Queen Elizabeth I

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1559 1603

'Some have fallen from being Princes of this land to be

prisoners in this place; I am raised from being prisoner in this
place to be Prince of this land. That dejection was a work of
God's justice; this advancement is a work of His mercy.'
(Elizabeth I at the Tower of London, during her coronation ceremonies, 1559)

Contents
1. Introduction
2. Parents - Childhood
3. Elizabeth the heir to the throne
Church Settlement
,,Mariage The Virgin Queen
Gloriana and the Spanish Armada
The Queens favorits
Late years
4. The Elizabethan Era:The Golden Age
The Elizabethan theatre
Colonising the New World
Music in the Elizabethan era
The Queens wardrobe
Sports, games and leisure

5. Conclusion
6. Bibliography

1. Introduction
The reason why I have chosen this this topic is because I have been impressed by
Queen Elizabeths strong personality and by the way she managed to rule such a kingdom
like England and Ireland without having to marry. I have heared about her a lot of things
before taking up this subject and I knew for certain that I would like to know even more
about her as she is the queen who gave a name to a whole era, the Elizabethan Age,
which was prosperous in all domains: music, theatre, architecture not to mention the fact
that England won the title of master of the seas after defeating the Spanish Armada.
In the second chapter I talked about Elizabeths parents and the situation that changed
her status from a princess to a illegitimate daughter, at the same time I mentioned the
knowledge she possessed as her education vas not neglected even if she was droped off
from her title she was still a well educated woman.
In the third chapter I describet in the beginning the accession to the throne of Mary I
her half sister and how Elizabeth became her heir describing also some details about the
coronation of Queen Elizabeth. In the same chapter I included five subsections that
illustrate the life of the queen from the beginning of her reign to her late years, as well as
the great problems concerning the kingdom. Church Settlement, which illustrates the
solution the Queen gave to the problems between Protestants and Catholics, as Elizabeth
gave equal rights to all her subjects no matter their confession, declaring England a
kingdom that no longer is under the Church of Rome but under the Anglican Church.
Another great problem during Queen Elizabeths reign was her status as a unmarried
queen who was expected to marry but this never happened.In this subsection I wrote
down all the candidates that were considered as eligible for the Queen, as well as
Elizabeths own view about marriage. All these details are included in the subsection
bearing the title: ,,Marriage The Virgin Queen .The third subsection puts on paper the
triumph of England over the Spanish Armada that was a great achievement for England
in those days. The next subsection speaks about The Queens favorites in her court and
her attitude towards them. At the end of this chapter I described her Late years which
includes details about her condition and her state of mind as well as her funeral.
In the forth chapter I described The Elizabethan era The Golden Age which includes
information about The Elizabethan Theatre ,about the Colonisation of the New World,
Music in Elizabethan Era and at the same time giving some details about Queen
Elizabeths hobbyes that were captured in two capters The Queens wardrobe, and
Sports,games and leisure.

2.Parents Childhood
He who placed me in this seat will keep me here.(Elizabeth I )

Elizabeth was the only child of

Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, who did
not bear a male heir and was executed
less than three years after Elizabeth's
birth.
Elizabeth was born at Greenwich
Palace and was named after both her
grandmothers, Elizabeth of York and
Elizabeth Howard. She was the second
child of Henry VIII of England born in
wedlock to survive infancy. Her mother
was Henry's second wife, Anne Boleyn.
At birth, Elizabeth was the heiress presumptive to the throne of England. Her older halfsister, Mary, had lost her position as a legitimate heir when Henry annulled his marriage to
Mary's mother, Catherine of Aragon, in order to marry Anne and sire a male heir to ensure
the Tudor succession.
When Elizabeth was two years and eight months old, her mother was executed on 19th
May 1536. Elizabeth was declared illegitimate and deprived of the title of princess. Eleven
days after Anne Boleyn's death, Henry married Jane Seymour, who died shortly after the
birth of their son, Prince Edward, in 1537. From his birth, Edward was the undisputed heir to
the throne and Elizabeth was placed in his household.
In what concerns Elizabeths education she was taught four languages: French,
Flemish, Italian and Spanish. By the time William Grindal became her tutor in 1544,
Elizabeth could write English, Latin, and Italian. Under Grindal, a talented and skilful tutor,
she also progressed in French and Greek, and by the time her formal education ended in
1550, she was one of the best educated women of her generation. By the end of her life,
Elizabeth was also reputed to speak Welsh, Cornish, Scottish and Irish in addition to English.
And once the Venetian ambassador stated in 1603 that she "possessed [these] languages so
thoroughly that each appeared to be her native tongue".
Besides reading and writing,Elizabeth also spent her time learning to play musical
instruments and also learned needlework and art. But she also enjoyed playing, just like other
children. From an early age she was taught all the requirements of a classical humanist
education; history, philosophy,mathematics. She also loved such activities as hunting, riding,
dancing, and playing. Her education also included non-academic subjects, a lady of her rank
and status should know things such as: sewing, embroidery, dancing, music, archery, riding
and hunting.

