ELIZABETHAN ENGLAND

• Why was illegitimacy a problem for Elizabeth?

  Henry had divorced his first wife, Catherine of Aragon prior to marrying Anne Boleyn, who was Elizabeth's mother. The Catholic Church didn't believe in divorce, so many people thought that his 2nd marriage wasn't valid, so Elizabeth was illegitimate. This called into question Elizabeth's claim to th throne.
• What were some strengths of England when Elizabeth came to the throne?

  • more peaceful after the war of the roses
  • King Henry VIII made himself head of the Church, giving the monarch more power than the pope
  • the printing press meant more people could read
  • Edward VI had become King at 9, and made all Churches strictly protestant
• What were some weaknesses of England when Elizabeth came to the throne?

  • big divisions between Catholics and Protestants
  • the population was increasing, and most people lived in the countryside so there was rapidly growing poverty
  • harvests were failing, increasing the problem of poverty
• What was a foreign strength of England when Elizabeth came to the throne?

  the Netherlands were protestant, so were friends with England
• What were some foreign weaknesses of England when Elizabeth came to the throne?

  • Scotland was a traditional enemy of England, and was also allies with France, which was extremely Catholic
  • England sold cloth to the Netherlands, which was controlled by Spain
  • Spain was growing in power, and was Catholic
  • France was Britain's traditional enemy. Mary 1 went to war with France, and lost in Calláis in 1558
• What were some personal strengths of Elizabeth's background when she came to the throne?

  • taught by Kat Ashley, and recieved an amazing education
  • Catherine Parr took care of Elizabeth, and influenced her to be protestant
  • When Mary I was declared queen, she and Elizabeth rode to London together as a sign of unity
  • In 1544, she was restored as an heir to the throne
• What were some personal weaknesses of Elizabeth's background when she came to the throne?

  • her mother was executed by Henry VIII, so she was classed as illegitimate
  • In a political scandal in 1549, she and Thomas Seymour were accused of having a relationship
  • Seymour was executed after being accused of plotting against Edward VI with Elizabeth
  • Elizabeth was treated as a suspect during Mary's reign. After the Wyatt Rebellion, Elizabeth was imprisoned in the tower of London.
• What was the Privy Council?

  A group of trusted ministers who helped Elizabeth govern England
• What did the Privy Council do?

  Co-ordinated financial departments, law courts and regional bodies. They also managed relations between Parliament and ELizabeth. They acted as Royal Spokesmen, and helped to steer debates in favour of royal policies.
• How many people were there in the Privy Council?

  There were originally 20 men, but she later narrowed this number down to 12. She removed the nobility members, as they were less controllable through patronage.
• Who was William Cecil?

  • He was Elizabeth's closest advisors, and she made him Principal Secretary when she came to the throne.
  • In 1571, she gave him the title Lord Burghley. In the next year, she made him Lord High Treasurer, giving him greater control over Royal Finances
  • He was a moderate protestant
• What were the 3 main jobs of parliament?

  • to advise local councils
  • to control taxes (the queen needed parliament's permission to raise taxes)
  • legislation: the queen needed parliament's permission to pass new laws. However she could bypass this by issuing Royal Proclamations instead
• In what year did Elizabeth become queen?

  1558
• What were some problems with parliament during Elizabeth's reign

  • Elizabeth was pressured a lot to choose an heir to throne. She later banned this discussion from parliament
  • Some puritan MPs also challenged the religious settlement, and wanted England to be more protestant.
  • MPs were worried about Mary Queen of Scots and Catholic Plots surrounding her.
  • Elizabeth only called 13 sessions of parliament throughout her entire 44-year reign.
• How many people were in the court?

  1000
• What was the role of Elizabeth's Court?


  • impress foreign visitors
  • entertainment
  • personal monarchy (closer to Liz = more power)
  • travel with Elizabeth on progressions
• What was patronage?


  Elizabeth gave titles ( with power and wealth) to some nobility to ensure that others would be loyal to try and gain the same rewards
• What was divide and rule?


  Chose people with differing opinions and beliefs to be in her court and her council so that they wouldn't team up and rebel against her
• Who was Christopher Hatton?

  • moderate protestant who disliked puritans
  • well educated member of the gentry
  • was Captain of the Queen's Bodyguard, and became Lord Chancellor in 1587
  • he was loyal and helped ELizabeth organise progressions
  • was allies with Cecil
• Who was Francis Walsingham?

