This document provides information about regions, society, and daily life in 17th century Great Britain. It describes the geography and climate of Lowland and Highland Britain. English society was stratified, with an upper class of nobles and landowners, a middle class of merchants and professionals, and a lower class of laborers and peasants. Guilds protected skilled workers. The poor subsisted on bread and beer while the wealthy ate meat. Crimes were severely punished, often with public executions. Family roles were clearly defined. Health practices were still primitive and based on ancient theories. Popular pastimes included theater, games, and blood sports.

1. Chapter 4
The Regions of Great Britain
&
English Society

2. Quick Geography
• England, Scotland, and
Wales occupy one island
(Great Britain).
• Northern Ireland and the
Republic of Ireland occupy
the second island.
• GB covers 244,000 sq. km.
• 965 km in length, 508 km
wide.
• Britain can be divided into
Lowland Britain and
Highland Britain

4. Lowland Britain
• Located in South East
Britain (Blue).
• Consists of low-lying
and fertile land suited
for agriculture.
• The climate is warmer
than in the north.
• More heavily populated
than the north.

5. Highland Britain
• North West (Scotland)
• Consists of hilly or
mountainous countryside.
• Thin soils, with pockets of
fertile lowland.

6. English Society in the 17th Century
• England became a colonizing nation because they
were wealthy and powerful, and by defeating the
Spanish Armada in 1588 they had the freedom to
travel the high seas.
• England built colonies in India, South Africa,North
America, and other parts of the world.
• Trade with the colonies enriched England even
more.

8. English Society
• English population grew rapidly
• English entrepeneurs (merchants, manufactures,
and landholders) found unprecedented
opportunities to become wealthy.
• To the upper class the future looked promising
and the country was ready to become a world
power.

9. Upper Class
• Kings
• Owners of factories & workhouses
• King’s advisors
• Nobility
• Church officials

10. Middle Class
• Soldiers
• Merchants
• Landowners
• Manufacturers
• Military officers
• Professionals
• Teachers

11. Lower CLass
• Cottagers
• Workers
• Peasants
• Unemployed

12. English Society Pyramid
• Draw the pyramid below and add the titles
from the last 3 slides and the boxes from the
next slide:
___________
___________
___________

14. Guilds
• Guilds: organizations to protect skilled
workers such as carpenters, blacksmiths, stone
masons, dress makers, etc.
– Agriculture & ordinary workers worked long hours
with little pay (10 pennies/day) and lived in
terrible conditions

15. Diet
• Food:
– Poor: mostly bread & beer, occasionally meat &
cheese
– Wealthy: mostly meat (strongly flavoured to hide
un-freshness)
– Fruits & vegetables unpopular
– Forks just coming into fashion
– New imported foods: pineapples, maize, potatoes,
coffee, tea, chocolate
– Coffee houses became popular

16. Crime and Punishment
• Crimes of treason and offenses against the state were
treated with the same severity that murder and rape
are today.
• Offenses such as manslaughter, robbery, rape, piracy,
and capital crimes entitled one to hanging, usually in
the town square.
• A woman found guilty of poisoning her husband was
burned alive.
• A cook who poisoned his customers was boiled to
death in a cauldron of water or lead.
• Public ridicule to criminals!

17. Family
• Boys can marry at 14, girls at 12. Usually didn’t
happen until age at 21.
• Wives are the property of their husbands and
depend on their husband for life.
• A little boy is dressed in skirts, pretty much like his
sisters, until the age of six or seven, when he gets
his first pair of breeches or breech hose.
• Breeching is a rite of passage for a boy, and a big
deal for a boy. A father would now take on a bigger
role to raise his boy.

18. Breeching

19. Health
• Average age was 35 in the early 1600’s.
• New medicine finally emerging. Some still
believe the body consisted of blood, black
bile, phlegm, yellow bile.
• Often left to superstition and myth.

20. Fun
• Tennis and shuttlecock. Board games like chess,
backgammon.
• Theatre was very popular.
• In the early 17th century the stage jutted out into
the audience. Boys played women's parts!
• ‘Sports' like cock fighting and bull and bear baiting
were popular. (A bear or bull was chained to a post
and dogs were trained to attack it).
• The first English newspaper was printed in 1621.

22. English Monarchy Activity