On the other hand, many of the political themes, economic trends, and social
or cultural movements of Elizabeth's time had their completion or fulfillment
during the Jacobean period, that is, during the reign of her successor, James I
( 1603-1625). Thus, ending coverage abruptly in 1603 would do a disservice to
those studying such topics as Elizabethan literature. The flowering of English
poetry and drama that began in the 1570s and 1580s with the work of George
Gascoigne and Sir Philip Sidney, among others, intensified spectacularly in the
1590s with the emerging careers of Christopher Marlowe and William
Shakespeare, and then reached its maturity in the 20 years after Elizabeth's death
with the later career of Shakespeare, the work of Ben Jonson, and the proliferation
around London of theatres like the Globe. The "golden age" of English literature
had an Elizabethan beginning, but a Jacobean ending, and the Dictionary recog-
nizes this by including these later figures, as well as such broad cultural develop-
ments as "art," "architecture," and "dance" that trace major trends beyond 1603.

The Dictionary takes a similarly broad geographical approach. As queen of
England, Elizabeth I's actions and decisions, as well as those of the English
people themselves, had consequences far beyond the borders of England, a
country roughly equal in size to Wisconsin. England shared the island of Britain
with Wales (which Elizabeth ruled) and with Scotland (which she did not), and
personalities and events in both countries affected the course of history in
Elizabeth's England. Beyond the English coastline, France and the rest of Western
Europe lay just 21 miles to the southeast, and the large neighboring island of
Ireland lay little more than 100 miles to the west. England's political, commercial,
and religious contacts with Europe, particularly France, Spain, and the Nether-
lands, increased dramatically in the late sixteenth century, while England's
centuries-long attempt to impose its political control on Ireland acquired a new
edge under Elizabeth, whose government sought also to impose a new religious
regime on the Irish people. Besides increasing trade with its familiar European
markets, Elizabethan England also made vigorous efforts to initiate trade with
new markets, such as Asia, Russia, and Spanish America. Beyond this, the English
under Elizabeth first began to give serious attention to exploring and colonizing
North America. Thus, the "Elizabethan world," as defined by this Dictionary,
encompasses not only England in the later sixteenth century, but the rest of the
British Isles, America, and Western Europe, as well as selected sites of Elizabethan
activity further afield.

To be included in the Dictionary, a topic, event, or person had to have a role in
some significant element of Elizabethan life or activity. Broad topics, such as

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