Education and Leisure

Question 1

Describe the Attitudes to Education in Elizabethan England

Answer 1

-Although there was no national schooling system, education had become increasingly valuable.

-Attitudes to education were changing but they still reflected the social hierarchy.

-Education was not about nurturing talent nor about social mobility. The social order was important and education only prepared people for the life they were expected to lead.

-Education focussed on practical skills but could include basic literacy.

-Only a small percentage of children (mainly boys) went to school at all. Very few girls received any formal education.

Question 2

Describe Humanist Influences on Education in Elizabethan England

Answer 2

-Humanists in the 16th century believed that learning was important in its own right. They didn’t believe people should just be educated for practical reasons.

-They studied the work of ancient philosophers and mathematicians to develop a better understanding of the world.

-To them, education was important if people were to stop being so superstitious and fulfil their potential as human beings.

Question 3

Describe Protestant Influences on Education in Elizabethan England

Answer 3

-Protestants believed that people should be able to read the Bible in their own language, to develop their own relationship with God.

-This encouraged more people to become literate.

-Also, as business and trade developed, a basic education became more important to more people, especially in towns.

Question 4

Describe the Extent to Which Education Developed in Elizabethan England

Answer 4

-Despite the influence of Protestants and Humanists, the extent to which education developed must not be exaggerated.

-For most people, education was limited according to their place in the social hierarchy.

-In little rural towns, where farming remained a way of life, little had changed.

Question 5

Describe the Education of Noble Women in Elizabethan England

Answer 5

-The children of the nobility learned a variety of subjects such as Latin, Greek, history, philosophy, government and theology.

-Elizabeth I was educated in these subjects so noble families ensured their daughters were too. They were educated at home with their brothers but separately by the age of 7.

-Girls also learnt skills expected of upper class women such as music, dancing, needlework, horse riding and archery.

-The children of noble families were often sent to another noble household to finish their education.

-Girls who went to another noble family to learn would make useful social contacts, as well as perfect those skills expected of them as a noble woman.

Question 6

Describe the Education of Noble Men in Elizabethan England

Answer 6

-The children of the nobility learned a variety of subjects such as Latin, Greek, history, philosophy, government and theology.

-Similarly to girls, boys were taught to be skilled in horse riding and archery.

-Boys would also learn fencing, swimming, wrestling and other sports thought fitting only for men.

-The children of noble families were often sent to another noble household to finish their education.

-The eldest son would inherit the fathers’ titles, and so would learn how to become future noble men.

Question 7

Describe the Availability of Grammar Schools in Elizabethan England

Answer 7

-The greatest change in education in Elizabethan England was the development of grammar schools.

-42 grammar schools were founded in the 1560s and 30 more in the 1570s.

-As a result, there were more schools in England than there had been before.

-By 1577, there was a grammar school in every town in England.

-Previously, the Church provided most of the minimal education available to children.

Question 8

Describe the Middling Sorts who Attended Grammar Schools in Elizabethan England

Answer 8

-Grammar schools were private schools set up for boys considered bright, who largely came from well off families in towns.

-This included the sons of middling sorts: the gentry, professionals or wealthy business owners.

-Girls could not attend grammar schools. They were usually educated at home by their mothers, preparing them for married life and running a household.

Question 9

Describe the Access to Grammar Schools in Elizabethan England

Answer 9

-Fees for grammar schools varied, and were often based upon how much property the boy’s family owned.

-Some lower class boys who showed promise could also attend, and they did not have to pay fees.

-Their places were funded by people who left money to the schools in their will to provide education for those who would not be able to afford to go without help.

Question 10

Describe the Curriculum of Grammar Schools in Elizabethan England

Answer 10

-The focus of the curriculum taught Latin (the best schools also taught Greek and French as well). There would also be time allocated for archery, chess, wrestling and running.

-The boys studied ancient historians and philosophers and writers such as Plato, Aristotle.

-There was a great emphasis on memorising huge quantities of texts, especially Bible passages, many of which focussed on teaching morals and manners.

-Debating was also important. Two or three boys would be expected to debate a topic set by the teacher.

