Elizabeth Society

Question 1

How did Geographical and Economical aspects change under elizabeth?

Answer 1

• Geographical aspects remained the same in that most people lived in rural areas
• London had most amount of people 150,000 and was a large urban center
• Economically The gentry class increased
• The professional class increased so did landowners and land income
• The wealth gap increase due to DECLINE IN REAL WAGES and issues with enclosures and inflation

Question 2

What were the 4 years in which Elizabethean Poverty laws were passed?

Answer 2

• Act of 1572
• Act of 1576
• Acts of 1598 and 1601

Question 3

What was the deserving poor? What was the subcategory of deserving poor- impotent poor?

Answer 3

• Deserving poor was the catergory of poor individuals who were actively seeking work or who were orphans or elderly
• Impotent poor were also deserving poor and were people who coudn’t look after themselves e.g sick old

Question 4

What was undeserving poor?

Answer 4

• Who society considered to be undersving of poor relief
• Beggars
• Vagarants
• Vagabonds

Question 5

What did Act of 1572 do?

Answer 5

• It stated that local landowners should a pay a percentage of their taxes for poor relief

Question 6

What did Act of 1576 do?

Answer 6

• Act that stated that local counties are responsible for finding employment for deserving poor
• National system of poor relief that was locally funded and managed

Question 7

What did the Elizabethan Act of 1601 do?

Answer 7

• It makes the Parish chuces the insitutions that are responsible for ensuring the raising of taxes for poor relief and to adminster poor relief
• It was done through a oversear of the poor who was incahrge of all this in the parish church
• The impotent poor had to be dealt with. The able bodied were sent to work, and the orphans were given apprentiships
• All this was overseen by the Justices of the Peace

Question 8

What was the weakness and failure of Elizabeths poverty laws?

Answer 8

• The treatment of the undersving poor
• They were completely shunned aside
• They were laws in 1572 and 1597 that allowed whipping for them and they weren’t given any form of help whatsoever

Question 9

Overall Success of Poverty Laws

Answer 9

• Instituions created through the Acts of 1572, 1576 and 1601 were tremoundous in providing atleast a minimal level of substinence for the poor
• A transformational system that seted to overhaul the poverty system and institions in england for poverty
• Failure was undeserving poor they were never included thus it was succesful but only to a great extent and not compeletly since it was limited in relation to undeserving poor