Elizabethan Times Overview

Elizabethan Times Religion, Medicine, and Superstition By: Amanda, Cathy, Melody, Ramsha, Teela

Introduction
Queen Elizabeth I ruled from the late 1500s to the early 1600s, it was know as the Elizabethan times
William Shakespeare was born around the same era
People were very religious and not very scientific

Religion General Information
Main religion was Christianity
Two major branches are Protestantism and Catholicism
Rivalries against each other
Queen Elizabeth I created religious policy to blend both of them together
The Act of Uniformity (1559) made attendance at church compulsory

Religion Protestants
Some protestants became puritans to purify England of Catholicism
Protestants disliked queen Elizabeth due to the religious policy (Elizabethan settlement)
Protestants separated from Catholicism in the 16th century
Queen Elizabeth was protestant

Medicine Treatments for Diseases
During the Elizabethan times which Shakespeare lived in, medical practices were bound with superstition
Treatments for illness are based on astrology, numerology, herb medicine, and the four humours
Most medicine did more harm than good, and the patient often died from treatments

Medicine The Four Humours
The doctors believed that a person’s health and personality was defined by the four humours:
Sanguine- blood: happy, generous, optimistic, irresponsible
Choleric-yellow bile: violent, short-tempered, ambitious
Phlegmatic- phlegm: sluggish, pallid, cowardly
Melancholic- black bile: introspective, sentimental

Medicine Common Illnesses
Fleas and lice were a problem, for they did not know any adequate treatments
Plague is a big concern during the Elizabethan times because there were no treatments for it
People sometimes died due to blood loss from dental treatments

Medicine Causes and Cures
The cause for most diseases was lack of sanitation and disinfections
Lots of breeding grounds for bacteria and bacteria carriers (rats, mosquitoes)
Cures were not available because the churches did not allow dissection of the human body until the mid 16th century

Superstition
Many daily activities were associated with superstition
Ex: when a person sneezes, one has to say “bless you” in order to ward off demons
The four humours should be balanced in a person to stay healthful
They believed in balancing the good and evil

Superstition
Elizabethans believed in sympathetic magic to ward off diseases and evil
The laws of nature had to be equalized in order for good luck
The Romans, Saxons, Danes, and Celts contributed to the superstitious beliefs during the Elizabethan times

Superstition Miscellaneous Beliefs
Good Luck
Breathed on by a cow
Spit in a fire
Touch a man about to be hanged
Iron, silver, fire, salt, and running water
Bad Luck
“ Widdershins” (stir a pot counter-clockwise)
Cats (black or otherwise)
Leaving a door open behind you

Bibliography
Anderson, Linda. "Elizabeth Religion." Shakespeare's world choose your path . 05 Nov. 2005 <www.english.vt.edu/~Swenson/Shakespeare/backgrounds/background.intro/s.background.intro5.html>.
Andrews, John F. William Shakespeare His world his work, his influence . Toronto: Collier MacMillian, 1985.
CP library . 1 Sept 2004. Crocus Plains Regional Secondary School. 05 Nov. 2005 <www.brandsonsd.mb.ca/crocus/library/>.
Foss, Richard. "Superstitions of the Elizabethan Era." St. Ives Historical Society . 1992. 05 Nov. 2005 <www.saintives.com/essays/superstitions.htm>.
Kazlev, Alan M. "The Four Humours." Transformation, Evolution, Metamorphosis . 3 July 2004. 05 Nov. 2005 <www.kheper.net/topics/typology/four_humours.html>.
Ramsey, Lia. "Medical Beliefs and practices." Elizabethan England . 3 Nov. 2005. 05 Nov. 2005 <www.springfield.k12.il.us/schools/springfield/eilz>.

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Elizabethan Times Overview

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