-Public speaking and debating were thought essential for a well educated Elizabethan gentleman.

Question 11

Describe the Terms of Grammar Schools in Elizabethan England

Answer 11

-The school year was long, with holidays only at Christmas and Easter.

-School days were long, beginning at 6 or 7 a.m. and lasting for almost ten hours.

-As well as school Monday to Friday, there was also school on a Saturday morning.

-There would often be more recitation of the week’s lessons but also other activities.

Question 12

Describe the Discipline and Punishments at Grammar Schools in Elizabethan England

Answer 12

-The teacher maintained discipline in the classroom. Two boys were made monitors and had to report behaviour inside and outside school grounds, including the street.

-Any boys reported were questioned on Mondays at 9 a.m. and punished, unless their behaviour was more serious, in which case, punishment was immediate.

-Punishment included being kept in at break time, corporal punishment including caning or exclusion from school.

-The child could also be put ‘on report’ (the teacher monitored behaviour very closely and reported back to the parents). After warnings to the parents, it was possible for a pupil to be expelled.

Question 13

Describe the Education Available to Merchants and Craftsmen in Elizabethan England

Answer 13

-Some grammar school ran an alternative curriculum for the sons of merchants and craftsmen.

-These focussed on more practical academic subjects, such as English, Writing, Arithmetic and Geography.

-This shows education reflecting what the economy needed, but still focussed on preparing boys for the life they were expected to lead.

Question 14

Describe the Education Available to Skilled Craftsmen and Yeomen in Elizabethan England

Answer 14

-There were grammar schools available for the children of craftsmen and yeomen farmers.

-However, much of their education would come in the form of apprenticeships, where they would learn what was necessary to run the family business.

-For boys, going to school often depended on whether their family could manage without having them help in the family business or in the home.

-As school was not compulsory, a child’s education depended on whether their parents valued a school based education. Some children would have to leave school at an early age to go to work or become an apprentice.

Question 15

Describe Petty Schools in Elizabethan England

Answer 15

-Petty schools were often set up and run in a teacher’s home.

-Boys whose parents could afford to send them to school began their education here or in the case of girls, Dame schools.

-They would learn reading and writing in English, as well as basic arithmetic.

-Punishment was often harsh. Beating for poor behaviour or not doing well in lessons was common.

-After attending the petty school, bright or well off boys would go to a grammar school.

Question 16

Describe the Education Available to Girls in Elizabethan England

Answer 16

-Girls of all classes did not often attend school. If they did, they would attend a Dame school. Dame schools provided a basic education for girls. They were run by a local, educated woman.

-Women were not expected to go out into the world but would go from being under their father’s care to their husband’s. They were not expected to support themselves.

-For most girls, education was focussed on the home. As wives and mother they would need a variety of skills.

-For example, it was important to know how to preserve food, bake, brew, sew and treat simple ailments and injuries.

Question 17

Describe the Education Available to Labourers and Poor Children in Elizabethan England

Answer 17

-Most Elizabethans, whether boys or girls, had no formal, school based education, as the majority of the population were farmers or labourers.

-They learned what they needed from their families, working on the land or in the home.

-In most cases, children needed to contribute to the family income from as early an age as possible and the jobs they could expect to find did not require literacy or numeracy.

-For everyone in Elizabethan society, the education or training they received would fit the life they were expected to lead, depending on their place in the social order.

Question 18

Describe Universities in Elizabethan England

Answer 18

-Elizabethan England had 2 universities: Oxford and Cambridge. Students started there at the age of 14 or 15.

-The curriculum included geometry, music, astronomy, philosophy, logic and rhetoric as well as medicine, law and divinity.

-The highest university qualification was the doctorate. Doctorates could be taken in medicine, law or divinity.

-In London, the Inns of Court trained lawyers. Some young men went to study and practise law at the Inns of Court, rather than Oxford or Cambridge, for their higher education.

Question 19

Describe the Development of Universities in Elizabethan England

Answer 19

-Oxford and Cambridge universities are made up of different colleges, many of which were founded by Tudors.