3 .Elizabeth the heir to the throne

On the 28th January 1547, Henry VIII, King of England and Ireland, died at the
Palace of Whitehall at the age of 55. He was buried next to his true wife, Jane Seymour, in
St Georges Chapel at Windsor Castle.
In his will Henry VIII named his son Edward as King, with his daughters Mary and
Elizabeth following next in line. Edward VI died on 6 July 1553, aged 15. His will swept
aside the Succession to the Crown Act 1543, excluded both Mary and Elizabeth from the
succession, and instead declared as his heir Lady Jane Grey, granddaughter of Henry VIII's
sister Mary, Duchess of Suffolk. Lady Jane was proclaimed queen by the Privy Council, but
her support quickly crumbled, and she was deposed after nine days. Mary rode triumphantly
into London, with Elizabeth at her side.
But the show of solidarity between the sisters did not
last long. Mary, a devout Catholic, was determined to crush
the Protestant faith in which Elizabeth had been educated,
and she ordered that everyone attend Catholic Mass;
Elizabeth had to outwardly conform. Mary's initial
popularity ebbed away in 1554 when she announced plans
to marry Prince Philip of Spain, the son of Emperor Charles
V and an active Catholic. Discontent spread rapidly through
the country, and many looked to Elizabeth as a focus for
their opposition to Mary's religious policies. In January and
February 1554, Wyatt's rebellion broke out; it was soon
suppressed. Elizabeth was brought to court, and interrogated
regarding her role, and on 18 March, she was imprisoned in
the Tower of London. Elizabeth fervently protested her
innocence. Mary's closest confidant, Charles V's ambassador Simon Renard, argued that her
throne would never be safe while Elizabeth lived; and the Chancellor, Stephen Gardiner,
worked to have Elizabeth put on trial but Elizabeth's supporters in the government, including
Lord Paget, convinced Mary to spare her sister in the absence of hard evidence against her.
On 17th April 1555, Elizabeth was recalled to court to attend the final stages of Mary's
apparent pregnancy. If Mary and her child died, Elizabeth
would become queen. If, on the other hand, Mary gave
birth to a healthy child, Elizabeth's chances of becoming
queen would recede sharply. When it became clear that
Mary was not pregnant, no one believed any longer that
she could have a child. Elizabeth's succession seemed
assured.
On 6 November, Mary recognised Elizabeth as her heir.
On 17th November 1558, Mary died and Elizabeth
succeeded to the throne.
Elizabeth became queen at the age of 25, and declared
her intentions to her Council and other peers who had
come to Hatfield to swear allegiance.
As her triumphal progress wound through the city on the
eve of the coronation ceremony, she was welcomed
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wholeheartedly by the citizens and greeted by orations and pageants, most with a strong
Protestant flavour. Elizabeth's open and gracious responses endeared her to the spectators,
who were "wonderfully ravished". The following day, 15th January 1559, Elizabeth was
crowned and anointed by Owen Oglethorpe, the Catholic bishop of Carlisle, at Westminster
Abbey.

Church Settlement
From the very beginning of her reign she has treated all religious questions
with so much caution and incredible prudence that she seems both to protect the
Catholic religion and at the same time not entirely to condemn or outwardly
reject the new Reformation....
In my opinion, a very prudent action, intended to keep the adherents of both
creeds in subjection, for the less she ruffles them at the beginning of her reign
the more easily she will enthrall them later on. the Imperial envoy Count con Helffstein,
March 1559

Elizabeth's personal religious convictions have been much debated by scholars. She
was a Protestant, but kept Catholic symbols (such as the crucifix), and downplayed the role
of sermons in defiance of a key Protestant belief.
In terms of public policy she favoured pragmatism in dealing with religious matters.
The question of her legitimacy was a key concern: Although she was technically illegitimate
under both Protestant and Catholic law, her retroactively declared illegitimacy under the
English church was not a serious bar compared to having never been legitimate as the
Catholics claimed she was.For this reason alone, it was never serious doubt that Elizabeth
would embrace Protestantism.
Elizabeth and her advisors perceived the threat of a Catholic crusade against heretical
England. Elizabeth therefore sought a Protestant solution that would not offend Catholics too
greatly while addressing the desires of English Protestants; she would not tolerate the more
radical Puritans though, who were pushing for far-reaching reforms. As a result, the
parliament of 1559 started to legislate for a church based on the Protestant settlement of
Edward VI, with the monarch as its head, but with many Catholic elements, such as priestly
vestments.
The House of Commons backed the proposals strongly, but the bill of supremacy met
opposition in the House of Lords, particularly from the bishops. Elizabeth was fortunate that
many bishoprics were vacant at the time, including the Archbishopric of Canterbury. This
enabled supporters amongst peers to outvote the bishops and conservative peers.
Nevertheless, Elizabeth was forced to accept the title of Supreme Governor of the Church of
England rather than the more contentious title of Supreme Head, which many thought
unacceptable for a woman to bear. The new Act of Supremacy became law on 8 May 1559.

,,Marriage The Virgin Queen

'If I were a milkmaid with a pail on my arm, whereby my private person might be
little set by, I would not forsake that poor and single state to match with the
greatest monarch.' Elizabeth I to Parliament, regarding marriage
From the start of Elizabeth's reign, it was expected that she would marry and the
question arose to whom. In the spring of 1559 it
became evident that Elizabeth was in love with her
childhood friend Robert Dudley. It was said that
Amy Robsart, his wife was suffering from an illness,
and that the Queen would like to marry Dudley if his
wife should die. By the autumn of 1559 several
foreign suitors were vying for Elizabeth's hand; their
impatient envoys engaged in ever more scandalous
talk and reported that a marriage with her favourite
was not welcome in England. Amy Dudley died in September 1560 from a fall from a flight
of stairs and, despite the coroner's inquest finding of accident, many people suspected Dudley
to have arranged her death so that he could marry the queen. Elizabeth seriously considered
marrying Dudley for some time. However, William Cecil, Nicholas Throckmorton, and some
conservative peers made their disapproval unmistakably clear.
Among other marriages being considered for the queen, Robert Dudley was regarded
as a possible candidate for nearly another decade. Elizabeth was extremely jealous of his
affections, even when she no longer meant to marry him herself. In 1564 Elizabeth raised
Dudley to the peerage as Earl of Leicester. He finally remarried in 1578, to which the queen
reacted with repeated scenes of displeasure and lifelong hatred towards his wife. Still,
Dudley always "remained at the centre of Elizabeth's emotional life".
Marriage negotiations constituted a key element in Elizabeth's foreign policy. She
turned down Philip II's own hand in 1559, and negotiated for several years to marry his
cousin Archduke Charles of Austria. By 1569, relations with the Habsburgs had deteriorated,
and Elizabeth considered marriage to two French Valois princes in turn, first Henry, Duke of
Anjou, and later, from 1572 to 1581, his brother Francis, Duke of Anjou, formerly Duke of
Alenon. This last proposal was tied to a planned alliance against Spanish control of the
Southern Netherlands. Elizabeth seems to have taken the courtship
seriously for a time, and wore a frog-shaped earring that Anjou
had sent her.
Elizabeth's seeming obliviousness to marriage, her refusal to
discuss it, or her occasional witty but vague comments - all these
infuriated her councilors. They seemed incapable of appreciating
the impact marriage would have upon her life, while its impact
was distressingly clear to Elizabeth. The councilors wanted a king,
and an heir, a natural enough desire since her throne could not be
completely secure without them. But Elizabeth knew herself to be
intellectually superior to most men and she relished her
independence. And, of course, her father's marital history - as well as her sister's - made her

