QUEEN ELIZABETH I Summary

QUEEN ELIZABETH I

Summary

Elizabeth I (also known as Elizabeth the Great, or the "Virgin Queen") was born in 1533 into a dangerous world of political intrigue. When she was only two years old, her father, King Henry VIII killed her mother, Ann Boleyn, because she had not yet produced a male heir. Henry's routine killing of her successive stepmothers every few years traumatized Elizabeth, who loved her father. Although Henry finally did father a son, Edward VI, the boy did not live long, dying at the age of sixteen after a six-year reign, and thus Elizabeth's older sister Mary I came to the throne in 1553. Meanwhile, the young Elizabeth showed exceptional intelligence, excelling at her studies well beyond any of the other royal children.

A Catholic, Mary married the Hapsburg prince of Spain, the soon-to-be Philip II. Mary would come to be known as "Bloody Mary" for her harsh treatment of English Protestants in her attempt to restore Catholicism to England. When Sir Thomas Wyat the Younger's Rebellion threatened Mary's rule, she believed Elizabeth to have been involved in the plot and imprisoned her in the Tower of London. By a combination of luck and skillful persuasion on the part of her political allies, Elizabeth survived this ordeal and became queen when Mary died in 1558.

Elizabeth quickly consolidated power and returned the country to Protestantism, passing the Acts of Supremacy and Uniformity, although by Reformation standards Catholics fared well under these acts. With the help of able advisors like Sir William Cecil (later Lord Burleigh) and the spy-networks of Francis Walsingham, she ruled the country ably and initiated an era of economic prosperity. In international affairs, Elizabeth manipulated the princes of Europe, using the prospect of marriage to her (and thus joint control over England) as a bargaining tool; indeed, preferring the power that came with perpetual eligibility, she ultimately never married at all. She was, however, involved in a scandalous romance with Robert Dudley (later called the Earl of Leicester), her Master of the Horse.

Because Elizabeth was both husbandless and childless, to overthrow her would be to gain immediate control of the throne; plots against her proliferated. Most involved replacing her with Mary Queen of Scots, a Catholic member of the Stuart line. After Walsingham foiled the Babington Plot in 1586, Mary Queen of Scots was executed. Following Mary's beheading, Philip II of Spain, Catholic and enraged by Sir Francis Drake's constant plundering of his Spanish galleons, decided it was time for an attack. In 1588 he launched his supposedly invincible Spanish Armada to fetch his armies fighting in the Netherlands and transport them to England. The Armada was defeated by the skillful maneuvers of the English fleet, and was further debilitated by stormy weather (known as the "Protestant Wind"). England was saved from the Spanish threat, establishing the roots of a long tradition of English naval dominance.

By the 1590s, Elizabeth was in her 60s and her most trusted advisors were slowly dying. From the next generation of nobility she selected Leicester's stepson, Robert Devereux (Earl of Essex), thirty years her junior, as her favored servant and companion. She sent Essex to Ireland to command her army, but when he disobeyed orders and failed to complete his objectives, Elizabeth banished him from her presence. Essex then foolishly tried to raise a rebellion, but the elderly Elizabeth quickly had the young traitor captured. Essex was executed in 1601. Elizabeth died in 1603, having made clear that her successor would be James I, son of Mary Queen of Scots.

Context

In the 15th century, England had been wracked by succession disputes: the House of York and the House of Lancaster were battling for the throne, and England suffered under a bloody thirty-year period of civil war called the Wars of the Roses (1455–1485). When the dust finally settled, the Tudor family emerged as the rulers of England. It was partly the memory of the horrors of disputed succession that caused King Henry VIII, a Tudor, to care so obsessively about producing a male heir; famously, he went through six wives and only Jane Seymour (his third) produced a male child. However, the male heir died young, and in 1558 the 25-year-old Elizabeth (later Elizabeth I, or Elizabeth the Great) was the last of his children still alive. The whole nation feared the consequences were she to die, for succession would again be disputed. Both Mary Queen of Scots and the Plantagenet family stood openly ready to seize the throne in Elizabeth's absence; should Elizabeth die or prove a weak ruler, civil war seemed again inevitable.

Much of the political conflict and complexity of the Elizabethan era derived from the religious struggles of the time, which took the form of the Reformation and the Counter-Reformation. Europe was split in a war between Catholic countries and Protestant countries: the Catholic side included Spain and Italy and most of France, while the Protestant opposition included many of the German states of the Holy Roman Empire, as well as the Netherlands, embroiled in a bloody battle for independence with its Spanish Hapsburg overlords. Henry VIII had founded a Church of England during his reign, but England remained divided between Catholics and Protestants. The two sides were nearly even in strength, with the Protestants having a slight advantage. Thus, while all politics are characterized by intrigue and factionalism, the Catholic-Protestant conflict made Elizabethan politics particularly intense. Zealous Catholics considered the battle against Protestants to be a battle against heresy, a holy war; a series of popes encouraged Elizabeth's assassination or overthrow.

