We all know her as “the Virgin Queen”. Why actually? I am now reading a very good book by Alison Weir about this interesting lady and I wanted to share this with you.
Youth
All Henry VIII really wanted, was a son as his successor… I think we all know this (read my blog The Women behind the Tudors). To marry his second wife, Anne Boleyn, he even broke with Rome. Anne Boleyn gave birth in 1533 to one child – a daughter – Elizabeth….
When Elizabeth was two years old, her mother was beheaded on charges of adultery and betrayal. The many miscarriages and the absence of a male heir played a role in her father’s decision. Her father remarried Jane Seymour, with whom he finally got a son in 1537, the later Eduard VI.
At the time of Henry VIII’s death in 1547, 14-year-old Elizabeth was being raised by her fourth stepmother, Henry’s sixth wife, the Protestant Catharine Parr and her new husband Thomas Seymour. Elizabeth’s half-brother Eduard VI died in 1553, not yet 16 years old. He was succeeded by Jane Grey, a great niece of Henry VIII, who resigned after only 9 days. Then Henry’s eldest daughter and Elizabeth’s sister, Mary Tudor, became Queen of England.
Elizabeth was seen as a potential threat to Mary because of her stubborn Protestantism and she was suspected of conspiring against her sister. Following letters from Thomas Wyatt, Elizabeth was imprisoned in the Tower of London. There has never been evidence against the princess and Elizabeth got some benefit from the doubt; in 1554 she was placed under house arrest in Woodstock, Oxfordshire.
When Mary died in 1558, Elizabeth was the only legitimate heir to the throne.
The Marriage game
Elizabeth was crowned Queen of England in January 1559. Her 45-year government would be dominated by religious tensions, both in foreign policy and in domestic relations, although in England it remained relatively quiet compared to the European continent.
Elizabeth I remained unmarried all her life and therefor nicknamed Virgin Queen, although it was actually a duty for a monarch to marry and provide a successor. Philip II, widower of her older sister, had been the first to make an offer, even when Mary was alive, but became the first to be rejected. Many marital candidates would follow afterwards, and so many rejections; include the Habsburger Charles II of Austria and the 23 years younger French crown prince, Francis of Anjou.
The most serious candidate was Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester, and Alison Weir’s book refers to this “affair”. Elizabeth probably seriously considered marrying him, especially after his wife died in 1560. However, the circumstances of the death of Dudley’s wife were suspicious and for that reason alone Elizabeth would have damaged her reputation by marrying Dudley. Until Dudley’s death in 1588 she maintained a good, but never fully clarified relationship with him.
From the parliament strong pressure was exerted on her to get married anyway and to ensure succession, but she resisted it. Over the years, with this attitude she appeared to have strengthened her own position. A virginity cult arose around her person; she presented herself as a queen who was married to her people.
Mary, Queen of Scots
The Scottish Catholic Queen Mary Stuart, a distant cousin of Elizabeth, had been bothering her for years with her own claim to the English throne. In her own country she had made herself impossible, in particular because of disastrous choices of two successive marriage partners, so that in 1567 she had to flee to England. Initially she was treated with respect, but because she maintained her claim, she was placed under arrest in 1568. Indications of Mary’s involvement with the Babingtoncomplot were found. She had to stand trial before a court of forty nobles, including Catholics. Mary Stuart denied the accusations, but it did not help. She was found guilty and beheaded at Fotheringhay Castle in Northamptonshire on February 8, 1587.
A wonderful movie just came about this rivalry between these two queens: Mary, Queen of Scots.
In her will, Mary Stuart turned her claim to the English throne to the Spanish King Philip II. He found support from the Pope for this claim and continued his plans to invade England. Francis Drake destroyed part of the Spanish fleet at Cádiz in 1587, delaying Philip’s plans.
Armada
It was not until July 1588 that the Spanish Armada, a huge war fleet of 130 ships with more than 30 000 troops sailed in the direction of the Canal. The plan was to transfer an invasion force from the Southern Netherlands under the direction of the fearsome general Alexander Farnese, the Duke of Parma. The country was therefore in deadly danger. If such a large Spanish army could get ashore, England would have no noteworthy defense against it.
On August 8 1588, the Spanish galleons were dispersed by burners and then heavily damaged by the guns of the smaller but more agile English ships under the command of Charles Howard and Francis Drake. After the wind was unfavorable for an invasion, the Spanish fleet sailed back to Spain, but was ollowed by English ships. As a result of heavy wind and currents, many ships crashed on the Irish cliffs. This major event ensured that Queen Elizabeth became a national and historical figure.
Earl of Essex
After the death of Robert Dudley, her new favorite was Robert Devereux, the second Earl of Essex. Interesting detail, he was the son of Lettice Knollys, the second wife of Robert Dudley… The relationship between Elizabeth and Robert was stormy and turbulent, with a lot of arguments. Yet Elizabeth repeatedly forgave her favorite. But when in 1594, during an uprising in Ireland, he turned against her and forced her to make him Protector of England, he was captured and executed in 1601 in London.
Death and succession
Elizabeth died at the age of 69 on March 24, 1603. She was buried at Westminster Abbey. Her death meant the end of the Tudor dynasty. Elizabeth was succeeded by the Protestant-educated son of Mary Stuart, James. He was already King James VI of Scotland; he was given the title James I of England.
Reading Tip:
The Life of Elizabeth I by Alison Weir
Do you wan to see more images of Elizabeth, have a look at my Pinterest bord:
The Marriage Game
by Alison Weir
Bax of Things 