elizabethan - chapter 1.2 Flashcards
what were elizabeth’s problems at her accession
- people questioned her ability because she was a woman
- she wanted to change the countries religious policies again and re-establish protestantism as the official religion
- she was unmarried and had no children
- she needed to decide who to appoint as her advisors
- many people were living in poverty and liable to rebel
- her gov inherited massive debts from mary
- people questioned her legitimacy and whether she should be queen at all
- england was at war with france and had no allies
- she was young and inexperienced
where was the royal court located
it was a mobile operation, not confined to a particular building
it was located wherever the queen was
who ran the royal court
Lord Chamberlain
what did the royal court consist of
the Queen’s household, made up of about 500 nobles, advisors, officials and servants
in an age of personal monarchy what was crucial to any politician
access to the queen
why didn’t elizabeth build any palaces during her reign
she was short of money
what royal residences did elizabeth inherit and maintain
- her fav was Richmond
-> a comfortable residence built by her grandfather - in central London, the key residence was Whitehall Palace
-> covered about 20 acres with its gardens, orchards, tennis courts and tilt yard used for tournaments - St James Palace
- Hampton Court
- Greenwich
- Nonsuch
- Tower of London and Windsor Castle
-> luxurious palaces
-> served as secure places to go in times of crisis
-> she disliked the Tower but adored Windsor and it was the only residence she ever spent any money on alterations - she built a terrace and gallery
what would elizabeth do during most summers
travel with her royal court on tours called progresses, visiting the homes of the nobility
where did elizabeth tour on her progresses
her journeys covered the South East, Midlands and East Anglia
why were progresses good
they allowed elizabeth to be seen by her subjects regularly, to build a relationship with her people and to flatter the nobles she chose to stay with
what were the practical purposes of progresses
allowed elizabeth to live in luxury at the expense of her subjects, as the nobility desperately tried to impress through their extravagance and generosity in providing the queen and her courtiers with sumptuous accommodation, food and entertainment
the journeys also removed the court from the sweltering capital at times when the plague was rife and the absence of the household meant the filthy royal palaces could be fumigated before the queens return
what functions did the court serve
it was a social hub, providing the queen and her courtiers with a home and entertainment
it was a political nerve-centre
how did the court serve to give an impression of power
by displaying the queen’s magnificence to the nobility and visiting foreign guests through art and culture
there were lavish banquets, elaborate masques, musical performances, plays and tournaments that all acted as subtle propaganda, glorifying elizabeth’s image
how was loyalty to elizabeth encouraged
strict court ceremonies encouraged loyalty and obedience to elizabeth
what happened to impress and magnify the mystique of monarchy
on feast days, the queen dines in public with much pomp and ceremony, marching from the Chapel to Dining hall behind her councillors who carried her sceptres and sword of state
such rituals followed strict rules and were well rehearsed and were designed to impress and magnify the mystique of monarchy
elizabeth understood the importance of performance
how did the Privy Chamber change from Henry VIII to Elizabeth’s reign
in Henry VIII’s time, the monarchs private apartments - the Privy Chamber - had been a crucial power hub, with the kings friends and personal attendants also being the key politicians
with a woman on the throne, the political nature of the privy chamber was reduced - as it was staffed by females
how did elizabeth deal with the political nature of the privy chamber being reduced
she used a system of patronage
-> this involved showing favouritism by giving particular men more important jobs
she managed this system very carefully
she gave her male courtiers political roles and was equally careful to give key politicians places at court
the jobs given were highly sought after, because they brought wealth and prestige to the individual
although it was a highly corrupt system, it was very effective
it caused intense competition and rivalries between people
-> this suited elizabeth very well because it made everyone totally loyal to her
-> it also ensured that the court remained a political centre and made sure that elizabeth remained at the heart of the whole political system
what did the privy council do
co-ordinated financial departments, law courts such as the star chamber, and regional bodies such as the council of the north
it issued instructions to local officials such as Lord Lieutenants and Justices of the Peace