-In 1571, Elizabeth I founded Jesus college in Oxford to educate Welsh boys. One of her Privy Councillors, Sir Walter Mildmay founded Emmanuel College in Cambridge in 1584.

-Both Elizabeth I and Mildmay wanted their colleges to educate more Protestant clergymen, so to increase the number of well educated Protestant clergymen.

Question 20

Describe the Impact of Schools in Elizabethan England

Answer 20

-Around 30% of men and 10% of women were literate by the end of Elizabeth I’s reign in 1603, compared with 20% of men and 10% of women in the 1530s.

-This suggests there was an improvement for boys but not for girls.

-Leading thinkers and writers increasingly believed in women having a good education.

-However, they were usually highly educated and well off and a main obstacle to schooling was its cost.

Question 21

Describe Attitudes Towards Schooling Boys and Girls in Elizabethan England

Answer 21

-There weren’t only fees to consider when deciding whether to send a child to school also but the loss of family income from children not working.

-This might explain why ordinary people’s attitudes to educating their daughters does not seem to have changed in Elizabethan times.

-Girls were expected to marry, not to work outside the home. Therefore, education was not necessary for them.

-Boys were expected to find paid employment and support their wives and children. A little education could help them find a better job.

Question 22

Describe the Access to Leisure Activities in Elizabethan England

Answer 22

-Social class and gender would determine what sports and leisure activities a person could participate in.

-The wealthier classes had more opportunities to enjoy leisure. There were also more options for men than women.

-Some sports such as swimming and wrestling were popular with men of all classes, though not together. Noble men wrestled in private and the lower classes in public.

-Gambling on the outcome was very popular. The nobility and gentry would often bet and watch alongside other classes.

-Cards was a popular game among women and dice games were played by both men and women.

Question 23

Describe the Role of Football as a Leisure Activity in Elizabethan England

Answer 23

-Football was a lower class game for men. It was extremely violent. It was not unknown or men to be killed during matches which could last for hours.

-Apart from scoring in the other team’s goal, football did not resemble the modern game.

-There were no rules against picking up the ball and running with it, the number of players, the size of the pitch and tripping up ither players.

-Sometimes the streets were pitches, sometimes it was the countryside between two opposing villages.

Question 24

Describe the Role of Inns and Taverns for Leisure in Elizabethan England

Answer 24

-Inns and taverns were an important part of life. Mostly men, although often women too, spent their evenings drinking ale and relaxing after a hard day of work.

-Taverns were places of merriment and entertainment, as well as places to drink.

-At the start of Elizabeth I’s reign, theatre performances and storytelling were also common in inns and taverns.

Question 25

Describe the Role of Feast Days for Leisure in Elizabethan England

Answer 25

-Although feast days were enjoyed by all members of society, they were particularly popular with the poor.

-This was because feast days meant the poor got a day off work.

-In honour of saints’ days and traditional occasions, people danced, sang and relaxed, and many took part in traditional maypole dances.

Question 26

Describe the Role of Hunting as a Leisure Activity in Elizabethan England

Answer 26

-Hunting was an important part of the lives of the rich, both men and women.

-This could include hunting for deer on horseback, and hawking was also popular too.

-The poor hunted too, but they did not have access to vast parks that the rich could use.

-Poorer people were focussed on catching food; hunting as not a leisure activity.

Question 27

Describe the Role of Sports as a Leisure Activity in Elizabethan England

Answer 27

-Archery and fencing were important skills for wealthy Elizabethan men, who may one day need to go to war; they were also popular pastimes.

-Tennis and boules were also popular among the upper classes, although upper class women were generally discouraged from taking part in these sports.

-Wrestling, running and football were popular with lower classes as well as fishing which could be enjoyed by all.

Question 28

Describe the Role of Baiting as a Leisure Activity in Elizabethan England

Answer 28

-During bear baiting, a bear would be chained to a post and dogs unleashed against it. Despite the bear’s teeth being broken, many dogs would still be killed as the bear lashed out with its claws.

-Care was taken not to kill the bear if possible as they were very expensive. Bear baiting was so popular that special arenas were built in London to house them.

-All classes of people enjoyed watching baiting, including the queen. Most towns even had a bull ring to house bull baiting.