question both the personal and political cost of marriage. The new queen always had a low
opinion of marital happiness, and saw little reason to change her mind.
And so, out of love of independence and power, and a native distrust of marriage,
Elizabeth was determined to remain single. Her councilors, for their part, pretended to
believe otherwise for quite a long time. Despite her repeated vows to 'live and die a virgin',
they embarked upon countless rounds of diplomatic negotiations searching for a husband.
It is also worth noting the endless difficulties in selecting a suitable husband. A
foreign match would have dragged England into the morass of European politics, with
possibly the same disastrous results of Mary's marriage. But marriage to an Englishman
would have given too much power to one political faction or the other. And so Elizabeth's
personal dislike of marriage turned out to be a shrewd political decision, though it
confounded everyone for several years.
In other words, they could discuss and debate and suggest - but only Elizabeth could
rule.
Also Elizabeth's unmarried status inspired a cult of virginity. In poetry and
portraiture, she was depicted as a virgin or a goddess or both, not as a normal woman. At
first, only Elizabeth made a virtue of her virginity: in 1559, she told the Commons, "And, in
the end, this shall be for me sufficient, that a marble stone shall declare that a queen, having
reigned such a time, lived and died a virgin".Later on, poets and writers took up the theme
and turned it into an iconography that exalted Elizabeth. Public tributes to the Virgin by 1578
acted as a coded assertion of opposition to the queen's marriage negotiations with the Duke
of Alenon.
Putting a positive spin on her marital status, Elizabeth insisted she was married to her
kingdom and subjects, under divine protection. In 1599, she spoke of "all my husbands, my
good people".

Gloriana and the Spanish Armada

There is nothing about which I am more anxious than my country, and for its
sake I am willing to die ten deaths, if that be possible.(Elizabeth I )
In government, Elizabeth was more moderate than her father and half-siblings had
been. One of her mottoes was "video et taceo" ("I see, and say nothing"). In religion she was
relatively tolerant, avoiding systematic persecution. After 1570, when the pope declared her
illegitimate and released her subjects from obedience to her, several conspiracies threatened
her life. All plots were defeated, however, with the help of her ministers' secret service.
Elizabeth was cautious in foreign affairs, moving between the major powers of France and
Spain. She only half-heartedly supported a number of ineffective, poorly resourced military
campaigns in the Netherlands, France, and Ireland. In the mid-1580s, war with Spain could
no longer be avoided, and when Spain finally decided to attempt to conquer England in 1588,
the failure of the Spanish Armada associated her with one of the greatest victories in English
history.
Elizabeth's foreign policy was largely defensive. The exception was the English
occupation of Le Havre from October 1562 to June 1563, which ended in failure when
Elizabeth's Huguenot allies joined with the Catholics to retake the port. Elizabeth's intention
had been to exchange Le Havre for Calais, lost to France in January 1558. Only through the
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activities of her fleets did Elizabeth pursue an aggressive policy. This paid off in the war
against Spain, 80% of which was fought at sea. She knighted Francis Drake after his
circumnavigation of the globe from 1577 to 1580, and he won fame for his raids on Spanish
ports and fleets. An element of piracy and self-enrichment drove Elizabethan seafarers, over
which the queen had little control.
While Henry VIII had launched the Royal Navy, Edward and Mary had ignored it and
it was little more than a system of coastal defense. Elizabeth made naval strength a high
priority. She risked war with Spain by supporting the "Sea Dogs," such as John Hawkins and
Francis Drake, who preyed on the Spanish merchant ships carrying gold and silver from the
New World. The Navy yards were leaders in technical innovation, and the captains devised
new tactics. Parker (1996) argues that the full-rigged ship was one of the greatest
technological advances of the century and permanently transformed naval warfare. In 1573
English shipwrights introduced designs, first demonstrated in the "Dreadnaught," that
allowed the ships to sail faster and maneuver better and permitted heavier guns. Whereas
before warships had tried to grapple with each other so that soldiers could board the enemy
ship, now they stood off and fired broadsides that would sink the enemy vessel. When Spain
finally decided to invade and conquer England it was a fiasco. Superior English ships and
seamanship foiled the invasion and led to the destruction of the Spanish Armada in 1588,
marking the high point of Elizabeth's reign. Technically, the Armada failed because Spain's
over-complex strategy required coordination between the invasion fleet and the Spanish army
on shore. Also, the poor design of the Spanish cannons meant they were much slower in
reloading in a close-range battle. Spain and France still had stronger fleets, but England was
catching up.
Parker has speculated on the dire consequences if the Spanish had landed their
invasion army in 1588. He argues that the Spanish army was larger, more experienced, betterequipped, more confident, and had better financing. The English defenses, on the other hand,
were thin and outdated; England had too few soldiers and they were at best only partially
trained. Spain had chosen England's weakest link and probably could have captured London
in a week. Parker adds that a Catholic uprising in the north and in Ireland could have brought
total defeat.
So meanwhile, Sir Francis Drake had undertaken a major voyage against Spanish
ports and ships to the Caribbean in 1585 and 1586, and in 1587 had made a successful raid
on Cadiz, destroying the Spanish fleet of war ships intended for the Enterprise of England:
Philip II had decided to take the war to England.
On 12 July 1588, the Spanish
Armada, a great fleet of ships, set sail for
the channel, planning to ferry a Spanish
invasion force under the Duke of Parma to
the coast of southeast England from the
Netherlands. A combination of
miscalculation, misfortune, and an attack of
English fire ships on 29 July off Gravelines
which dispersed the Spanish ships to the
northeast defeated the Armada. The Armada
straggled home to Spain in shattered
remnants, after disastrous losses on the
coast of Ireland (after some ships had tried

