Elizabeth and Court

Question 1

Elizabeth’s government and court

Answer 1

• the monarch was the centre of government
• the court was wherever the monarch was
• court had to be attended by officials in order to get royal permission for their actions
• in order to get noticed and rewarded with patronage, nobles had to attend court
• loyal and competent men in court were promoted to posts in the Privy Council or Elizabeth’s Household
• favourites would also be promoted, and would then become targets of jealousy

Question 2

Elizabeth’s Privy Chamber and Household

Answer 2

• household=monarch’s domestic staff
• Lord Chamberlain was head of domestic staff
• household employed 1500 people
• the Household was divided into a number of departments
• the Privy Chamber was becoming less important, but it still performed the same domestic functions as it always had

Question 3

Patronage

Answer 3

• in return for loyalty, gifts were given, such as land, office, monopolies and titles
• the Queen and key ministers could bestow patronage
• the most value gift for the monarch was being given office, which may be in the church, the law, central government or in the Royal Household
• only 18 titles are given during Elizabeth’s reign
• by 1603 there were fewer nobles than there had been in 1558

Question 4

Monopolies

Answer 4

• sole rights to produce or sell a good

Question 5

Key courtiers - nobility

Answer 5

• Earl of Leicester, Robert Dudley
• Earl of Sussex
• Earl of Essex

Question 6

Key courtiers - gentry

Answer 6

• Lord Burghley, Sir William Cecil - most important and trusted advisor to Elizabeth
• Sir Christopher Hatton
• Sir Walter Raleigh
• Sir Francis Walsingham

Question 7

Elizabeth’s Ministers - William Cecil

Answer 7

• first served as Secretary of State under Elizabeth
• later became Lord Treasurer
• Cecil was favoured by Elizabeth because of his administrative skills
• Cecil’s political views matched Elizabeth’s
• both were relatively conservative and focussed on maintaining stability

Question 8

The role of Elizabeth’s ministers

Answer 8

• trusted advisors
• helped her govern the kingdom
• they were there to advise Elizabeth, and not to tell her what to do
• Elizabeth believed she has the ‘divine right’ to rule, which meant that she was specially chosen by god

Question 9

shaping the Queen’s image

Answer 9

• the ministers helped to make Elizabeth look good
• they helped uphold were image and how it was seen by her subjects and foreigners
• propaganda presented her as a powerful protestant queen who overcame the weaknesses usually associated with being a female

Question 10

Factional Rivalries - conservative faction

Answer 10

conservative court faction included:

• duke of Norfolk
• earl of Sussex
• earl of Shrewsbury
• sir James Croft
• sir Christopher Hatton
• conservative influence weakened in 1570s following the Norther Rebellion and the Ridolfi plot

Question 11

Factional Rivalries - protestant faction

Answer 11

protestant court faction included:

• sir William Cecil
• sir Walter Mildmay
• sir Francis Walsingham
• earl of Leicester
• earl of Warwick
• earl of Bedford
• from the 1570s they formed an inner ring around Elizabeth

Question 12

Early Privy Council factions

Answer 12

• Leicester and Cecil respectively had their own following at court
• they often disagreed on political issues
• Elizabeth’s potential marriage in the 1560s was conflicted over
• there were limited factional rivalries in the 70s and 80s
• rivalries were managed effectively by courtiers and Elizabeth

Question 13

Later Privy Council factions

Answer 13

• following the death of Leicester in 1588, Walsingham in 1590 and Hatton in 1592, factional rivalries grew
• Cecil’s influences was reduced by his ill health from 1592
• Robert Cecil replaced him not long after
• factions formed around Robert Cecil and Earl of Essex
• Essex lost Elizabeth’s favour and was executed in 1601 for treason

Question 14

faction

Answer 14

• group with a common interest