Sir Thomas More

Sir Thomas More  February 1478 – 6 July 1535), also known by Catholics as Saint Thomas More, was an English lawyer, social philosopher, author, statesman, and noted Renaissance humanist. He was an important councilor to Henry VIII of England and, for three years toward the end of his life, Lord Chancellor. He is recognized as a saint within the Catholic Church and is commemorated by the Church of England as a "Reformation martyr". He was an opponent of the Protestant Reformation and in particular of Martin Luther and William Tyndale.

Thomas More wrote the book Utopia published in 1516. He opposed the King's separation from the Catholic Church and refused to accept the King as Supreme Head of the Church of England, a title which had been given by parliament through the Act of Supremacy of 1534. He was imprisoned in 1534 for his refusal to take the oath required by the First Succession Act, because the act disparaged papal power and Henry’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon. In 1535, he was tried for treason.


In 1504 he was elected to Parliament to represent Great Yarmouth and in 1510 to represent London.From 1510, More served as one of the two undersheriffs of the City of London. More became Master of Requests in 1514, the same year in which he was appointed as a Councilor, a member of His Majesty's Most Honorable Council. After undertaking a diplomatic mission to the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, accompanying Thomas Wolsey to Calais and Bruges, More was knighted and made under-treasurer of the Exchequer in 1521.

As secretary and personal adviser to King Henry VIII, More became increasingly influential in the government, welcoming foreign diplomats, drafting official documents, and serving as a liaison between the King and his Lord Chancellor: Thomas Wolsey, the Cardinal Archbishop of York.

In 1523 he was elected as knight of the shire, and  was elected the Speaker of the House of Commons.
Between 1512 and 1519, Thomas More worked on a History of King Richard III, which was never finished, but which greatly influenced William Shakespeare's play Richard III. Both More's and Shakespeare's works are controversial to contemporary historians for their unflattering portrait of King Richard III.


Aretmisia Gentileschi
She was praised and distained
She was the most important woman painter
Painted pictures of strong women and a self portrait


Martin Luther
He became a monk
He wrote the 95 theses


Prince Henry of Portugal
He was the third child of King John
He established a center of navigation and exploration


Miguel de Cervantes
Born in 1547
Died in 1616
Wrote the book Don Quixote


Louise Labe
She wrote 24 sonnets
She died in 1566
She was an author who encouraged women to write books


Filippo Brunelleschi
Designed and built a dome for the Florence Cathedral


Ambrose Pare
He was a French surgeon
He was a leader in battlefield medicine
He publish a book
He was the first to use bandages and design bandages


Pieter Brueghel
Painted the pesant dance a painting that relies on detail and realism

William Shakespear
He wrote the book Romeo and Juliet

Nicolas Copernicus
He published the theory that the earth was not the center of the universe

Andreas Vesalius
Gublished detailed descriptions of the human anatomy