to struggle back to Spain via the North Sea, and then back south past the west coast of
Ireland). Unaware of the Armada's fate, English militias mustered to defend the country
under the Earl of Leicester's command. He invited Elizabeth to inspect her troops at Tilbury
in Essex on 8 August. Wearing a silver breastplate over a white velvet dress, she addressed
them in one of her most famous speeches:
My loving people, we have been persuaded by some that are careful of our safety,
to take heed how we commit ourself to armed multitudes for fear of treachery; but I assure
you, I do not desire to live to distrust my faithful and loving people ... I know I have the
body but of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and of a
King of England too, and think foul scorn that Parma or Spain, or any Prince of Europe
should dare to invade the borders of my realm
When no invasion came, the nation rejoiced. Elizabeth's procession to a thanksgiving
service at St Paul's Cathedral rivalled that of her coronation as a spectacle. The defeat of the
Armada was a potent propaganda victory, both for Elizabeth and for Protestant England. The
English took their delivery as a symbol of God's favour and of the nation's inviolability under
a virgin queen. However, the victory was not a turning point in the war, which continued and
often favoured Spain. The Spanish still controlled the Netherlands, and the threat of invasion
remained. Sir Walter Raleigh claimed after her death that Elizabeth's caution had impeded the
war against Spain: If the late queen would have believed her men of war as she did her
scribes, we had in her time beaten that great empire in pieces and made their kings of figs
and oranges as in old times. But her Majesty did all by halves, and by petty invasions taught
the Spaniard how to defend himself, and to see his own weakness.
Though some historians have criticised Elizabeth on similar grounds, Raleigh's verdict
has more often been judged unfair. Elizabeth had good reason not to place too much trust in
her commanders, who once in action tended, as she put it herself, "to be transported with an
haviour of vainglory".

The Queens favorites

One man with a head on his shoulders is worth a dozen without.Elizabeth I

There were many famous Elizabethan Courtiers who graced the court of Queen
Elizabeth I. The Queen loved to surround herself with brilliant and handsome young men.
Elizabethan courtiers were well versed in courtly manners and dressed in expensive
Elizabethan Clothing which not only represented their wealth but also their status and
position in the Elizabethan court. Queen Elizabeth I was famous for the number of young
men at her court who she favored. These Elizabethan courtiers were generally from noble
families, were well educated, witty and understood the requirements of courtly love and the
code of conduct required of courtly knights of the realm. Elizabethan Courtiers required a
number of Skills - music, dancing and poetry were the arts which were clearly favoured. The
dashing escapades of courageous men who brought wealth to Queen Elizabeth were also
included in the ranks of Elizabethan courtiers. Queen Elizabeth was always susceptible to
outrageous compliments and Elizabethan courtiers were expected to deliver these regularly.
The Elizabethan Courtiers who were the favorites of Queen Elizabeth I
included:Robert Dudley,Robert Devereux - Earl of Essex,Sir Philip Sydney,Sir Thomas
Wyatt,Sir Walter Raleigh.These men were famous Elizabethan courtiers and favorites of

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Queen Elizabeth I. These men were all handsome, well educated and well versed in courtly
manners
The Elizabethan Courtiers who were the explorers, privateers and pirates of Queen
Elizabeth I were:Sir Francis Drake,Sir Humphrey Gilbert,Sir Richard Grenville,Sir John
Hawkins,Sir Martin Frobisher,Sir Richard Hawkins
The Elizabethan Courtiers who were the Politicians, Statesmen and Advisors of
Queen Elizabeth I included the following:John Dee,Sir Francis Walsingham,William Cecil Lord Burghley,Robert Cecil.

Late years

There is one thing higher than Royalty: and that is religion, which causes us
to leave the world, and seek God.(Elizabeth I)
The period after the defeat of the Spanish
Armada in 1588 brought new difficulties for
Elizabeth that lasted the fifteen years until the end
of her reign. The conflicts with Spain and in Ireland
dragged on, the tax burden grew heavier, and the
economy was hit by poor harvests and the cost of
war. Prices rose and the standard of living fell.
During this time, repression of Catholics
intensified, and Elizabeth authorised commissions
in 1591 to interrogate and monitor Catholic
householders. To maintain the illusion of peace and
prosperity, she increasingly relied on internal spies
and propaganda. In her last years, mounting
criticism reflected a decline in the public's affection
for her.
One of the causes for this "second reign" of Elizabeth,
as it is sometimes called, was the different character of
Elizabeth's governing body, the privy council in the 1590s. A new generation was in power.
With the exception of Lord Burghley, the most important politicians had died around 1590:
The Earl of Leicester in 1588, Sir Francis Walsingham in 1590, Sir Christopher Hatton in
1591. Factional strife in the government, which had not existed in a noteworthy form before
the 1590s, now became its hallmark.A bitter rivalry between the Earl of Essex and Robert
Cecil, son of Lord Burghley, and their respective adherents, for the most powerful positions
in the state marred politics. The queen's personal authority was lessening, as is shown in the
affair of Dr. Lopez, her trusted physician. When he was wrongly accused by the Earl of Essex
of treason out of personal pique, she could not prevent his execution, although she had been
angry about his arrest and seems not to have believed in his guilt (1594).
As Elizabeth aged her image gradually changed. She was portrayed as Belphoebe or
Astraea, and after the Armada, as Gloriana, the eternally youthful Faerie Queene of Edmund
Spenser's poem. Her painted portraits became less realistic and more a set of enigmatic icons
that made her look much younger than she was. In fact, her skin had been scarred by
smallpox in 1562, leaving her half bald and dependent on wigs and cosmetics. Sir Walter
Raleigh called her "a lady whom time had surprised". However, the more Elizabeth's beauty

