ACT I - The Elizabethan Context

O England, model to thy inward greatness,
Like little body with a mighty heart,
What mightst thou do, that honour would thee do,
Were all thy children kind and natural!

Henry V 2.0.16-19

In Shakespeare's lifetime, England went through a time of change.

And so did Shakespeare himself: The countryboy from Warwickshire made his way to London, the capital, where he contributed to the shaping of the Elizabethan theatre and wrote the plays we've inherited.

The following pages offer information about the Elizabethan context in which Shakespeare grew to one of the greatest playwrights in history.

You might need to change your page setup or use landscape as your print format, in order to see the links in the box on the screen's right hand side on your printout.

ACT I - The Elizabethan Context

O England, model to thy inward greatness, Like little body with a mighty heart, What mightst thou do, that honour would thee do, Were all thy children kind and natural!

Henry V 2.0.16-19

You might need to change your page setup or use landscape as your print format, in order to see the links in the box on the screen's right hand side on your printout.

O England, model to thy inward greatness,
Like little body with a mighty heart,
What mightst thou do, that honour would thee do,
Were all thy children kind and natural!