Elizabethan England 1558-88 Flashcards
Who made up Elizabeth’s government?
-The court
-The privy council
-Parliament
-Justices of the Peace
-Lord lieutenants
Who were the court?
Noblemen who acted as the monarch’s advisers and friends
Who were the privy council?
Members of the nobility who helped govern the country
Who were the parliament?
They were made up of the House of Lords and the House of Commons and advised Elizabeth’s government
Who were the justices of the peace?
Large landowners appointed by government who kept law and order locally and heard court cases
Who were the lord lieutenants?
Noblemen appointed by government who governed english counties and raised the local milita
What is milita?
A force of ordinary people raised in an emergency
What is the social hierarchy of the countryside from least to most important?
-Homeless and vagrants
-Landless and labouring poor
-Tenant farmers
-Yeomen farmers
-Gentry
-Nobility
What is the social hierarchy of towns from least to most important?
-Unemployment
-Craftsmen
-Business owners
-Professionals
-Merchants
What are tenant farmers?
People who rented land from yeoman farmers and gentry
What are yeoman farmers?
People who owned a small amount of land
What are gentry?
People who owned smaller estates
What are merchants?
Traders who were very wealthy
Explain obedience and care in Elizabethan society.
You owed respect and obedience to those above you and had a duty of care to those below
What problems did Elizabeth face when she became queen?
-Young (21) and lacked experience
-Her government needed money
-Her legitimacy was in doubt as the pope didn’t recognise her mother’s marriage to Henry VIII
-Catholics refused to acknowledge her right to rule
-She was protestant
-She needed parliaments support to pass laws
-She was unmarried
How did Elizabeth face financial weakness?
-The Crown was £300,000 in debt
-Since the 1540s the crown devalued the coinage by reducing its silver and gold content in order to make more money to fight wars against France
-This resulted in inflation as the value of the currency fell
What challenges did Elizabeth face from abroad in 1558?
-The french threat
-The auid alliance
-France had ended its war with spain
What was the french threat in 1558?
-France was wealthier than england and had a bigger population
-Mary Queen of Scots was married to the heir to the french throne
-Mary had a strong claim to the english throne and english catholics might rally to her if the french invaded