Elizabethan England

• Monarch


  Head of state, appointed by God to be his representative on earth
• Court


  • Group of people who lived in/near same house as Queen, role advise + entertain
• Secretary of state


  Most important member of Privy Council and Queen's closest advisor, Parliament
• Parliament


  Passed laws in House of Commons & House of Lords
• Justice of Peace


  Kept laws and order in local areas, ensuring policies were carried out
• Lord Lieutenant


  • Chosen by Queen to maintain her power and England's defences, training local people to fight in emergency
• Privy Council


  • Made up of leaders, courtiers, advisors, nobles and senior government officials, chosen by Queen to debate and advise her
• Sir Francis Walsingham was Secretary of State from 1572-1590
• Sir William Cecil was Secretary of State from 1558-1572 and 1590-1598
• Patronage


  Queen chooses who has what position in society
• Divine right


  Divine right to rule from God (monarch)
• Ridolfi plot (1571) was a plot to kill Elizabeth, involving King Philip II of Spain, the Duke of Norfolk, and Mary, Queen of Scots
• Throckmorton plot (1583) was a plot to kill Elizabeth and have Mary, Queen of Scots take the throne, supported by King Philip II and Pope Gregory
• Babington Plot (1586) was a plot to kill Elizabeth, involving Anthony Babington as a double agent for Sir Francis Walsingham
• Elizabeth and Mary, Queen of Scots


  Second cousins, Elizabeth respected Mary but didn't want her to gain power
• Types of Christianity


  • Catholic: Head of church Pope, forgive sins, higher status, churches decorated with gold, bible written in Latin
  • Protestant: Head of church Monarch, to forgive sins = pray, modest churches, bible written in various languages
  • Puritan: Extreme version of Protestants, pure, nothing extravagant (seen as bad/sinful)
• Mass


  Catholic service, bread and wine as body and blood of Christ
• Reformation


  Challenge to teachings and power of Roman Catholic church
• Clergy


  • Religious leaders, key members of church: priests, bishops, archbishops
• Bible


  Book has teachings of the church
• Sacraments


  Special church ceremonies (7 total), baptism, marriage, funerals
• Holy Communion


  Another name for Mass, mainly in Protestant churches
• Diocese


  Area looked after by a Bishop
• Act of Persuasions (1581)

  Refusing to go (Protestant church)
• Recusances


  Raised fine by 10,000% to £20 per month, added £200 a year for persistent recusants
• Attending service of mass

  £66 fine
• Persuasion of a Protestant to become catholic

  Treason + death
• Act against Priests (1585)


  Death penalty for sheltering + helping priest, treasonable to be priest, acting on info from neighbours / informers, soldiers could come at any time to search
• Recusanay Act (1587)


  Government could take 3/3 of land owned by any recusant who had fallen behind with paying