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Elizabeth 1st

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Elizabeth I was an extremely intelligent and
educated ruler whose forty-five-year reign sig-
naled England’s rise as an empire. Elizabeth
established the country as a maritime nation,
sent the first English settlers to North America,
and advocated religious tolerance. Because she
left no heirs to her thrown, England was left in
turmoil at the end of what is called the Elizabe-
than era.
E lizabeth I reigned as queen of England from 1558
to 1603. During that time England began its rise
to become the empire “on which the sun never sets.”
Under Elizabeth popular culture flourished; her court
became a focal point for writers, musicians, and
scholars such as William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
and Francis Bacon (1561–1626), and explorers such
as Francis Drake (c. 1540–1596) and Walter Raleigh
(c. 1554–1618). The English economy expanded
greatly. She also encouraged a spirit of free inquiry
that in turn facilitated the Scientific Revolution and
the Age of Enlightenment.
Elizabeth inherited an England that was troubled
by inflation, bankruptcy, disastrous wars, and reli-
gious conflict. Poverty and disease were common.
From childhood Elizabeth’s own life was fraught
with danger. When she was only two years old, her
father (King Henry VIII, 1491–1547; reigned 1509–
1547) executed her mother, Anne Boleyn (his second
wife), and Elizabeth was declared illegitimate. After
her father died, her brother Edward (1537–1553;
reigned 1547–1553), the son of Henry’s third wife,
inherited the throne but lived for only a short time.
In 1553 Elizabeth’s Catholic half-sister Mary Tudor
(1516–1558; reigned 1553–1558), who was Henry’s
892
Elizabeth I
(1533–1603)
Queen of England
daughter by his first wife, became queen. In March
1554 Elizabeth was imprisoned in the Tower of Lon-
don, accused of plotting against Mary and of refus-
ing to embrace the Catholic religion. Elizabeth was
released in May but remained under suspicion and
was carefully watched until Mary died childless in
1558.
In this context the fact that Elizabeth ever became
queen, much less that she reigned for forty-five years,
is remarkable. But she had been forced to learn the
skills of survival at an early age, and these skills
served her throughout her life.
Still relatively young at twenty-five when she took
the throne, Elizabeth knew that, unlike her father,
she could not use an autocratic approach based on
absolute power. She would have to rule in a more
sophisticated way. She also knew the value of wise
counsel. She created a small cabinet of trusted
advisers, the most influential of whom was William
Cecil (1520–1598). When she appointed Cecil as
her secretary of state, she told him, “This judgment
I have of you, that you will not be corrupted by any
manner of gift, and that you will be faithful to the
state, and that without respect of my private will,
you will give me that counsel you think best, and if
you shall know anything necessary to be declared to
me of secrecy, you shall show it to myself only” (Luke
1973, 28). During the next forty years Elizabeth
rarely made an important decision without consult-
ing Cecil, although she did not always defer to his
advice.
Elizabeth was an intelligent ruler and made herself
familiar with all aspects of policy within and outside
her realm. Accordingly, people could deceive her only
with difficulty. Being multilingual, she was able to

