Sport pastimes etc

• Education and leisure


  • Sport, pastimes and the theatre
• There were a number of lelaure pursuits in Elzabethan England that were based os soda clas.
• Leisure in Elizabethan England
• Social class


  • Nobility
  • Farmers and craftamen and the lower classes
• Leisure/Pastine


  • Hunting
  • Fishing
  • Real Ternis
  • Bowls
  • Fencing
  • Football
  • Wrestling
• Hunting


  • Took place on horseback with hounds or with birds hawking
  • Involved men and wonen.
• Fishing


  • Done by nes and womes,
• Real Ternis


  • Played indoors (nen only). A cross between modem tess and Squash that was increasingly popula
• Bowls


  • Simlar to the modern game (men only)
• Fencing


  • Undertaken with blurted swords (nes only).
• Football


  • Men arly. The aim was to get the ball into the other side's goal, although the rules varied. No Int on the numbers involved or the size of the pitch. Could be very violent - men were often kiled during matches.
• Wrestling


  • Men of all classes took part in public wresting matches with people gambling on the outcome.
• Spectator sports in Elizabethan England

  • Baiting
  • Cock fighting
• Baiting


  • Involved watching animals fight to the death. Typically, dogs were encouraged to attack chained bears and bulls, and bets were made on the outcomes of fights
• Cock fighting


  • Cockerels attacked each other using metal spurs and their beaks. In many small towns, fighting special arenas were built for cock-fighting. Money was bet on the outcomes of these lights.
• A lot of new literature was written during Elzabeth's reign, although medieval literature, such as Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, remained popular.
• Mystery Plays, popular with many Catholics, were replaced with new non-religious (secular) plays. These were shown in purpose-buit theatres, such as the Red Lion and the Rose.
• Comedies, performed by teams of professional players funded by wealthy noblemen, were very popular. Sponsors included the queen and the Earl of Leicester, and their performers were known as Queen's Men and Leicester's Men.
• All social classes attended the theatre, so Purpose-built theatres had to be built to accommodate growing audiences.
• Many Elizabethans played instruments, including lutes (similar to guitars), spinets and harpsichords (similar to pianos).
• Musical performances were popular. Musicians were paid to play at official functions or public events. Music was also played at fairs and markets, or on public occasions, in churches, tavena, barbers' shops and on the streets. Wealthy families employed their own musicians (always men) to play during meals and feasts. Books of songs were also popular.
• Music was also written to accompany plays performed in public theatres.
• Dancing remained a popular pastime, as it brought together men and women, although the upper and lower classes did not dance together.
• Describe two ways in which the lower classes entertain th