Elizabeth GSCE Edexcel

• Elizabeth was the most powerful figure in Elizabethan England. Everyone was expected to be loyal to the Queen and obey her.
• The Privy Council was a group of around twenty of the Queen's most trusted counsellors. They advised her on all aspects o government and ensured her wishes were carried out. They were expected to obey her orders even if they disagreed with her.
• Parliament was made up of members of the nobility and the gentry. The Queen needed Parliament's consent to pass new laws or raise Taxes. Parliament only met when the Queen summoned it, and Elizabeth tried avoid using it- she only called Parliament 12 times during her 44-year reign.
• The Queen relied on members of the nobility and gentry to enforce law and order throughout the country. Local government posts like Justice of the Peace and sheriff were unpaid, but many men were volunteered in order to increase their local power and influence. Justice of the Peace were particularly important0 they enforced the law, provided for the poor and ensured roads and bridges were maintained.
• Elizabeth used patronage to ensure the support of the nobility and gentry. This often involved handing out titles and offices that gave the holder a source of income. Elizabeth distributed patronage widely to ensure that no-one felt left out- this helped to ensure political stability.
• England's population had been rising steadily since around 1500. Most people lived and worked in rural areas, but towns and cities were growing rapidly. London was by far the largest and most important city.
• The economy was dominated by agriculture, but farming practices were changing. The export of woollen cloth to Europe was very important to the economy, but merchants were also starting to explore trade with Americas and Asia
• Elizabethan society was dominated by a small, land-owning aristocracy of nobility and gentry. There was also a growing number of wealthy men who earned their living as lawyers or merchants.
• There was a great inequality, and the divide between rich and poor was growing. Poverty became a mjor problem in Elizabethan England.
• No-one expected her to become queen, as she was third in line.
• Elizabeth had a difficult upbringing and sometimes feared for her life. In 1554, she was accused of conspiring against her half-sister Mary I, and placed under house arrest for almost a year.
• Elizabeth was very cautions- only trusted a few advisors, She was Intelligent, confident and very well educated.
• She was declared Illegitimate- In 1533, Henry VII had divorced his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, and married Anne Boleyn. Divorce was forbidden in the Catholic Church, so many Catholics believed Henry's marriage to Anne was not valid and their daughter, Elizabeth, was illegitimate.

  Anne was executed in 1535- Henry Declared Eliz illegitimate. Some protestants still claimed her illegitimate.
• The issue of Elizabeth's legitimacy weakened her claim to the throne and allowed others, especially Mary Queen of Scots to claim that they had more right to rule.
• People thought it would Unnatural for a Women to be in charge. They believed a monarch should be a man and a woman ruling would be unnatural. Most people expected Eliz to act as a figurehead, without any control for power. Eliz was determined to rule and refused to let her counsellors take over
• Elizabeth was expected to Marry and produce an heir. People believed women coudln't rule well and Elizabeth was pressed to produce an heir. If eliz died, there might have been a civil war aswell. Eliz had to marry and produce a heir, she was reluctant to marry- if she married she would lose her power and freedom if she married, Becayse she never married, she became known as the 'Virgin Queen'
• The English economy was weak- Under King Edward VI, huge sums of money had been spent on wars in Scotland. Queen Mary i had also spent too much money, as a result Elizabeth inherited enormous debts when she became queen.
• Mary I had sold off large amounts of land owned by the Crown to cover her debts. Although this had raised money in the short term, in the longer term it reduced the monarch's income from rent.
• The taxation system was old-fashioned and ineffective. While ordinary people faced high axes, it had become very common for members of the nobility and gentry to pay less tax then they owed.
• England was suffering high levels of inflation. This meant that prices were rising, while wages stayed the same or fell. The poor and those living in urban areas were hit hardest by inflation.
• Eliz was reluctant to reform the tax system and raise taxes because she feared it would upset the nobility and gentry who supported her goverment.
• In 1557, Mary I took England to war with France. She did this to support her husband, Phillip II of Spain , who was already fighting the French.
• The war was not a success. In Jan 1558, the French conquered Calais, England's last remaining territory on the European mainland.
• When Elizabeth became queen in November 1558, she wanted to end the war with France as quickly as possible. Peace was agreed in 1559.
• When Elizabeth became queen, Scotland was controlled by France's Catholic royal family and there were many French Troops in the country. However, the French rule was unpopular with many Scots.
• In 1558, Mary Queen of cots married the heir to the French throne. As Catholics, the French royal family disliked Elizabeth(protestant) and wanted England to be ruled by a catholic. Mary's marriage increased the risk that the French might invade from Scotland to try and put her on the English throne.
• In the late 1550s, Scottish protestants , led by the preacher John Knox, rebelled against the French rule. They appealed to England for support, and in 1560 English troops and ships were sent to help them.
• The French were defeated and forced to leave Scotland. The departure of the French, combined with the death of Mary's French husband in 1560, greatly reduced the threat of invasion.
• Protestant reformations happened across europe gradually

  The protestant reformers believed Christians were saved by faith.

  questioned the authority of the pope

  Translated Bible to Latin

  They thought churches should be plain and simple.
• Until thee 1530s, England was a catholic Country, most people were Catholics. Henry broke away from the Roman Catholic Church, he ejected the Pope's authority and made himself head of the Church.

  Henry did not support the Protestant Reformation, so Catholic beliefs and practices remained largely unchanged,
• Edward VI was a strong protestant and tried to reform the English Church.
• He made churches and church services more simpler. Statues and decorations elaborate Catholic vestments. A new, Protestant prayer book was issued, and church services were held in English, not latin.
• Queen Mary I was a devout Catholic. She restored the Pope as Head of the English Church, removed Edward's protestant reforms and brought back Catholic beliefs and practices.
• Under mary, nearly 280 protestants were executed for their beliefs.
• Elizabeth I had been raised as a protestant. She had seen the turmoil caused by Edward VI's protestant reforms and the violence of mary I. She wanted o end the constant religious changes of the last 30 years by creating a stable and religious settlement.
• • The Act of Supremacy gave Eliz control of the church
  • The Act of Supremacy, meant that Elizabeth made herself the 'Supreme Governor of the English Church'
  • The Act of Supremacy required churchmen and people holding public office to swear to the Oath of Supremacy. They had to recognise the queen as Supreme Governor of the English Church and promise to be loyal to her.
• The Act of Uniformity made Moderate Protestant reforms-

  The Act of Uniformity and the Royal injunctions, both passed in 1559, imposed moderate Protestant reforms on the English Church, but they also made concessions to English Catholics.
• Reforms

  1. Going to Church was compulsory - there were fines for missing a Church service.
  2. A new book of common prayer was issued, which had to be used in all churches.
  3. All parishes had to have a copy of the Bible in English.
• Concessions:

  1. The wording of the communion service(an important Christian ceremony) was kept deliberately vague, so that it could be accepted by both Protestant and Catholics.
  2. Churches were allowed to keep some decorations, and priests had to wear certain Catholic vestments.
• Elizabeth wanted everyone in England to conform to her religious settlement. Royal commissioners were ordered to visit churches throughout the country to ensure that the Acts and injunctions were being enforced.