  • well educated member of the gentry, skill with languages allowed him to be French Ambassador in the 1560s
  • puritan, exiled in Mary's reign
  • member of privy council in 1573, knighted in 1577
  • was very loyal, and acted as spy master
• Who was Robert Dudley?

  • childhood friends with Elizabeth, even rumours of romance
  • questionable background, with a disgraced father, so many questioned his authority
  • privy councillor in 1562, and became Earl of Leicester in 1564
  • clashed with Cecil, allies with Walsignham
• Who was Robert Devereaux?

  • stepson of Dudley
  • well educated at Cambridge
  • popular and ambitious, but was arrogant and argumentative
  • joined council in 1593, but was resentful of the Cecils' influence
  • led a rebellion to capture the queen, but it lasted only 12 hours.
• How did religious changes lead to more poverty?

  • after the dissolution of the monasteries, there was a lack of support for poor, ill and disabled people
• When and what was the dissolution of the monasteries?

  1536 - 1541, Henry VIII closed down all monasteries and sold off their land
• How did population growth lead to an increase in poverty?

  • population of England grew from 3 million to 4 million, but food production didn't keep up, leading to shortages and increased prices
  • wages didn't increase, so standard of life fell for workers.
  • there was increased competition for land, so rent increased
• How did agricultural changes lead to increases in poverty?

  • enclosed fields to form large farms instead of traditionally divided fields required fewer labourers, so farmers who had previously rented strips of land were evicted. they became unemployed and homeless
  • these people were forced to move to towns or cities looking for work, and the government thought these people were "vagabonds" and feared they would cause riots.
  • exporting wool = more profit than grain, so farmers stopped producing grain, which led to more food shortages.
• Who were the helpless poor?

  • those who couldn't support themselves; young orphans and the elderly, sick or disabled
• Who were the deserving poor?


  People who wanted to work, but weren't able to find a job in their home town or village
• Who were the undeserving poor?

  The vagabonds who were fit to work, but refused to find a job
• Describe the poor laws

  • in the 1960s, the poor rate was introduced
  • more laws in 1597 and 1601 made them poor rate a national system of compulsory taxation
  • the undeserving poor were publicly whipped and then forced to return to their home parish. Repeat offenders could be sent to prison.
• What was the poor rate?

  A locally enforced (by an officer called the overseer of the poor) tax used to provide hospitals and houses for the elderly, sick and disabled.

  Poor children were given apprenticeships, and local authorities were also expected to provide financial support and work for the deserving poor.
• Who were the gentry?

  wealthy landowners
• Why did the gentry grow in size?

  • dissolution of the monasteries meant more land was available to buy
  • merchants became wealthy and used their money to buy land
  • Tudors had marginalised the nobility, giving them very few titles, and leaving a gap to be filled by the gentry, allowing them to grow a lot in political power.
• Describe new houses in the Elizabethan age

  • many members of the gentry improved or built new homes. this was called the Great Rebuilding
  • this allowed the elite to show off wealth using large windows or landscaped gardens
  • improved living standards due to better chimneys and fireplaces
• Describe art in Elizabethan England

  • portraits were very popular, and included a lot of symbolism
  • gentry paid for elaborate decorations for their homes, including tapestries and carvings
• Describe literature in Elizabethan England

  • elite support for playwrights grew and acting companies helped the flourishing of Elizabethan theatre
  • poetry became very popular
• Describe education in Elizabethan England

  • more people could afford education
  • some noble families had private tutors, so more students from the gentry and nobility went to grammar schools or university.
• Describe theatre in Elizabethan England

  • first theatres were built in the 1570s, including "the theatre" and "the curtain"
  • was considered a Golden Age for playwrights
  • women weren't allowed to perform on stage
  • companies included "the lord chamberlain men" and "the admirals' men"
  • appealed to all, with tickets starting at 1p. Rich and poor sat separately
• Describe the problem of the succession

  • people worried Elizabeth couldn't rule alone, and expected her to find a husband
  • people were considered about a lack of an heir. If she died without one, there would be multiple groups competing for the throne
  • the privy council and parliament asked her to name an heir multiple times, but in 1566, she banned them from ever discussing it again.
• What would be the problem with marrying a foreigner?

  • it would give another country too much influence over England
  • for example, Mary I married Phillip of Spain, which caused England to become involved in an expensive war with France