringing a public work to a planned end. He had kept a private record, written in shorthand, for nearly ten…