16th century
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The 16th century was a time of significant religious strife in Europe. The Catholic Church sought control of the institutions of government to control the populations of countries such as France and England. Throughout the century, the fortunes of the average Protestant and Catholic varied, depending upon which religion had the ear of the government of the day. (TV: The Massacre [+]Loading...["The Massacre (TV story)"]; AUDIO: The Marian Conspiracy [+]Loading...["The Marian Conspiracy (audio story)"])
The Aztec people dominated the area of Central Mexico from the 14th to the 16th centuries. (PROSE: A History of Humankind [+]Loading...["A History of Humankind (novel)"]) Hexagoran scouts visited London during this time and recreated it on Luparis as Lupara centuries later. (AUDIO: Hexagora [+]Loading...["Hexagora (audio story)"])
It was a century that drew the particular interest to the Doctor. Not only was he keenly interested in what was happening in France during this period, (TV: The Massacre [+]Loading...["The Massacre (TV story)"]) he was particularly fascinated by the reign of the House of Tudor, which was regnant in England throughout the century. He made several trips to the various Tudor courts. He was known to have met with Henry VIII, (TV: "Strangers in Space" [+]Part of The Sensorites, Loading...{"namedep":"Strangers in Space (1)","1":"The Sensorites (TV story)"}, The Power of Three [+]Loading...["The Power of Three (TV story)"]) Lady Jane Grey (PROSE: The Nine-Day Queen [+]Loading...["The Nine-Day Queen (short story)"]) and Mary I, (AUDIO: The Marian Conspiracy [+]Loading...["The Marian Conspiracy (audio story)"]) but he was particularly interested in the last of the Tudor monarchs, Elizabeth I, and returned to her court several times during her reign, both in this century and the next. At some point around 1562, he even married and had sex with the so-called "virgin queen". (TV: The Shakespeare Code [+]Loading...["The Shakespeare Code (TV story)"], The End of Time [+]Loading...["The End of Time (TV story)"], The Beast Below [+]Loading...["The Beast Below (TV story)"], The Day of the Doctor [+]Loading...["The Day of the Doctor (TV story)"]) He also had several encounters with John Dee, one of Elizabeth's closest advisers. (PROSE: Mortlake [+]Loading...["Mortlake (short story)"]; PROSE: Managra [+]Loading...["Managra (novel)"])
The Doctor also met with some of the century's keenest minds. He befriended Leonardo da Vinci during either the first decade of this century or the last decade of the previous one. (TV: The Masque of Mandragora [+]Loading...["The Masque of Mandragora (TV story)"], City of Death [+]Loading...["City of Death (TV story)"]) He was also intensely interested in the life and career of William Shakespeare, whom he ran into at several points, both at the end of this century and the beginning of the next. (TV: The Shakespeare Code [+]Loading...["The Shakespeare Code (TV story)"], AUDIO: The Kingmaker [+]Loading...["The Kingmaker (audio story)"])
Witch burnings were common in this century. (COMIC: The Weeping Angels of Mons [+]Loading...["The Weeping Angels of Mons (comic story)"])
It was in this century that the Order of Saint Peter was founded in Eastern Europe. (AUDIO: Minuet in Hell [+]Loading...["Minuet in Hell (audio story)"])
As with most centuries of the first two millennia, the 16th century was home to Jack Harkness, Amy Pond and an Auton duplicate of Rory Williams. A version of Jack from around the time of the deaths of Toshiko Sato and Owen Harper existed in this century, having been buried alive in the 1st century by his brother, Gray. He perpetually died and resurrected an unknown number of times in an earthen tomb underneath Cardiff. (TV: Exit Wounds) Meanwhile, a near-dead Amy Pond was kept alive inside the Pandorica, beginning in the 2nd century. An Auton version of Rory kept vigil near her the entire time. They both awaited a moment in the mid-1990s when a young Amelia Pond would touch the outside of the Pandorica and restore Amy to full health. (TV: The Big Bang)
It was substantially unclear whether the events of the subsequent Big Bang Two erased Amy and Rory's presence in the 16th century. This ambiguity was caused, in part, because the non-Auton, married Rory Williams claimed to have remembered being "made of plastic" at his wedding reception, suggesting that, at least inasmuch as he was concerned, he and Amy were present in the 16th century. (TV: The Big Bang) Amy seemed to also remember those events, and displayed a fondness for the Auton Rory both during her honeymoon (TV: A Christmas Carol) and during a kind of lullaby to her newborn child Melody Pond. (TV: A Good Man Goes to War)
It was also among the centuries endured by Ashildr, (TV: The Woman Who Lived [+]Loading...["The Woman Who Lived (TV story)"]) a 9th century[1] Viking girl who was rendered effectively immortal when she was brought back to life by the Twelfth Doctor through a self-repairing Mire repair kit. (TV: The Girl Who Died [+]Loading...["The Girl Who Died (TV story)"])
