Elizabeth I. The golden age.

In 1585 Spain was ruled by Philip I, a devoted catholic who believed that he
was in charge of doing Gods work on Earth by liberating from the devil those
countries who were immerse in evil beliefs. England which was ruled by a
Protestant queen was one of those countries. During the last part of her reign
Elizabeth I, King Henry VIIIs daughter, had to face not only the fact of being
called the virgin queen for being unmarried but also a holy war carried out by
the Spanish king. Hard times were to be faced by the Tudor Rose.
Firstly, Elizabeths marital status was not only a personal but also a political
concern. Not having a heir was not an option for the last queen of the Tudors
dynasty, so her assistant, Francis Walsinhamg, insisted on getting a husband
for her. Princes and dukes from all over Europe went to see Elizabeths beauty
and gain her admiration but no one succeeded. However, Elizabeth was
interested on a fearless adventurer man called Walter Raleigh. Mr. Raleigh was
an English pirate, who sailed to the new world naming lands on her name,
Virginia in North America, and bringing gifts to the ruling queen. Those gifts
were not only species or vegetables but also gold stolen from the Spanish
ships. Mr. Raleigh profession did not allowed Elizabeth to get him as her
husband, but she gave him the money he needed to continue sailing and
named him Sir, as to have him near her. When the time of war came Mr.
Raleigh was the commander, together with Drake, who battled on sea.
Secondly, Philip I of Spain and Mary Stuart queen of the Scots had formed a
Catholic Enterprise, as they called, to topple Elizabeths protestant reign. This
enterprise was taken into action by Spanish Jesuits who were undercover in
England. One of them was William, Francis Walsinhamgs brother. Spanish
Jesuits prosecuted and killed Protestants to save England from Devil. This
action was not taken by Elizabeth with Catholic preachers. But not being a
prosecutor was not enough to prevent the war that was about to be unshackle.
After intercepting Marys letters and getting to know her plans, England was
due to take action with this act of treason so she was executed. Once Philip got
the news, he immediately trigger a war sending his Armada to battle on sea.
England was not in position of facing such a conflict as there was no money to
build defenses. However, their plan to attack on sea before Spanish fleet
entered to the River Thames and take Sussex and Norfolk, triumphed.
England defeated Spain, letting Philip I reign in ruins as it was the biggest loss
in that country. On the other hand, England had its most outstanding victory.
To sum up, Elizabeths tenure was one of the most important times in English
history. Not only because of the prosperity after handle religious problems but
also of her strength and wisdom amongst the fact of being a woman ruling a
country by herself. As some experts say, she didnt need to share her power or
to gain more by getting a husband, she empowered herself as to protect and
give her best to her realm.