11

faded, the more her courtiers praised it. Elizabeth was happy to play the part, but it is
possible that in the last decade of her life she began to believe her own performance.
Elizabeth's senior advisor, Burghley, died on 4 August 1598. His political mantle
passed to his son, Robert Cecil, who soon became the leader of the government. One task he
addressed was to prepare the way for a smooth succession. Since Elizabeth would never
name her successor, Cecil was obliged to proceed in secret. He therefore entered into a coded
negotiation with James VI of Scotland.
The Queen's health remained fair until the autumn of 1602, when a series of deaths
among her friends plunged her into a severe depression. In February 1603, the death of
Catherine Howard, Countess of Nottingham, the niece of her cousin and close friend
Catherine, Lady Knollys, came as a particular blow. In March, Elizabeth fell sick and
remained in a "settled and unremovable melancholy". She died on 24 March 1603 at
Richmond Palace, between two and three in the morning. A few hours later, Cecil and the
council set their plans in motion and proclaimed James VI of Scotland as king of England.
Elizabeth's coffin was carried downriver at night to Whitehall, on a barge lit with
torches. At her funeral on 28 April,
the coffin was taken to
Westminster Abbey on a hearse
drawn by four horses hung with
black velvet. In the words of the
chronicler John Stow:Westminster
was surcharged with multitudes of
all sorts of people in their streets,
houses, windows, leads and
gutters, that came out to see the
obsequy, and when they beheld her statue lying upon the coffin, there was such a general
sighing, groaning and weeping as the like hath not been seen or known in the memory of
man.
Elizabeth was interred in Westminster Abbey in a tomb she shares with her half-sister,
Mary. The Latin inscription on their tomb, "Regno consortes & urna, hic obdormimus
Elizabetha et Maria sorores, in spe resurrectionis", translates to "Consorts in realm and tomb,
here we sleep, Elizabeth and Mary, sisters, in hope of resurrection".

4.The Elizabethan era:The Golden Age

The Elizabethan era was the epoch in English history of Queen Elizabeth I's reign
(15581603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of
Britannia was first used in 1572 and often thereafter to mark the Elizabethan age as a
renaissance that inspired national pride through classical ideals, international expansion, and
naval triumph over the hated Spanish foe. In terms of the entire century, the historian John
Guy (1988) argues that "England was economically healthier, more expansive, and more
optimistic under the Tudors" than at any time in a thousand years.
This "golden age" represented the apogee of the English Renaissance and saw the
flowering of poetry, music and literature. The era is most famous for theatre, as William
Shakespeare and many others composed plays that broke free of England's past style of
theatre. It was an age of exploration and expansion abroad, while back at home, the
Protestant Reformation became more acceptable to the people, most certainly after the
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Spanish Armada was repulsed. It was also the end of the period when England was a separate
realm before its royal union with Scotland.
England was also well-off compared to the other nations of Europe. The Italian
Renaissance had come to an end under the weight of foreign domination of the peninsula.
France was embroiled in its own religious battles that would only be settled in 1598 with the
Edict of Nantes. In part because of this, but also because the English had been expelled from
their last outposts on the continent, the centuries long conflict between France and England
was largely suspended for most of Elizabeth's reign.

