Queen Elizabeth I Biography

Elizabeth I (7 September 1533 – 24 March 1603) was Queen of England and Queen of Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes referred to as The Virgin Queen (since she was never married), Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth I was the fifth and final monarch of the Tudor dynasty, having succeeded her half-sister, Mary I. She reigned during a period of great religious turmoil in English history.

Elizabeth's reign is referred to as the Elizabethan era or the Golden Age and was marked by increases in English power and influence worldwide. Playwrights William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, and Ben Jonson all flourished during this era. In addition, Francis Drake became the first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe; Francis Bacon laid out his philosophical and political views; and English colonisation of North America took place under Sir Walter Raleigh and Sir Humphrey Gilbert. Elizabeth was a short-tempered and sometimes indecisive ruler. This last quality, viewed with impatience by her counsellors, often saved her from political and marital misalliances. Like her father Henry VIII, she was a writer and poet. She granted Royal Charters to several famous organizations, including Trinity College, Dublin (1592) and the British East India Company (1600).
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The reign was marked by prudence in the granting of honours and dignities. Only eight peerage dignities, one earldom and seven baronies in the Peerage of England, and one barony in the Peerage of Ireland, were created during Elizabeth's reign. Elizabeth also reduced the number of Privy Counsellors from thirty-nine to nineteen, and later to fourteen.

Virginia, an English colony in North America and afterwards a member of the United States, was named after Elizabeth I, the "Virgin Queen".

Elizabeth was the only surviving child of King Henry VIII of England by his second wife, Anne Boleyn, Marchioness of Pembroke, whom he secretly married sometime between the winter of 1532 and late January of 1533. She was born in the Palace of Placentia in Greenwich, on September 7, 1533. Henry would have preferred a son to ensure the Tudor succession, but upon her birth, Elizabeth was the heiress presumptive to the throne of England.

Her surviving paternal aunts included Margaret Tudor and Mary Tudor. Her maternal aunt was Lady Mary Boleyn. Her maternal uncle was George Boleyn, Viscount Rochford.

After Queen Anne failed to produce a male heir, Henry had her executed on charges of treason (adultery against the King was considered treason), incest with her elder brother and witchcraft. Elizabeth was three years old at that time and was also declared illegitimate and lost the title of princess. Thereafter she was addressed as Lady Elizabeth and lived in exile from her father as he married his succession of wives. Henry's last wife Catherine Parr helped reconcile the King with Elizabeth, and she, along with her half-sister, Mary, daughter of Catherine of Aragon, was reinstated in the line of succession after Prince Edward under the Act of Succession 1544.

Elizabeth's first governess was Lady Margaret Bryan, a baroness whom Elizabeth called "Muggie". At the age of four, Elizabeth had a new governess, Katherine Chapernowne, who was often referred to as "Kat". Chapernowne developed a close relationship with Elizabeth and remained her confidante and good friend for life. She had been appointed to Elizabeth's household before Anne Boleyn's death. Matthew Parker, her mother's favourite priest, took a special interest in Elizabeth's well-being, particularly since a fearful Anne had entrusted her daughter's spiritual welfare to Parker before her death. Later, Parker would become the first Archbishop of Canterbury after Elizabeth became queen in 1558. One companion, to whom she referred with affection throughout her life, was the Irishman Thomas Butler, later 3rd Earl of Ormonde (ob.1615).

In terms of personality, Elizabeth was far more like her mother than her father: neurotic, glamorous, flirtatious, charismatic and religiously tolerant. Elizabeth also inherited her mother's delicate bone structure, physique and facial features. She also inherited her mother's onyx black eyes and petite girth and not her father's enormous weight. However, from her father she did inherit her red hair.

Henry VIII died in 1547 and was succeeded by Edward VI. Catherine Parr married Thomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of Sudeley, Edward VI's uncle, and took Elizabeth into her household. It is believed that Seymour made advances towards Elizabeth while she lived in his household. There, Elizabeth received her education under Roger Ascham. She came to speak or read six languages: her native English, as well as French, Italian, Spanish, Greek, and Latin. Under the influence of Catherine Parr and Ascham, Elizabeth was raised a Protestant.

Elizabeth at the age of 13 by William ScrotsAs long as her Protestant half-brother remained on the throne, Elizabeth's own position remained secure. In 1553, however, Edward died at the age of fifteen, having left a will which purported to supersede his father's. Contravening the Act of Succession 1544, it excluded both Mary and Elizabeth from succeeding to the throne and declared Lady Jane Grey to be his heiress. Lady Jane ascended the throne, but was deposed less than two weeks later. Armed with popular support, Mary rode triumphantly into London, her half-sister Elizabeth at her side.

Mary I contracted a marriage with the Spanish prince Philip, later King Philip II of Spain, and she worried that the people might depose her and put Elizabeth on the throne in her stead. Wyatt's Rebellion in 1554 sought to prevent Mary from marrying Philip and, after its failure, Elizabeth was imprisoned in the Tower of London. There were demands for Elizabeth's execution, but few Englishmen wished to put a member of the popular Tudor dynasty to death. Mary attempted to remove Elizabeth from the line of succession, but Parliament would not allow it. After two months in the Tower, Elizabeth was put under house arrest under the guard of Sir Henry Bedingfield; by the end of that year, when Mary was falsely rumoured to be pregnant, Elizabeth was allowed to return to court at Philip's behest, as he worried that his wife might die in childbirth, in which case he preferred Lady Elizabeth to succeed rather than her next-closest relative, Mary I of Scotland. For the remainder of her reign, the staunchly Catholic Mary persecuted Protestants, and came to be known as "Bloody Mary" because of a desire to present her assertion of authority as cruel. She urged Elizabeth to take the faith, but the princess kept up a skilful show of allegiance to suit her own conscience and ambitions.

QUEEN ELIZABETH I PICTURES

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QUEEN ELIZABETH I BIOGRAPHY