Queen Elizabeth I posed in coronation robes
patterned with Tudor roses and trimmed with
ermine. Unknown artist, circa 1600, painted after a
lost original. National Portrait Gallery, London.
talk directly with ambassadors from many countries,
and this fact ensured that no information could be
lost in translation. Cecil’s admiration for her grasp of
policy and politics is evident in his remark that “there
never was so wise a woman born, for all respects,
as Queen Elizabeth, for she spake and understood
all languages; knew all estates and dispositions of
Princes. And particularly was so expert in the knowl-
edge of her own realm and estate as no counsellor she
had could tell her what she knew not before” (Som-
erset 1997, 64).
Although Elizabeth never traveled beyond Eng-
land, she was not an insular queen. Indeed, she was
an expert on foreign policy, and one of her legacies
was the establishment of England as a maritime
nation. Although she never formally condoned piracy
on the high seas, Elizabeth informally encouraged
(partly through financing) Francis Drake and other
sailors to plunder on her behalf. During her reign
English merchant ships challenged Spain’s seafaring
ELIZABETH I • 893
preeminence, and the first English settlers were sent
to North America.
Elizabeth was pragmatic about international affairs.
Careful with money, she was reluctant to fight wars
because their cost inevitably drained her treasury.
She also appreciated the necessity of managing her
reputation. Her courtiers frequently used propaganda
and “political spin” on her behalf. In matters of inter-
national politics monarchs were always aware of their
image. Their status within the international arena
also reflected directly on their courtiers, especially
ambassadors in foreign courts—prestige by associa-
tion. As a woman, Elizabeth was at a disadvantage
within the international hierarchy; however, her intel-
lect, judgment, and grasp of foreign policy became
legendary. Consequently, as her reign proceeded, the
reputation of both Elizabeth and of England grew.
Visual images of Elizabeth were also tightly con-
trolled. Paintings presented her as a powerful ruler
and cultivated her image as a forever youthful virgin
queen who was married to England and her subjects.
Elizabeth used her travels around the country to make
herself visible to her subjects. Her courtiers were often
amazed at how she allowed the common people to
approach her.
Religious divisions were a major issue through-
out Elizabeth’s reign. Her father, Henry VIII, had
rebelled against the pope and rejected the Catholic
Church, which dominated Europe. Subsequently,
Queen Mary, Elizabeth’s half-sister, had returned
England to Catholicism and married Philip II, the
Catholic king of Spain. Mary had persecuted people
who had resisted the Catholic religion. Elizabeth
was aware of the religious polarities within England
and was more tolerant. Although she returned her
country to Protestantism, Elizabeth recognized the
dangers of encouraging the extremist elements of
Protestantism. She insisted on changes in church ser-
vices but retained many of the trappings of Catholic
worship, such as crucifi xes, clerical robes, and
candlesticks.
Taking a religious middle ground, Elizabeth
brought a degree of peace to England—peace that
was not found in continental Europe, where religious
894 • BERKSHIRE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF WORLD HISTORY
Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger, Queen Elizabeth I
(c. 1592). Oil on panel. Elizabeth learned survival
skills at an early age, and they served her throughout
her life.
fanaticism and turbulence were rife. The Inquisi-
tion terrorized Spain, and in France heretics were
burned at the stake. By contrast, Elizabeth attempted
to defuse religious tensions by increasing outward
compliance with Protestant services. Any person
who did not attend church was subject to a fine. But
during the first part of Elizabeth’s reign Catholics
who either attended the parish church or paid their
fines for nonattendance could usually still practice
their religion privately without fear of persecution.
In contrast to Elizabeth’s more lenient attitude in
religious matters, her counselors feared that Catho-
lic religious extremists would assassinate the queen.
Francis Walsingham (c. 1532–1590), acting under
the direction of Cecil, was in charge of gathering
information about any threats to the queen through
a network of spies. Walsingham, who held extreme
Puritan views, operated a counterespionage organi-
zation that used double agents and torture to obtain
information. Although Elizabeth considered Wals-
ingham to be an extremist in terms of religion, she
admired his shrewdness and never doubted his devo-
tion to her welfare.
Elizabeth’s religious moderation was tested
when her cousin Mary, Queen of Scots (1542–
1587) took sanctuary in England in 1568 after an
uprising in Scotland. Mary was Catholic, and some
Catholic factions at the national and international
level believed that she was the rightful queen of
England. Cecil and Walsingham were concerned
that Mary’s presence in England posed a threat
to Elizabeth’s safety. After almost twenty years in
captivity in England, Mary was executed for trea-
son in 1587.
Like many leaders, Queen Elizabeth had a strong
sense of destiny: she had no doubt that her rise to the
throne was the will of God. When informed that her
half-sister Mary Tudor had died and that Elizabeth
was now queen, Elizabeth stated, “This is the Lord’s
doing; and it is marvelous in our eyes” (Marshall
1991, 47). Elizabeth viewed the advantages that
accrued from her sovereign status as far outweighing
the disadvantages that accrued from her gender. For
Elizabeth being a woman was more an irrelevance
than a handicap, stating that “my sex cannot dimin-
ish my prestige” (Somerset 1997, 60).
During the sixteenth century the first duty of a
monarch was to marry and have children, thereby
ensuring the succession of the throne. Cecil in par-
ticular was eager to secure the succession and create
a Protestant heir to the throne. As queen, Elizabeth
was expected to marry someone of royal blood. She
understood that marriage to a foreign prince offered
some security from hostile nations in Europe, but she
also understood that the English people were antago-
nistic toward foreigners. Mary Tudor’s marriage to
King Philip II of Spain had caused great disruption
within England. Elizabeth’s other option was mar-
riage to an English nobleman. She thought, however,
that such a marriage would create jealousies within
the nobility and could lead even to civil war. To her,
having to share power with a husband conflicted with
her sense of personal destiny. Elizabeth’s childhood
experiences and her knowledge of international poli-
tics had led her to believe that marriage would be dis-
advantageous both to her and to her realm. Although
an unmarried queen was considered unnatural at

