Virgin Queen: legitimacy, gender and marriage

• When Elizabeth became queen following the death of her older sister, Mary, she had to find a way of establishing her authority as reigning monarch
• Elizabeth


  • Young
  • 21 years old
  • Lacked experience
• Elizabeth's government needed money
• Problems facing Elizabeth when she became queen

  • Elizabeth was unmarried and it was unusual for a queen to rule in her own right
  • Elizabeth's legitimacy was in doubt as the Pope had refused to recognise her mother's marriage to Henry VIII
  • Catholics refused to acknowledge Elizabeth's right to rule England
  • Elizabeth was Protestant, her predecessor Mary was Catholic
• Many Catholics, especially in the north, disliked the way Henry had taken over the Church in 1534 (the Act of Supremacy) and dissolved the monasteries. They questioned Elizabeth's legitimacy, claiming that she had no right to rule. They preferred a Catholic monarch and there was a real risk of rebellion
• Key issues facing Elizabeth in 1558

  • It was widely expected that Elizabeth would marry, but this would reduce her power
  • Elizabeth's inexperience meant she needed the support and advice of her Privy Council, especially her Secretary of State, Sir William Cecil
  • Elizabeth could issue royal proclamations and had prerogative powers, enabling her to govern without parliament's consent, especially in foreign policy. However, laws could only be passed with parliament's approval as Acts of Parliament
• Elizabeth's father, Henry VIII, had divorced Catherine of Aragon and married Anne Boleyn. The pope refused to recognise this divorce. When Anne Boleyn was executed in 1536, Henry excluded Elizabeth from the succession, although he reversed this decision before his death
• Legitimacy


  Whether a monarch is lawfully entitled to rule
• Problems of marriage for Elizabeth

  • If Elizabeth married a Protestant, this would anger Catholics
  • If she married a Catholic, this would upset Protestants
  • Marriage could involve England in expensive wars, damaging royal finances and requiring taxation
  • Yet marriage was important, as Elizabeth needed an heir. If she died without an heir the throne would be vacant and this could lead to civil war
• To Pass laws Elizabeth needed the support of parliament
• Catholics refused to acknowledge Elizabeths right to rule England