The Elizabethan Theatre

England prospered in the second half of
Elizabeth's reign, and many of the great works of
English literature were produced during these years:
art, poetry, drama, and learning in general flourished
as the confidence and nationalism Elizabeth inspired
spilled from the economic sector to cultural
achievements. Elizabeth's reign saw playwrights
like Christopher Marlowe, poets like Edmund
Spenser, and men of science and letters like Francis
Bacon. The era also saw the beginning of William
Shakespeare's work. Many of the writers, thinkers
and artists of the day enjoyed the patronage of
members of Elizabeth's court, and their works often
involved or referred to the great Queen; indeed, she
was the symbol of the day. The "Elizabethan Age,"
generally considered one of golden ages in English
literature, was thus appropriately named: these cultural achievements did not just happen to
be created while Elizabeth was on the throne; rather, Elizabeth's specific actions, her image,
and the court atmosphere she nurtured significantly influenced--even inspired--great works of
literature.
From the beginning of her reign, Elizabeth was always a major patron of the stage, and
drama flourished under her support. In the 1560s, the first blank verse tragedies appeared,
ultimately giving rise to an art form that remains heavily studied today. In 1562, one of the
earliest of these blank verse plays, Gorboduc, was performed for the Queen.
Initially, a certain amount of class conflict arose over the production of plays, as the
puritanical Elizabethan middle class tried to shut down the London theaters on the basis of
their "immorality." Thus, under major pressure, the Mayor of London attempted to close all
of the city's theaters in 1580. The Privy Council, citing Elizabeth's fondness for plays,
prevented this measure from taking place, although they did allow the crowded theaters to be
shut down in times of epidemics. Elizabeth, who liked to invite theater companies to her
palaces, was against shutting down the theaters because she wanted them to have fully
practiced their plays before bringing them to her. As a result, plays became more socially
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respectable, and by the 1570s and 1580s, exclusive boys' schools like St. Paul's and Merchant
Taylor's integrated the performance of both English and Latin plays into their curriculum,
initiating the custom of the school play. The Queen even watched some of these school plays
herself. In 1595, Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream was performed at Greenwich
palace during the marriage celebration of Burleigh's granddaughter. The play contained
several references to Elizabeth and her court, especially to the water-pageant Leicester had
put on for Elizabeth at Kenilworth Castle in 1575. Then at Christmastime while Essex was
gone on the campaign in Ireland, Elizabeth saw a performance of Shakespeare's Twelfth
Night.
Elizabeth herself was known for being a very good dancer and a particularly talented
musician. Although she only played for her closest friends, she spent considerable time
perfecting her renditions of several of the more difficult pieces of the day.
The structure of an Elizabethan playhouse was very diferent from what we now mean
by a ,,theatre.It was either round or polygonal in shape, and the pit where the ,,groundlings
stood was fenced off with iron spikes to protect the patrons in the surrounding boxes from the
wild beasts which, during the performance, were introduced into the pit (after the expulsion
of the ,,groundlings). There were also galeries (some of them over the stage). The
stage(with its ,,best best seats for the noble and wealthy patrons) jutted out into the pit, so
that actors could speak in a natural voice.There was almost no scenary, and bare posters gave
such indications as, This is the moon, Here is a castle etc.Women did not act and their
parts were taken by boys.There was no curtain and the beginning and the end of a play were
announced by a trumpeter standing in the turret of the theatre.
It was in this conditions that the great plays of the Elizabethan age were acted.
As a matter of fact, little is known about the exact structure of Elizabethan
theatres.Shakespeares references are scant (Henry V, A Midsummer Nights Dream, etc).
The decade of the 1590s, just before Shakespeare started his career, saw a radical
transformation in popular drama. A group of six well- educated men chose to write for the
public stage, taking over native traditions. They brought new coherence in structure, and real
wit and poetic power to the language, they are known collectively as the "University Wits,"
though they did not always work as a group, and indeed wrangled with each other at times.
The term of University Wits has not won universal recognition,yet most literary historians
endorse it to underline that the most of the dramatists belonging to this trend has academic
studies (Oxford, Cambridge), were closely connected in life,were professed men of letters,
and endeavoured to ,, localize the cultivation of classical models that they had studied in
the university. They engrafted vigorous actions and poetry on the extant interludes and
chronicles and, innovated themes, characters, and atmospheres, and inaugurated modern
drama.
Their names are: John Lyly, Christopher Marlowe,Thomas Nashe , George Peele, Robert
Greene, Thomas Lodge and Thomas Kyd.
Marlowe rose to his deserved fame as a playwright well before Shakespeare had
produced plays of real substance. Marlowe was rightly characterised by Ben Jonson as the
creator of the "mighty line"-blank verse of great rhetorical power. Marlowe's first play
performed on the regular stage in London, in 1587, was Tamburlaine the Great, about the
conqueror Timur, who rises from shepherd to warrior. It is among the first English plays in
blank verse, and, with Thomas Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy, generally is considered the
beginning of the mature phase of the Elizabethan theatre. Tamburlaine was a success, and
was followed with Tamburlaine the Great, Part II.

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Between 1585 and 1592, William Shakespeare began a successful career in London as
an actor, writer, and part owner of a playing company called the Lord Chamberlain's Men,
later known as the King's Men.
Shakespeare produced most of his known work between 1589 and 1613. His early plays
were mainly comedies and histories, genres he raised to the peak of sophistication and
artistry by the end of the 16th century. He then wrote mainly tragedies until about 1608,
including Hamlet, King Lear, Othello, and Macbeth, considered some of the finest works in
the English language. In his last phase, he wrote tragicomedies, also known as romances, and
collaborated with other playwrights.
In 1598 Jonson produced his first great success, Every Man in His Humour, capitalising
on the vogue for humorous plays which George Chapman had begun with An Humorous
Day's Mirth. William Shakespeare was among the first actors to be cast. Jonson followed this
in 1599 with Every Man out of His Humour, a pedantic attempt to imitate Aristophanes. It is
not known whether this was a success on stage, but when published it proved popular and
went through several editions.
Jonson's other work for the theatre in the last years of Elizabeth I's reign was marked by
fighting and controversy. Cynthia's Revels was produced by the Children of the Chapel Royal
at Blackfriars Theatre in 1600. It satirised both John Marston, who Jonson believed had
accused him of lustfulness, possibly in Histrio-Mastix, and Thomas Dekker. Jonson attacked
the two poets again in 1601's Poetaster. Dekker responded with Satiromastix, subtitled "the
untrussing of the humorous poet". The final scene of this play, whilst certainly not to be taken
at face value as a portrait of Jonson, offers a caricature that is recognisable from Drummond's
report boasting about himself and condemning other poets, criticising performances of his
plays, and calling attention to himself in any available way.