When Elizabeth came to the throne in the midst of this strife, it seemed that England was in for some trouble. Not only was she a woman in a time when women were considered inferior; but she was also a mere youth of 25 and lacked siblings who could step in for her were she to fail in her task. Yet contrary to the expectations of many, Elizabeth reigned for half a century, proving one of England's strongest rulers ever. She greatly contributed to the tradition of stability in English government, and served as an icon for later English nationalism. She inspired an age of prosperity economically, providing a materially well-off society that could turn its attention to art and culture; Elizabethan England produced some of the world's greatest literature, including that of Shakespeare.

Elizabeth served England amazingly well in all but one respect. Since Elizabeth (the "Virgin Queen") never married, she left behind no Tudor heir. As a result, James I, a Stuart, gained the throne at her death. However, the Stuarts were Catholic and strong believers in absolutist divine monarchy; in the mid- 17th century they were thus overthrown; Parliament executed Charles I, now king, and established the Commonwealth under Oliver Cromwell.

Elizabeth, a sixteenth-century ruler of immense intelligence, ability, and success, was perhaps one of the most powerful women of all time. While she could be crafty and Machiavellian (she called herself a great "Prince") when it came to foreign affairs and matters of national security, she was also a compassionate Queen who cared first and foremost for the welfare of her people. She also displayed her power in her personal life, playing by her own rules in matters of love: although she never married, and thus never conceded any power to a husband, it seems almost certain that Elizabeth did not merit the title "Virgin Queen." As a sexually liberated, powerful, yet still compassionate woman, Elizabeth the Great was a feminist long before the concept of feminism even existed.

Important Terms, People, and Events

Terms

Blank Verse -   · Non-rhyming verse taking the form of iambic pentameter and used extensively in Elizabethan drama by playwrights like Marlowe and Shakespeare.

Coronation -   · The ceremony by which someone is crowned king or queen

Galleon -   · A heavy, square-rigged, sail-driven vessel favored by the Spanish in the Elizabethan period. The Spanish Armada was comprised of galleons.

Golden Hind -   · Sir Francis Drake's ship, which he sailed around the world.

Interdict -   · A form of papal censure and condemnation. An interdict strips a person or community of most sacraments and the right to Christian burial.

Privy Council -   · The private council of the English King or Queen. Today, the Privy Council exercises no real power, but in Elizabeth's era it had great control over national policy.

Spanish Armada -   · In 1588, Philip II of Spain sent this fleet to fetch his soldiers in the Netherlands and then invade England. Although it was supposed invincible, the Armada was defeated by the English navy.

Tower of London -   · This royal fortress and residence served as a jail for important political prisoners (Elizabeth and Mary Queen of Scots were both detained there). The tower has also guarded important items such as the Crown Jewels.

People

Duke de Alencon -  The fourth son of Henry II of France and Catherine de Medici and brother to the king of France (Francis II). He unsuccessfully courted Elizabeth. In 1576, his title changed to Duke of Anjou.

Duke of Anjou -  Known as Duke de Alencon until 1576, Anjou was the fourth son of Henry II of France and Catherine de Medici and brother to the king of France (Francis II). He unsuccessfully courted Elizabeth.

Francis Bacon -  Lawyer, Statesman, counselor to James I, early scientist and man of letters. Early in his career, Bacon's patron was the Earl of Essex.

Ann Boleyn -  Second wife of Henry VIII and Elizabeth's mother

Lord Burleigh -  Originally called Sir William Cecil, he was Elizabeth's chief Secretary of State until 1571, when she named him Lord Burleigh and replaced him with the more ruthless (albeit loyal) Francis Walsingham.

Francis Drake -  Sir Francis Drake was an English-backed pirate and later admiral who terrorized Spanish treasure galleons, circumnavigated the globe (1577–1580) and led the English fleet in crucial battles against the Spanish Armada (1588).

Edward VI -  Elizabeth's younger half-brother, he briefly ruled England from 1547 to 1553.

Earl of Essex -  Robert Devereaux (or Devereux), Earl of Essex, was one of Leicester's stepsons and became Elizabeth's favored companion, or favorite, towards the end of her life until a botched military intervention in Ireland destroyed his reputation. Essex was put to death in 1601 after leading an attempted rebellion.

Feria -  A Spanish ambassador to Elizabeth's court

Gregory XIII -  Serving as pope from 1572 to 1585, Gregory urged the adoption of the calendar named in his honor (the Gregorian).

Hapsburg -  Powerful European Royal family, which exercised control in Spain, Austria, the Netherlands, and the Holy Roman Empire during Elizabeth reign. The Spanish king Philip II was a Hapsburg.

