How did Mary's gender limit her royal authority?
- There was no precedent for a **queen regnant** (last queen being Queen Matilda of the 12th Century)
- She was already **37 years old** so producing a legitimate catholic heir to secure a dynasty would be difficult if not impossible
- When a woman got married, even a queen, she was expected to submit any power to her husband - anxieties over an English noble family or foreign king taking power