A clear and innocent conscience fears nothing. • Elizabeth I (1533–1603)
that time, Elizabeth turned her single status into a
strength.
Elizabeth’s policy of remaining single did leave
the problem of succession. The loss of such a char-
ismatic leader as Queen Elizabeth left a vacuum in
England that resulted in great internal conflict. On
her death she was succeeded by the son of Mary,
Queen of Scots, James I of England (1566–1625;
reigned as James VI of Scotland 1567–1625 and as
king of England 1603–1625), who had been raised
a Protestant. This subsequent period in English his-
tory was one of social turmoil, religious strife, and
civil war.
Elizabeth was an extraordinary woman, respected
abroad and celebrated at home. Four hundred years
after her death we still recognize her legacy as one
of the greatest monarchs in English history. Her
reign brought increasing prosperity and peace and
strengthened England’s international interests. After
the turbulent years of Henry VIII’s reign, the rela-
tive stability that England enjoyed during Elizabeth’s
reign advanced the development of English culture.
Her reign led to the emergence of the mighty British
Empire. In North America, Virginia (named after Eliz-
abeth, the Virgin Queen) was explored and colonized.
England defeated the Spanish Armada and became
a dominant sea power. Drake circumnavigated the
globe. Sailors such as Raleigh and Drake took the
English language abroad; today it has become the
language of world communication. Her policies
encouraged development of parliamentary democ-
racy, a moderate Church of England, and, for her
time, a relatively prosperous, peaceful, and stable
society. Many scholars consider the Elizabethan era
to have been a golden age. Indeed, Elizabeth came
to be known as “Gloriana,” a name that reflected the
triumphs of her reign.
Margaret COLLINSON and
David L. COLLINSON
Lancaster University
See also British Empire; Enlightenment, The; Scientific
Revolution
ELIZABETH I • 895
Further Reading
Anthony, K. (1929). Queen Elizabeth. New York: Literary
Guild.
Cecil, D. (1973). The Cecils of Hatfield House. London: Constable
and Co.
Compton, P. (1933). Bad Queen Bess. Tonbridge, U.K.: Tonbridge
Printers.
Collinson, P. (1994). Elizabethan essays. Oxford, U.K.: Oxford
University Press.
Erickson, C. (1999). The fi rst Elizabeth. London: Robson
Books.
Fraser, A. (1992). The six wives of Henry VIII. London: Weidenfeld
and Nicholson.
Guy, J. (1988). Tudor England. Oxford, U.K.: Oxford University
Press.
Haigh, C. (1988). Elizabeth I. Harlow, U.K.: Longman.
Hibbert, C. (1992). The virgin queen: The personal history of
Elizabeth 1st. Harmondsworth, U.K.: Penguin Books.
Irwin, M. (1962). Elizabeth and the prince of Spain. London:
Chatto and Windus.
Jenkins, E. (1958). Elizabeth and Leicester. London: Panther
Books.
Jenkins, E. (1958). Elizabeth the great. Bungay, U.K.: Richard
Clay and Co.
Luke, M. (1970). A crown for Elizabeth. New York: Coward-
McCann.
Luke, M. (1973). Gloriana: The years of Elizabeth. Toronto,
Canada: Longman Canada.
Marshall, R. K. (1991). Elizabeth I. London: HMSO.
Miles, R. (1994). I, Elizabeth. London: Pan Books.
Milton, G. (2000). Big chief Elizabeth: How England’s adventur-
ers gambled and won the New World. London: Hodder and
Stoughton.
Neale, J. E. (1953). Elizabeth and her parliaments, 1559–1581.
London: Jonathon Cape.
Neale, J. E. (1958). Essays in Elizabethan history. London:
Jonathon Cape.
Plowden, A. (1973). Danger to Elizabeth. London:
Macmillan.
Plowden, A. (1980). Elizabeth Regina, 1588–1603. London:
Macmillan.
Ross, J. (1994). The Tudors. London: Artus Books.
Rowse, A. L. (1971). The Elizabethan renaissance: The life of the
society. Harmondsworth, U.K.: Penguin.
 896 • BERKSHIRE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF WORLD HISTORY

Sitwell, E. (1946). Fanfare for Elizabeth. London: Watkins, S. (1998). In public and in private: Elizabeth 1st and her
Macmillan. world. Singapore: C S Graphics.
Somerset, A. (1997). Elizabeth I. London: Phoenix. Weir, A. (1999). Elizabeth the queen. London: Pimlico.
Starkey, D. (2000). Elizabeth: Apprenticeship. London: Chatto Williams, N. (1967). Elizabeth: Queen of England. London:
and Windus. William Clowes and Son.
Strickland, A. (1906). The life of Queen Elizabeth. London: J. M. Williams, N. (1972). The life and times of Elizabeth I. London:
Dent and Sons. George Weidenfeld and Nicolson.
Thane, E. (1932). The Tudor wench. New York: Brewer, Warren Williams, P. (1998). The later Tudors: England 1547–1603.
and Putnam. Oxford, U.K.: Oxford University Press.

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