Christopher Hatton -  One of Elizabeth's advisors, Hatton served as Lord Chancellor of England from 1587 to 1591.

Henry VIII -  Tudor King of England from 1509 to 1547. He began the English Reformation, had six wives over the course of his life, and was father to Elizabeth I, Edward VI and Mary I. Although possessed of the bad habit of killing off those wives who did not bear male heirs, he was beloved by the people for his strength and dynamism.

James I -  First Stuart King of England and successor to Elizabeth, James I ruled from 1603 to 1625.

Earl of Leicester -  The title given to Sir Robert Dudley by Elizabeth in 1564. Serving as Master of the Horse and also in some military leadership positions, Leicester was the Queen's close friend and probably her lover. When he died in 1588, Elizabeth shut herself in her room until Lord Burleigh bashed open the door.

Christopher Marlowe -  Poet and dramatist who preceded and competed with Shakespeare. An early pioneer of blank verse.

Mary I -  Mary Tudor, also known as "Bloody Mary" for her persecution of non- Catholics, was Elizabeth's older half-sister, and ruled England from 1553 to her death in 1558. A fervent Catholic, she was married to the future Philip II of Spain.

Mary of Guise -  Mother of Mary Queen of Scots, she served as Queen Regent in Scotland and brought French forces into Scotland to fight the Protestants there.

Mary Queen of Scots -  Also known as Mary Stuart, she was the Catholic Queen of Scotland (1542–1567) and had her eyes set on the throne of England. She was ultimately beheaded in 1587. Her son, James I, succeeded Elizabeth.

Philip II -  Hapsburg King of Spain from 1556 to 1598, this defender of Catholicism had trouble suppressing Protestants in the Netherlands; the English navy destroyed his supposedly invincible Spanish Armada in 1588.

Pius V -  Pope from 1566 to 1572, Pius tirelessly (and harshly) persecuted and encouraged the persecution of Protestants throughout Europe.

Plantagenet -  The ruling family in England from 1154 to 1485

Walter Raleigh -  This English writer and adventurer delighted Elizabeth but was put to death by her successor, James I.

Simon Renaud -  Spanish ambassador to England

William Shakespeare -  Elizabethan playwright and poet who later developed the reputation as the greatest writer of all time

Edmund Spenser -  English poet of the Elizabethan period, famous for his lengthy allegorical poem The Faerie Queene .

Stuarts -  The royal family that succeeded the Tudors. Members included James I and Mary Queen of Scots.

Tudor -  The ruling family of England from 1485 to 1603. Following the Plantagenets and preceding the Stuarts, the Tudor line included Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I, and Elizabeth the Great (Elizabeth I).

Francis Walsingham -  Elizabeth's chief secretary of state from 1573 to 1590, replacing Burleigh. Walsingham was a devout Protestant and a cunning spymaster.

William the Silent -  A protestant, William the Silent fought for an independent Netherlands during the Elizabethan era.

Events

Act for the Preservation of the Queen's Safety -  This 1585 policy was intended to quash conspiracies against the Queen, and was enacted in response to recent plots like the Duke de Guise Plot and the earlier Ridolfi Plot.

Acts of Supremacy and Uniformity -  These two acts, ratified together, were meant to settle religious conflicts: while the Act of Supremacy made Elizabeth the "Supreme Governor" of the Church, with the authority to make absolute decisions affecting religious practices, the Act of Uniformity restored, with some amendments, the Protestant Prayer Book that Mary I had banned.

Babington Plot -  Anthony Babington led this 1586 plot to overthrow Elizabeth and put Mary Queen of Scots on the throne. Mary was thrown into the Tower of London and subsequently executed for involvement in this plot, which Walsingham cleverly detected and exposed.

Bond of Association -  A 1584 decree by which Parliament forced all English men to sign a pledge that, in the event of Elizabeth's assassination, they would hunt down the culprit.

Cadiz -  This was the site of a devastating 1587 raid on the Spanish Armada, led by Sir Francis Drake; the name now also refers to the battle itself.

Duke de Guise Plot -  A 1582 Catholic plot on Elizabeth's life

Ridolfi Plot -  A 1570 to 1571 plot led by an Italian conspirator (Roberto di Ridolfi) to overthrow Elizabeth and install Mary Queen of Scots on the throne of England. The plot involved assassinating Elizabeth and using the Spanish Army to conquer the countryside.

Sir Thomas Wyatt the Younger's Rebellion -  In 1554 Sir Thomas Wyatt undertook a plot against then-queen Mary I; he intended to overthrow Mary's government and take control for himself, after marrying Elizabeth and thus legitimating his rule. When the plot was detected, Mary suspected Elizabeth of complicity and imprisoned her in the Tower of London.