-As bulls were neither rare nor expensive, the fight would be to the death. The dogs were set upon a chained bull which would use its horns to fight them off.

Question 29

Describe the Role of Cock Fighting as a Leisure Activity in Elizabethan England

Answer 29

-During cock fighting, cockerels were made to wear metal spurs to attack each other, as well as using their beaks.

-Many places, even small towns, had special arenas built for cock fighting. All classes enjoyed it and bet huge sums on the outcomes of the fights.

-Baiting and cock fighting were not approved of by all Elizabethans. Puritans especially disproved of them, but not because they felt the animals were being mistreated.

-The main reason for their disapproval was that the fights were usually held on Sundays, which they considered to be a holy day. They saw the fighting as distractions from religious obligations.

Question 30

Describe the Role of Literature as a Leisure Activity in Elizabethan England

Answer 30

-There was a lot of new literature written during Elizabeth I’s reign.

-History was a very popular subject, as were accounts of voyages of discovery and translations of Latin and Greek classics.

-Medieval works such as Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales were also popular.

-The most popular form of creative writing were poetry and plays. Most well educated people wrote poetry, including the queen.

Question 31

Describe Theatre at the Beginning of Elizabeth I’s Reign

Answer 31

-At the start of Elizabeth I’s reign, mystery plays were the most common form of theatre. These plays brought the Bible and saints’ stories to life for an audience.

-Some Protestants believed that the centuries-old plays were another way for the Catholic Church to control interpretations of the Bible.

-Saints were an important part of the Catholic religion and the plays kept their memories and miracles in the public imagination.

-Elizabeth was also concerned that they would encourage religious violence, so her government put a stop to them. Theatre instead turned to new secular plays.

Question 32

Describe the Rise in Popularity of Theatre During Elizabeth I’s Reign

Answer 32

-New secular plays were in great demand. They were more exciting than the older religious plays as unlike Bible stories, the endings were not already known. Comedies were also popular.

-The demand for theatre skyrocketed and theatre companies were formed across the country. They were usually established and funded by the nobility.

-For example, the Earl of Leicester had his own company called Leicester’s Men and in 1583, Elizabeth I established The Queen’s Men.

Question 33

Describe the Development of Theatres During Elizabeth I’s Reign

Answer 33

-The popularity of plays led to the first purpose built theatres being constructed.

-Originally, plays were performed in courtyards of inns that had high galleries surrounding them so he audience looked down on the action.

-However, with so much money to be made, purpose built theatres began to appear. Many of the theatres were built in London.

-The first was the Red Lion in Whitechapel, constructed in 1567. Others included the Rose in 1587.

Question 34

Describe the Role of Theatre as a Leisure Activity in Elizabethan England

Answer 34

-Theatre was popular with all classes. Well known performers attracted large audiences. However, only men were allowed to act: women’s parts were taken by boys.

-Sometimes there were queues of 2,000 people waiting to see a performance. Poor people could pay 1 penny to stand in the pit in front of the stage.

-Seats were expensive. The most expensive place to sit was directly above the stage.

-This was not where the best view of the action was but the important thing was to be seen sitting there by the rest of the audience.

Question 35

Describe the Role of Music for Leisure in Elizabethan England

Answer 35

-Elizabethans of all classes enjoyed music. Many people played instruments. This was quite popular among women.

-They used lutes, spinets and harpsichords. These were expensive instruments found in noble households. Bagpipes and fiddles were popular with the lower classes.

-Listening to music was also important. Wealthy families employed their own musicians to play during feasts and meals. They held musical evenings when guests could sing.

-The lower classes listened to music at fairs, markets and public occasions. Towns employed musicians to play at public events. There was music in shops, church, taverns, and in the streets.

Question 36

Describe the Development of Music in Elizabethan England

Answer 36

-New music was being composed to accompany the new secular plays in the theatre. There were also developments in musical instruments. Books of popular songs could be bought.

-This also contributed to more new music being composed and heard throughout England into Elizabeth I’s reign and beyond.

-Dancing was very popular and although lower class people did not dance together, it did bring men and women together.