Popular Entertainment in Elizabethan Times (WJEC Eduqas GCSE History): Revision Note

What Were the Most Popular Types of Entertainment in Elizabethan Times? -Summary

Entertainment was an important part of life in Elizabethan England, offering relief from hard work, low life expectancy, and daily struggles. It also helped Queen Elizabeth I control the population and maintain social order.

Both rich and poor people enjoyed blood sports such as cock-fighting, bear-baiting, and bull-baiting, often placing bets on the outcomes. Gambling, the theatre, and dancing were popular across all classes, although the wealthy preferred formal dances like the slow pavan, while the poor enjoyed traditional country dances.

Wealthy people, with more free time and money, participated in exclusive activities such as hunting, hawking, archery, lawn tennis, and playing music. The poorer people favoured simpler, often rougher entertainments such as football.

Although entertainment reflected the class division in Tudor society, it also united people, providing shared experiences and much-needed enjoyment in such harsh times.

The Importance of Popular Entertainment in Elizabethan England 

• Life for most people in the Elizabethan times was hard

  • People did not have much time off work

    • Only Sundays or special days such as May Day

  • Mortality rates were high 

  • Life expectancy was low 

• Popular entertainment was important as it provided an escape from everyday life 

• Elizabeth also used entertainment to

  • Controlling people 

  • Enforce social order 

Cruel Sports in Elizabethan England 

• Although entertainment was slightly different for the rich and poor in Tudor society, most people would watch cruel blood sports 

• Tudors would regularly watch 

  • Cock-fighting 

  • Bull-baiting 

  • Bear-Baiting 

• Gambling on these events was also common 

Cock-Fighting 

• Cock-fighting happened in a pit 

  • Most Tudor towns had a fighting pit 

• Fights between a pair, or sometimes up to 20, birds happened

• These birds would be placed into the ring and fought until only one bird remained 

• People watching would place bets on which bird would win 

Bear- and Bull- Baiting 

• Bear-and bull-baiting would happen in an arena

  • The most popular arenas in London were called the ‘Bear Garden’ in Paris Garden 

• In the arena, the bears or bulls would be chained up 

  • Dogs would then attack the bears or bulls 

• Sometimes, the bear was blindfolded as men with whips would attack the animals 

• People would place bets on which animal would win 

Entertainment for the Elizabethan Rich

• The wealthy people had more free time, so they had a greater range of entertainment, including: 

  • Dancing 

  • Music and singing 

  • Hunting 

  • Hawking 

  • Archery 

  • Ball games 

    • Skittles and kayles 

    • Lawn tennis 

Hunting 

• Deer hunting was a popular pastime among the nobility 

  • Many created their own deer parks for hunting 

  • Deer, stags, and hares were often hunted 

• People would hunt on foot or on horseback 

Hawking 

• A hawk or a falcon would be trained to fly from a person’s arm to kill its prey and then return to the owner 

• Only the nobility were allowed to breed hawks 

  • The lower classes would use kestrels or sparrow hawks 

Archery 

• Men would shoot arrows at targets 

  • Either using a longbow or a crossbow 

• Men over the age of 24 would practice on a Sunday after church 

Music and Singing 

• Members of the nobility could play a musical instrument or sing 

  • They would play them for their guests during special events 

• Popular musical instruments during this time were 

  • The lute 

  • The viol 

  • The recorder 

Entertainment for the Elizabethan Poor 

• Many pastimes were enjoyed by both poor and rich people

  • Dancing 

  • Ball games 

Dancing 

• The poorer lower classes would dance to more traditional country dances

  • Whereas the rich upper classes would dance to popular foreign dances 

    • Including the slow pavan and the volta 

Ball Games 

• The lower classes enjoyed playing football 

  • Unlike the modern game, there was no

    • Real goals 

    • Limit on the number of men on each team 

• Football was violent 

  • There were not many rules 

  • Many players were injured 

    • Occasionally players died 

  • Fights would break out between the two sides