Colonising the New World

The discoveries of Christopher Columbus electrified all of western Europe, especially
maritime powers like England. King Henry VII commissioned John Cabot to lead a voyage
to find a northern route to the Spice Islands of Asia; this began the search for the North West
Passage. Cabot sailed in 1497 and reached Newfoundland. He led another voyage to the
Americas the following year, but nothing was heard of him or his ships again.
In 1562 Elizabeth sent privateers Hawkins and Drake to seize booty from Spanish and
Portuguese ships off the coast of West Africa. When the Anglo-Spanish Wars intensified after
1585, Elizabeth approved further raids against Spanish ports in the Americas and against
shipping returning to Europe with treasure. Meanwhile, the influential writers Richard
Hakluyt and John Dee were beginning to press for the establishment of England's own
overseas empire. Spain was well established in the Americas, while
Portugal, in union with Spain from 1580, had an ambitious global
empire in Africa, Asia and South America. France was exploring the
North America. England was stimulated to create its own colonies,
with an emphasis on the West Indies rather than in North America.
Martin Frobisher landed at Frobisher Bay on Baffin Island in
August 1576; He returned in 1577, claiming it in Queen Elizabeth's
name, and in a third voyage tried but failed to found a settlement in
Frobisher Bay.
Sir Francis Drake

15

From 1577 to 1580, Sir Francis Drake circumnavigated the globe. Combined with his
daring raids against the Spanish and his great victory over them at Cadiz in 1587, he became
a famous hero and his exploits are still celebratedbut England did not follow up on his
claims. In 1583, Humphrey Gilbert sailed to Newfoundland, taking possession of the
harbour of St John's together with all land within two hundred leagues to the north and south
of it.
In 1584, the queen granted Sir Walter Raleigh a charter for the colonisation of
Virginia; it was named in her honour. Raleigh and Elizabeth sought both immediate riches
and a base for privateers to raid the Spanish treasure fleets. Raleigh sent others to found the
Roanoke Colony; it remains a mystery why the settlers all disappeared. In 1600, the queen
chartered the East India Company. It established trading posts, which in later centuries
evolved into British India, on the coasts of what is now India and Bangladesh. Larger scale
colonisation began shortly after Elizabeth's death.

Music in the Elizabethan era

It was a period in which English music was developed to a level that commanded
respect from the rest of Western Civilization. After Elizabeth I's death, English music
maintained its level of accomplishment for a short while, and fell off (largely after the
Revolution) with the change of styles leading to the 'early baroque' period.
During the era, most noblemen employed their own musicians and took lessons from
them in playing the Lute and music literacy. Those in the rising middle classes employed
music teachers. Music, which had been printed since the middle of the 16th century was
becoming available at booksellers' shops at a reasonable price; such books included theory
books, collections of music for voice and instruments or instruments alone, and instructional
books, primarily for the lute.
The lute was the most popular of the early instruments. It had a long neck and strings
of twisted sheepgut. It made a sweet melody that was appealing to the ears of many.
Elizabethan Music was known for its steady rhythm and its polyphony, which is a
main theme that is established then played in more complex ways. Songs sung included a
four to five part harmony with multiple melodies weaving throughout one another, similar to
baroque music. It was also known for its reflection of moods and emotion. As musicianship
during the 16th century was popular and widespread, it was broken down into five main
categories: church music, court music, town music, street music and theatre music.
Queen Elizabeth I fancied music and also knew well how to play instruments. She
could play the lute and virginals, a small form of a harpsichord. Her example made it
essential for courtiers and gentlemen to understand the art of music. Queen Elizabeth
encouraged composers and musicians, employing over seventy musicians and singers.
Dancing was considered part of propriety by Queen Elizabeth.
Queen Elizabeth employed at least 70 musicians and singers. The singers included
those from the Chapel Royal. Her favorite court composers included Thomas Campion
(1567-1620), Robert Johnson (1500-1560) and William Byrd (1543-1623). The range of
Elizabethan music played at court varied enormously from traditional, simple English ballads
to sophisticated madrigals and from solemn church music to lively dance music. The court
musicians played to the courtiers from the Minstrels Gallery. The Minstrels Galleries were
situated on a raised gallery overlooking the Great Hall of the castles and palaces used during
the Elizabethan era. The musicians were seated on a narrow balcony, usually having a railing
or balustrade.

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 The Queens wardrobe

Queen Elizabeth was a great follower of fashion. While in private she preferred to
wear simple gowns, and would reputedly wear the same plain gown for two or three days,
when she was in public, she dressed to impress. Clothes were an important status symbol to
the Elizabethans, and a person had to dress in accordance with their social status. It was thus
in keeping that the Queen dressed more magnificent than everyone else. No one was allowed
to rival the Queen's appearance, and one unfortunate maid of honor was reprimanded for
wearing a gown that was too sumptuous for her. The maids were meant to complement the
Queen's appearance, not to outshine her. In the later years of the reign, the maids wore
gowns of plain colors such as white or silver. The Queen had dresses of all colors, but white
and black were her favorite colors as they symbolized virginity and purity, and more often
than not she wore a gown of these colors. The Queen's gowns would be gorgeously hand
embroidered with all sorts of colored thread, and decorated with diamonds, rubies, sapphires,
and all kinds of jewels. A book entitled Queen Elizabeth's wardrobe unlocked, details some
of the jewels that fell off the Queen's gowns when she wore them.
Like all aristocratic Elizabethan women, the Queen would typically wear a chemise, a
corset stiffened with wood or iron, a petticoat, a fathingale, stockings, a gown, sleeves, and a
neck ruff and wrist ruffs. With the discovery of starch, ruffs became even more elaborate.
To complete her appearance, the Queen would wear accessories such as a fan, a
pomander to ward of foul smells and it was thought infection, earrings, a diamond or pearl
necklace, a brooch and a watch. Robert Dudley gave her a watch encased in a bracelet, the
first known wrist watch in England. Like other women, she would also often wear a
miniature Prayer Book attached to her girdle.
For the outdoors, the Queen would wear rich velvet cloaks, gloves of cloth or leather,
and in warm weather, she would wear hats to shelter her pale face from the sun. For riding or
hunting she would wear special riding outfits that gave easier movement. She would also
wear boots such as these.
The Queen was never fully dressed without her make-up. In the early years she wore
little, but following her attack of the smallpox in 1562, she would wear quite a lot to cover up
the scars left on her face. She would paint her face with white lead and vinegar, put rouge on
her lips, and paint her cheeks with red dye and egg white. This make-up was very bad for her
health, particularly the white lead, as it slowly poisoned the body. While the Elizabethan tried
very hard to take care of their teeth, and knew that to keep them clean was to keep them
healthy, they did not have very sophisticated dental care, and teeth rotted. As a consequence,
Elizabeth had to have several teeth removed as she grew older. To prevent the appearance of
hollow cheeks, she would stuff rags into her mouth. It was very fashionable to wear a wig,
and the Queen did so from a young age.
The Queen had a substantial influence on the fashion of her time, and encouraged her
courtiers to dress well.

