What exactly Hamlet is trying to say about these major themes is up for debate, and that is part of the mastery of Shakespeare’s play. Shakespeare’s plays often reflected the atmosphere of the time, and so Hamlet includes the uneasiness about religion and succession. This is also notable because as a writer Shakespeare could draw on both Catholic and Anglican traditions.

We know now that Shakespeare’s father was likely a Catholic, so Shakespeare himself would have grown up in a religiously tense household. The Virgin Queen, Elizabeth had no heir and as she grew ill there was great uneasiness in England over who the next monarch would be and what kind of religious atmosphere they would create. Elizabeth was less violent than her sister, but still executed hundreds of Catholics.

After Mary was deposed, Elizabeth took the throne and yet again reverted England to Anglicanism. Henry VIII’s heir and only son died young leading to the bloody rule of Mary I Queen of England-who forcibly converted England back to Catholicism. The turmoil was largely religious in nature as Queen Elizabeth’s father, King Henry VIII, had broken with the Catholic Church and created the Church of England. Queen Elizabeth’s long reign represented a time of peace after lengthy turmoil. Hamlet was written towards the end of Queen Elizabeth’s rule when the English people were nervous about succession.

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