Gothic Renaissance

London experienced a cultural and artistic movement in between early 16th and early 17th century which is known as the English Renaissance Period. The English Renaissance was much influenced by the pan-European Renaissance which is said to have originated in the 14th century in northern Italy. Often known as the "age of the Shakespeare" or "the Elizabethan era," the English Renaissance created stimulation in art, architecture, literature and music of whole of England. The transition in the England was accepted with reluctance and it was rather a medley of the forgotten Gothic and the naïve Renaissance.

No field in England was untouched by the revolution caused by Renaissance. The English literature was marked by the works of poets like Edmund Spenser and John Milton, playwrights like William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe and philosophers like Sir Thomas More and Sir Francis Bacon. Some produced works which explained the English Christian beliefs; some represented English thought on life and death and also covered the glorious history of London; and some printed their works on their ideas on humanity and on Utopian society.

Renaissance also had great impact on the music. From renowned ballads to church songs and sophisticated court music, many inventive steps were taken and the music during the Renaissance period had become varied and more delightful. The comedy and tragedy plays used music to make it livelier. A new school of music also developed in this period which was known as the English Madrigal School. The English Madrigal was either copies of Italian musical works or their direct translations. Mostly in three to six voices, the English madrigals were light in style.

Renaissance also influenced the architectural style of that period. Emphasis was laid upon symmetry, proportion, geometry and on maintaining the regularity in the architecture. Inigo Jones is credited for propounding Renaissance architecture in England. He had studied architecture