Lara Carleton's List: Hamlet Research

• constant threat of war from the other superpowers of the time, Spain and France. To catch up with the needs of war, the army of the Elizabethan era tried to employ weapons that were modern and up to date.
• weapons from the medieval period were still used and wielded by trained military men, thus showing a necessity for the immediate advancement of Elizabethan era weapons.
• swords were the choice in weaponry. Nobles were required to learn fencing, so there were quite different kinds of swords - including broadswords, cutting swords, and the rapier - used not only inside fencing classrooms, but in war.
• rapier was the favorite
• lighter, slender, and more sharply pointed.
• the battle axe, dagger, halberd, longbow, mace, pike, spear, and the crossbow, specifically the arbalest, were some of the other choices in weaponry.
• crossbow or the arbalest, however, was ordered by Queen Elizabeth I to be replaced by what perhaps was the most advanced weapon that was ever used during her reign: the musket.
• thus making firearms the new Elizabethan era weapons and changing the face of England's weaponry forever.
• trebuchet, ballista, and the mongonel were replaced by the canon, which was crafted with bronze or iron, with the round shots made of iron or stone balls. The canon proved a most helpful change in Elizabethan era weapons since it could be used both at land and on sea.

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• between the forces of Gaelic Irish chieftains Hugh O'Neill of Tír Eoghain, Hugh Roe O'Donnell of Tír Chonaill and their allies, against English rule in Ireland
• ought in all parts of the country, but mainly in the northern province of Ulster
• August 1594 – 31 March 1603
• height of the conflict (1600–1601)
• 8,000 in Ulster (1594) but thousands joined after,
   9,000 in Munster,
   3,500 Spanish (1601) ~5–6,000 (before 1598)
   ~17,000 (after 1598)
• ~100,000 soldiers and Irish civilians (the vast majority died due to famine) ~30,000 soldiers (though more died of disease than in battle) and hundreds of English colonists  Total dead: 130,000+
• c

  aused by the collision between the ambition of the Gaelic Irish chieftain Hugh O'Neill and the advance of the English state in Ireland, from control over the Pale to ruling the whole island. In resisting this advance, O'Neill managed to rally other Irish septs who were dissatisfied with English government and some Catholics who opposed the spread of Protestantism in Ireland.

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• The Elizabethan War with Spain from 1585 - 1603
• The reasons for the Elizabethan War with Spain from 1585 - 1603 exploded due to various conflicts surrounding the wealth and power to be gained from trade from the New World. And the differences in Religion. Under Elizabeth I England became a Protestant country. Elizabeth was excommunicated by the Pope The fanatical Catholics in Spain saw a war and the conquest of England as a religious crusade. The escapades of the Elizabethan seamen, or pirates, included attacking Spanish vessels and taking any gold and silver. Not surprisingly Elizabeth made no real effort to chastise these escapades! Drake, Hawkins, Raleigh and Frobisher hated the Spanish and the Catholic religion. The religious differences had been boiling over many years. The following dates and events played an important part in the Elizabethan War with Spain, which lasted for nineteen years.
• •  

    The 600 Papal troops were beaten by the  English. As were the Irish Lords and rebels

     
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    The English adopted the policy of  burning the crops in Ireland resulting in famine and submission

     
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    The Earl of Desmond was betrayed by the  O'Moriartys who received 1000 pounds of silver from the English government  
• Irish Catholics abhorred the Protestant religion
• believed that Queen Elizabeth and all Protestants were heretics
• The Elizabethan Irish War also referred to as the Desmond Rebellions
• sought to control Munster which was instigated by the Catholic Earl of Desmond dynasty - the Fitzgerald family of Desmond
• The power, influence and religion of the Catholic Irish Lords was challenged by the English
• f

  irst rebellion started in 1569 and lasted until 1573 when hundreds of Irish rebels were executed
• Irish customs were outlawed in an attempt to eradicate the Irish culture
• The outcome
• Terrible famine in Munster
• T

  he Desmond clan was defeated
• The vast Desmond estates were allocated to the English who had fought in the war
• The Elizabethan War against the Tyrone Rebellion ( Nine Years War ) from 1594 - 1603
• Nine Years war was led by Hugh O’Neill, the Earl of Tyrone
• reasons were the increased power of the English who had settled in Ireland and their threat to Ulster
• The English army suffered a massive defeat in Ireland at the battle of the Yellow Ford in 1598 and more Irish joined the rebellion

• • In 1599 the Earl of Essex travelled to Ireland with over 17,000 English troops

  • Many of the English troops died of various diseases and the Earl of Essex agreed an unauthorised truce with O'Neill
• ’Neill and O’Donnell soldiers were defeated at the Battle of Kinsale
• • The Irish surrendered, on good terms, to the new English monarch just one week after the death of Queen Elizabeth

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• armor of the Elizabethan period was used mainly for decoration in parades and ceremonies - not for protection purposes in war.

• The threat of the Spanish also ensured that many of the tried and tested weapons used during the Medieval period did not disappear. The following weapons were available during the Elizabethan era:

  • A variety of swords as well as the rapier including the Broadsword and the Cutting sword

  • The Battle Axe - A variety single and double-handed axe were in use throughout the Medieval period

  • The Mace - The mace was an armor-fighting weapon. The Mace developed from a steel ball on a wooden handle, to an elaborately spiked steel war club

  • The Dagger including the Basilard, a two-edged, long bladed dagger

  • The Lance - A long, strong, spear-like weapon. Designed for use on horseback
• end of the 1500's firearms were in common use
• most popular firearm was called a Matchlock
• Canons were developed which replaced the heavy artillery of the Medieval years such as the ballista, trebuchet and the Mangonel. These early canons were made of bronze or iron and fired stone or iron. They were made in different sizes and were used on both land and on sea.
• eventually replaced by the Flintlock

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