Sports, Games and Leisure

Recreation during the Elizabethan Era encompassed spectator blood sports, team
sports, and individual amusement activities. Most of the sports of the Elizabethan era were
carried over from the Medieval period. In reference to "blood sports," large crowds of both
men and women of all classes flocked to see bear baiting or bull baiting. Bearbaiting
involved a bear tied to a stake by a long rope. The animal was put into a pit where four or
five large, fierce dogs (or in some cases, lions) were let in for the sole purpose of attacking

17

the confined bear. Any dogs that might survive the bear's retaliation were pulled off just
before the bear was killed. The dogs would be considered winners if the large animal was
killed, but losers if many of them were disabled that the rest refused to attack. Sometimes
apes were used instead of bears. Bullbaiting was much the same as bear baiting, except that
the bull was let into the pit and "worried to death" (teased or hurt until it died). Cockfighting
was another popular blood sport. Roosters were fitted with sharp blades on each foot and put
into a pit to fight to the death.
Team sports gained in popularity during Elizabeth's reign. They, too, were rough and
violent like the sports involving animals. Common men played football (not an ancestor of
American football, despite the similarities) received its name not because the ball was kicked
but because all the players went on foot. It was extremely violent as there were few rules.
Hurling, a combination of hockey and polo, had some players on foot, others on horseback.
The object of the game was to strike a ball (with a stick or a club) so that it went over the
opponents' goal. Country hurling might match the entire adult male populations of two
villages, and the goals might be three or four miles apart. Soccer was also played, but the
government frowned upon it since it was the cause of many riots and bloodshed.
Hunting was a favorite pastime for the wealthy during this time. The hunt allowed the
rich nobles to show off their fine horses, hawks, clothing, and weapons. Horses were
displayed by their breeding, most commonly by nobles, and ranked by endurance, speed,
beauty, and strength. From the hunting rounds, the wealthy would often establish a breeding
tree of some sort in an attempt to create the perfect breed. Additionally, many fashions were
established or displayed during hunting trips. The nobles often arrived in new outfits that the
wealthy and underclass surrounding the hunt would emulate, thus spreading the style. New
weaponry also appeared at such events. Queen Elizabeth herself enjoyed hunting; at age 67,
she was occasionally found on horseback loving the "thrill of the chase."
Fencing was one of the most popular of sports. Betting was commonplace as one of
the contestants might bet that he could hit his opponent a certain number of times. In
addition, much time was spent with the sport of hawking - very popular with gentlemen.
Training a hawk or a falcon began with the capturing of a wild bird, then taming it by sealing
its eyes with needle and thread, then tying the thread back over the head of the bird so that
the trainer could open and close the bird's eyes at will. The temporary blinding made it very
easy to train the hawk or falcon to hunt other birds. Bells were attached to the birds legs so
that the trainer could keep track of its whereabouts.

5. Conclusion
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I think that Queen Elizabeth has remained in history as an important Queen who
achieved the great aspirations of her subjects during her reign. Elizabeth was dedicated to her
country in a way few monarchs had been or have been since. Elizabeth had the mind of a
political genius and nurtured her country through careful leadership and by choosing capable
men to assist her, such as Sir William Cecil and Sir Francis Walsingham. Elizabeth was a
determined woman, but she was not obstinate. She listened to the advice of those around her,
and would change a policy if it was unpopular. In appearance she was extravagant, in
behaviour sometimes flippant and frivolous, but her approach to politics was serious,
conservative, and cautious. When she ascended the throne in 1558, England was an
impoverished country torn apart by religious squabbles. When she died at Richmond Palace
on the 24th March 1603, England was one of the most powerful and prosperous countries in
the world.
There is no doubt that Elizabeth was one of the best Queens to ever sit on the throne
of England.And as a result of her prosperous reign that had a great impact on British history
there are many movies documenting her reign that continue to be made, not to mention the
fact that in England there is at least one book abot Queen Elizabeths reign published each
year.
The Queen was often called 'Gloriana', 'Good Queen Bess' and 'The Virgin Queen'.
Her 45-year reign is generally considered as one of the most glorious in English history.
During it a secure Church of England was established. Its doctrines were laid down in the 39
Articles of 1563, a compromise between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism.So we now
can say that her reign was a success and she single handedly prevented religious wars in her
country. Also, remaining a virgin Queen gave her a clear advantage in the world arena; a
great sacrifice she made for her country.

I do not so much rejoice that God hath made me to be a

Queen, as to be a Queen over so thankful a people.
(Elizabeth I )

6. Bibliography
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1) Murois Andre (1963) - Great Britain History

2) Duchein Michel (2001) - Elizabeth I
3) Ponta Monica (2011) - A collection of Texts about Great
Britain History
4) Antony Katerine (1929) - Queen Elizabeth
5) Elizabeth Jenkins (1958) - Elizabeth the Great
6) MacNalty Arthur S (1954) - Elizabeth Tudor, the lonely Queen
7) Ashton Robert (1980) - Reformation and Revolution
8) Cheyney E.P. (1914) - A History of England from the defeat of
the Armada to the death of Elizabeth
9) Elton G.R. (1977) - England under the Tudors
10) Tenison E.M. (1960) - Elizabethan England
11) Wikipedia the free enciclopedy

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