Historical Fiction: Part Three – Historical Eras
History is divided into many different eras. There are also some very well known characters, such as Robin Hood, pirates, or highwaymen that are associated with certain historical periods. Some historical time periods have been used many times as settings for stories and continue to be popular.
Ancient Egypt
This is a lengthy era divided into a number of different periods from around 3000 BC until Egypt became a Roman province in 30 BC.
Ancient Greece
This tends to overlap with other eras, but usually runs from around 500 BC until Greece was conquered by the Roman Empire in 146 BC.
The Roman Empire
The empire existed for more than 500 years until 476 in the west. The eastern part of the empire survived as the Byzantine Empire well into the medieval period.
Dark Ages
This term used to refer to Europe after the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the late fifth century until around the year 1000. It is also known as the Early Middle Ages.
The Vikings
A popular topic for historical fiction, the Viking Age in England and Europe dates from 793 to 1066.
Medieval
A time associated with kings and queens, castles, warfare, knights, chivalry, and feudalism. The medieval era comprises the Early (500 to 1000), High (1000 to 1300) and Late Middle Ages (1300 to 1500). The medieval period is usually defined as ending at the beginning of the Renaissance.
The Crusades
This most commonly refers to the medieval wars fought in the Eastern Mediterranean. European armies fought against the Islamic rulers of the Holy Land in a series of crusades from 1095 to 1291.
Robin Hood
Robin Hood is usually depicted as living in the north of England during in the reigns of Richard I and John from 1189 to 1216. However, the legends are probably more accurately placed in the reign of Edward I and Edward II in the late thirteen and early fourteenth centuries.
The Hundred Years War
This was mostly fought in France between English and French armies from 1337 to 1453. Joan of Arc was a leading figure in the later years of the conflict.
The Wars of the Roses
This conflict in England between the House of Lancaster and the House of York for control of the English crown took place in the second half of the fifteenth century.
The Renaissance
The Renaissance is usually depicted as beginning in Italy in the second half of the fifteenth century and spreading to other parts of Europe until the early seventeenth century.
The Reformation
This occurred in the Renaissance era, from 1517 until the mid-seventeenth century.
The Age of Discovery
This usually refers to the era after Columbus’ discovery of the New World in 1492. It also includes the European voyages to other parts of the world and the Spanish conquest of the Americas.
The Tudors
In England, this dates from 1485 to 1603. Many historical novels set in this time period focus on the reigns of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I
Elizabethan
This refers to the reign of Elizabeth I of England from 1558 to 1603.
The English Civil War
The conflict between Charles I and Parliament in England in the 1640s.
Restoration
This is the period following the return of Charles II to the throne of England in 1660.
Pirates
The most popular pirate stories take place in the late seventeenth and early eighteen centuries. These are usually set in the Caribbean, although pirates did also operate in other parts of the world.
Highwaymen
The mounted robbers of stagecoaches in England are mostly associated with the eighteen century.
The American Revolution
This period usually covers the later decades of colonial America and the Revolutionary War in the eighteenth century.
The French Revolution
This is a popular topic for historical fiction and covers the period in France from 1789 to 1799.
The Napoleonic Wars
Following the rise of Napoleon, these wars took place between France and the other leading powers of Europe from 1803 to 1815.
Regency
The Regency began when the Prince of Wales took over royal duties from the seriously ill George III in 1811. Regency era stories often cover the time of the Napoleonic Wars until the 1820s.
The Industrial Revolution
This period dates from the late eighteenth century to the middle years of the nineteenth century in Britain, parts of Europe, and North America.
American Westward Expansion
This usually covers the first part of the nineteenth century until the Civil War when settlers moved west. It can also include the later period when settlers were in conflict with Native Americans.
American Civil War
Novels set in this time period often feature the decades leading up to the conflict in the 1860s.
Victorian
The period during the reign of Queen Victoria in Britain from 1837 to 1901.
Edwardian
Britain in the first decade of the twentieth century during the reign of Edward VII.
Colonial
This usually refers to the period from around 1870 to the end of World War II, when European countries controlled large areas of Africa and Asia.
The Great Depression
The economic downtown that was first felt in the United States in 1930 and spread to other countries. It lasted for much of the decade before World War II.
The Inter-war Period
This covers the 1920s and 1930s between World War I and World War II.
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