Allegory of the Tudor dynasty (detail), attributed to Lucas de Heere, c.1572: Philip, Mary I, Henry VIII, Edward VI, Elizabeth I.
The Tudor period is the period between 1485 and 1603 in England and Wales. It coincides with the rule of the Tudor dynasty in England whose first monarch was Henry VII (1457–1509). In terms of the entire century, Guy (1988) argues that "England was economically healthier, more expansive, and more optimistic under the Tudors" than at any time in a thousand years.
The term Tudor was seldom used in the 16th century, because the kings and queens did not like being reminded of their origins in the humble Tudor family.