who were usually members of the Privy council
members were generally from the nobility, gentry and the church, but elizabeth could choose and dismiss members of her Privy council as she chose
how often did the privy council meet
met at court almost daily but elizabeth did not always attend the meetings
-> she came to trust her privy council, rarely interfering on a day-to-day basis. however she kept accurate notes to monitor their work
what was the key goal of the privy council
to advise and direct policy but elizabeth was not obligated to take their advice
in fact, elizabeth often demonstrated her right to ignore their advice
what did elizabeth often do with the advice of the privy council
she often demonstrated her right to ignore their advice, making a strong statement about her own political independence
who made the policy decisions
elizabeth
what powers did the privy council have
- could issue proclamations in the queen’s name, which had the force of law
- could command the arrest and imprisonment of individuals, although they rarely exercised such powers
- the council also proved skilful at guiding parliamentary business on behalf of the queen
what was elizabeth’s first privy council like
- it was a clever compromise
- by jan 1559, she had appointed 19 members (far more manageable than mary’s 40 members)
-> half were drawn from Mary’s council to maintain experience and avoid alienating important individuals
-> the other half were brand new, allowing elizabeth to reward loyal followers and to promote men of ability - she was careful not to appoint any strong catholics
what was the privy council like during the second half of elizabeth’s reign
the nobility were gradually moved out
it was a small, highly efficient group of educated, professional, full-time politicians, largely from the gentry
what could narrow membership in the privy council during the second half of elizabeth’s reign have led to
some argue this narrow membership became a weakness, causing resentment from powerful regional nobles and possibly encouraging rebellion
what was the most important appointment to the privy council made by elizabeth
- most important was one of her first
- William Cecil
-> elizabeth came to rely heavily on him
-> they worked together successfully until 40 years later at his death
what was William Cecil like
- he was in continual contact with the queen
- all elizabeth’s correspondence passed through him
- cecil was loyal, but he knew how to manage the queen
-> he threatened to resign to make her co-operate
-> he carefully used parliament to manipulate the queen into taking the position he wanted
why did elizabeth respect cecil
- respected him for speaking his mind, but knew he could carry out her wishes even if he personally disagreed
- he helped elizabeth manage the political patronage system and had his own patronage secretary (Sir Michael Hickes) who was responsible for dealing with the requests people made for various positions
who did Cecil have a difficult relationship with
he had a difficult relationship with another key member of the privy council made- the more radical and puritian Robert Dudley, a favourite of Elizabeth
how was elizabeth careful to control members of the privy council
sometime she showed affection and rewarded her ministers, but other times she showed displeasure
what did elizabeth do to some of the members of the privy council
- excluded both Dudley and Walsingham from court at various points
- imprisoned some
- executed Norfolk and Essex for treason
what did elizabeth deliberately do when appointing members of the privy council
- she deliberately appointed men who were hostile towards each other
- by forcing rival factions to work together on the council, it meant the men would compete with each other for her affection
- they would give her contrasting advice, which would then allow her to make measured decisions
-> whichever course of actions she pursued, she could be sure she would have some support
who decided when parliament should meet and for how long
the monarch
when was parliament called
if the monarch needed new laws to be passed or wanted to introduce new taxes
how did elizabeth regard parliament
she regarded it as an inconvenient necessity
what did Elizabeth’s very first parliament (in 1559) do
created a new Protestant church by restoring the royal supremacy over the Church of England
-> this undid Mary’s short-lived attempt at a Catholic restoration
how did parliament’s importance increase significantly
- essex gathered around 300 supporters
- rumours of treason and rebellion began to spread and essex refused elizabeth’s demands to appear in front of a court
- when 4 privy councillors went to his house to question him, he locked them up hostage, and proceeded to march with his men to the centre of london in an effort to capture the queen
- the government responded decisively
