Elizabethan England: Elizabeth and her Court

Question 1

Who were Elizabeth’s parents?

Answer 1

Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn

Question 2

Why did Elizabeth ascend the throne?

Answer 2

Her sister, Mary, had died

Question 3

When did Elizabeth become Queen?

Answer 3

1558

Question 4

Why wasn’t Elizabeth’s power secure?

Answer 4

• she had been declared an illegitimate child by the throne as her parents had not been officially married
• she was also Protestant in a country that had been mainly Catholic during her sister’s reign

Question 5

Name the different groups in Elizabeth’s Court life

Answer 5

• Monarch
• Privy Council
• Parliament
• The Royal Court
• Lord Lieutenants
• Justices of Peace

Question 6

Describe the role of the Justices of Peace

Answer 6

• large landowners
• appointed by the government
• kept law and order locally
• heard local court cases

Question 7

Describe the role of the parliament

Answer 7

• advised Elizabeth’s government
• made up of House of Lords and the House of Commons
• HoC elected, though barely anyone was allowed to vote
• passed taxes and approved laws

Question 8

Describe the role of Lord Lieutenants

Answer 8

• noblement
• appointed by the government
• ruled over English counties
• raised local militia

Question 9

Describe the role of the court

Answer 9

• noblemen who acted as the monarch’s closest advisers and friends
• advised queen and helped display her wealth and power
• could also be members of the Privy Council

Question 10

Describe the role of privy council

Answer 10

• members of the nobility who helped govern the country
• monitored parliament and Justices of Peace
• oversaw law and order + national security
• many were lizzy’s close advisers

Question 11

Who was the Privy Council led by?

Answer 11

The Secretary of State

Question 12

What were progresses?

Answer 12

Tours that Elizabeth would take, visiting the homes of the nobility

Question 13

Why were progresses beneficial?

Answer 13

• helped build better relations with the nobility
• allowed her to live in luxury at the expense of her subjects
• removed the court from the palace at times that the Plague was rife, so that it could be fumigated

Question 14

Define patronage

Answer 14

Involved handing out titles, offices or monopolies, which gave men a source of income

Question 15

Why was having a patronage beneficial to Elizabeth?

Answer 15

• made everyone loyal to lizzy
• ensured that she remained in the middle of the whole political system

Question 16

What were Elizabeth’s initial problems?

Answer 16

• legitimacy
• gender and marriage
• taxation
• foreign policy
• Mary, Queen of Scots
• Ireland
• succession

Question 17

How was legitimacy a problem for Elizabeth?

Answer 17

• the Act of Succession declared her an illegitimate child
• Many Catholics didn’t accept Henry VIII’s remarriage to Anne Boleyn

Question 18

How was sucession a problem for Elizabeth?

Answer 18

• last living child of Henry VIII
• no children of her own –> unclear who would succeed the throne after her
• when she was a child, she almost died of smallpox, which drew uncertanity to England’s future

Question 19

How was gender and marriage a problem for Elizabeth?

Answer 19

• women were not considered fit to rule a country
• Elizabeth’s sister Mary was hated by many due to burning people at stake, leaving England in debt, marrying the King of Spain and losing Calais
• so many felt they didn’t want another queen in charge

Question 20

How was taxation a problem for Elizabeth?

Answer 20

• country was short of money and lizzy needed to raise the taxes
• poverty was widespread, so this would be an unpopular decision

Question 21

How was foreign policy a problem for Elizabeth?

Answer 21

• Catholic countries wanted control over England + were backed by the pope
• so invasion was very likely

Question 22

Why was Mary, Queen of Scots a problem for Elizabeth?

Answer 22

• next in line to the throne would be Mary, Queen of Scots
• as lizzy didn’t have an heir
• many Catholics also saw Mary as lizzy’s alternative

Question 23

Why was Ireland a problem for Elizabeth?

Answer 23

• lizzy considered herself Queen of Ireland
• Ireland did not
• they revolted

Question 24

Who were Elizabeth’s key advisors?

Answer 24

• Francis Walsingham
• William Cecil
• Robert Dudley
• Christopher Hatton

Question 25

Who was William Cecil?

Answer 25

• Lizzy’s longest serving minister
• became secretary of state in 1571
• acted as lord treasurer so was responsible for government’s money
• most trusted adviser
• key role in developing poor laws and religious policies
• protestant

Question 26

Who was Robert Dudley?

Answer 26

• earl of Leicster
• childhood friend + Lizzy fav
• many rumours abt a romance between the two
• personally responsible for her safety
• Puritan
• Privy council member

Question 27

Who was Francis Walsingham?

Answer 27

• Secretary of State
• ran a network of spies and uncovered lots of plots against lizy

Question 28

Who was Christopher Hatton?

Answer 28

• helped organise Elizabeth’s progresses
• lord chancellor in 1587
• used to be a court dancer

Question 29

Why was the Parliament important?

Answer 29

• monarch couldn’t raise taxes without parliament’s support
• taxes + legislations had more authority once approved by the parliament
• could act as a pressure group
• could be used to criticise the Queen and her court

Question 30

What were the limits on Parliament’s power?

Answer 30

• rarely called, only called around 13 times during Elizabeth’s reign
• couldn’t actually discuss matters the Queen didn’t like for the fear of being shunned by her

Question 31

What issues were discussed by the parliament?

Answer 31

• parliamentary rights
• taxes or subsidies
• religion and the church of England
• the poor
• succession

Question 32

What were the arguments for marriage?

Answer 32

• would create an alliance with a foreign country or win the support of a powerful English family
• could then produce an heir + continue the Tudor line
• marriage and children would prevent Mary, QoS from ruling after Elizabeth’s death

Question 33

What were the arguments against marriage?

Answer 33

• marrying a foreign prince means England could fall into their control
• Marrying an Englishman could cause controls with authority
• marriage at the time meant that the husband had control and legal authority over his wife, which meant lizzy would have to answer to her hubby
• giving birth was often risky for the mother and often resulted in death
• sisters marriage was disasterous

Question 34

Who were Elizabeth’s suitors?

Answer 34

• Robert Dudley
• Francis, Duke of Anjou and Alencon
• King Phillip II of Spain

Question 35

How did Parliament get involved with Elizabeth’s marriage?

Answer 35

• saw it as their duty to find her a match
• as they became increasingly concerned with the lack of heir

Question 36

Who was the politician who argued against the ban on discussing Elizabeth’s marriage?

Answer 36

Peter Wentworth

Question 37

What happened to Peter Wentworth?

Answer 37

Rest of Parliament arrested him in the Tower of London for fear of losing favour