Please Note: This program has a rescheduled date (originally August 15, 2024).
The 16th century is one of the most fascinating periods of English history, and its center of life was the great city of London. The era of the Tudor dynasty (1485–1603) spanned just three generations of monarchs but each left an indelible mark on the character of this city on the Thames River.
Beyond its architecture and notable sites, London in the Tudor era was filled with the bustling daily life of common people living in a rapidly evolving world simultaneously shaped by—and conforming to—the changes that ushered in early-modern England.
Historian Cheryl White reveals ordinary life in London during this extraordinary time of history. During the reign of Henry VIII, a townsperson could take a stroll through crowded shops and streets along London Bridge on a busy day of commerce and then view the aftermath of grisly public executions.
Divergent experiences accented everyday life across the era—whether a patron of the majestic Globe Theatre during the cultural peak of the Elizabethan era or entering sacred places such as Westminster Abbey as an obedient subject of the notorious “Bloody Mary” during rapidly changing religious times.
White emphasizes the role that the city of London played in securing the Tudor dynasty as well as looks through the lens of the common people who worked its docks and shops, paid taxes to the Crown, and lived out ordinary lives in one of the greatest cities of the world.
The Tudor period provides an illuminating framework for exploring a wide range of social and cultural constructs of daily life in London. The city became a true showcase for the Tudor revolutions in government, culture, and religion that left a legacy for the entire English-speaking world.
White is a professor of history at Louisiana State University at Shreveport, where she teaches medieval and early-modern European history.
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