- londoners were unimpressed and most of his supporters quickly deserted him when they were offered a pardon
- essex found his route blocked, so returned home, where his house was surrounded by elizabeth’s forces, giving him no choice but to surrender
- accused of being a traitor, he was executed at the tower of london on 25ht february 1601
what was parliaments role
it was not parliaments role to govern, but simply to turn the policies of elizabeth and her ministers into laws
what did elizabeth’s’ financial problems mean
meant she had to rely heavily on parliamentary subsides (taxes)
why did MP’s become more self-confident in arguing with the queen
because they were better educated than in the past, with over half of them having a university education
what were MP’s supposed to have
special privileges, which allowed them freedom of speech and freedom from arrest
what did MP’s make complaints about that weren’t on the government agenda
- elizabeth’s marital status
- trading monopolies
- religious grievances
what did Puritans use the house of commons to do
organise and voice their opposition to the queen’s policies
some have suggested that in this way, elizabeth lost control during her reign
how did elizabeth make use of her powers to limit the influence of parliament
with her council, she used the force of her personality, attending parliament in person when necessary and using speeches to both charm and bully its members
she had the right to appoint the speaker, who was able to control which topics were discussed and steer the direction of the debate
she had the right to block measures proposed by MPs through using the royal veto
she imposed limits on MPs right to speak freely and did not shy away from imprisoning awkward MPs
she was able to dissolve any troublesome Parliament whenever she wished
how did the privy council control and manipulate parliamentary affairs
they were sat in both the House of Commons and House of Lords
how were MPs behaviour and independence severely restricted
MPs were carefully considered by the council before they were selected and local officials carefully supervised the elections when they took place
as so many MPs owed their seats to the patronage of the queen or her councillors, their behaviour and independence was severely restricted
what was elizabeth’s government like by the 1590s
it was in crisis
by the 1590s, why was elizabeth’s parliament in crisis
- the country had been severely damaged by war, plague, increased poverty and repeated harvest failures
- the patronage system that had worked so well started to break down, as a series of personal tragedies befell the queen
-> one by one, her trusted councillors and contemporaries died
-> elizabeth had come to rely heavily on them so with their deaths she became increasingly angry, depressed and bad tempered, causing her to lose popularity and face criticism
-> people started to sense she had reigned for too long and that she stood in the way of a much needed reform
when was the Essex rebellion
1601
how did the queen feel about Essex
- he had caught her eye
- however he was unpredictable, and his actions often angered the queen
- he had annoyed the queen by secretly marrying without her permission
what did essex to do anger the queen
- when she refused to promote one of his supporters, he lost his temper and insulted the queen
- then he turned his back on her in anger
- elizabeth punched essex
- he almost drew his sword but instead stormed out of the meeting
- after this he was banished from court
who was Essex’s rival
Robert Cecil
when was Essex given a chance to redeem himself and what actually happened
- when elizabeth asked him to defeat a rebellion in Ireland being led by the Earl of Tyrone in 1598
- essex miscalculated, making peace with Tyrone against elizabeth’s orders
- while essex was away fighting, the queen promoted cecil
- sparked by jealousy, essex burst into the queen’s bedchamber before she was wigged and gowned
-> for elizabeth, this level of disrespect was the final straw, and he was ordered before the privy council, and had to stand for 5 hours while being interrogated - later charges were made and he was again banned from court and placed under house arrest
- he lost all his jobs and his monopoly of sweet wines
the Essex Rebellion:
- essex gathered around 300 supporters
- rumours of treason and rebellion began to spread and essex refused elizabeth’s demands to appear in front of a court
- when 4 privy councillors went to his house to question him, he locked them up hostage, and proceeded to march with his men to the centre of london in an effort to capture the queen
- Londoners were unimpressed and most of his supporters abandoned him when they were offered a pardon
- Essex found his route blocked, so returned home, where his house was surrounded by Elizabeth’s forces, giving him no choice but to surrender
- accused of being a traitor, Essex was executed at the tower of London on 25th February 1601
when was Essex executed
25th February 1601
