Elizabethan Government Flashcards
What year was Elizabeth born
1533
Who were Elizabeth’s parents
King Henry v111
Anne Boleyn
Who was Elizabeth’s cousin
Mary Queen of Scot’s
Was Elizabeth Catholic or Protestant
Protestant
2 monarchs before Elizabeth
Edward V1 (hale brother)
Mary 1 (half sister)
Year Elizabeth becomes Queen
1558
When was Elizabeth’s coronation
1559
Features of Elizabeth’s coronation
Dressed in full state regalia (had sceptre and orb)
Loud musical instruments and cheering (pageants were performed)
Took place in Westminster Abbey London
Colourful and splendid event shows off her power and wealth
4 key parts of Elizabeth’s popularity
Coronation
Portraits
Character
Progresses
What were Royal progresses
Elizabeth toured country in summer months and stayed with wealthy nobles with free food, drink, accommodation and entertainment
Acted as propaganda service to make Elizabeth seen by her subjects and would cause large crowds to gather who applauded her
3 key Elizabethan portraits
Pelican portrait
Armada portrait
Rainbow portrait
How did Elizabeth use portraits to increase popularity
Propaganda- presented as powerful and wealthy
Symbols display wisdom and beauty
Always portrayed as being young and in good health
Displayed picture of Monarch that people would follow and admire
What was Elizabeth’s character like
Intelligent
Displayed masculine traits
Had lots of key skills e.g learnt Greek, French, Latin and Italian
Key feature of Pelican portrait
Elizabeth wears Pelican brooch- shows Elizabeth will sacrifice herself to the people and country (protect them in war etc)
Key feature of Rainbow portrait
Elizabeth holds rainbow- represents peace, hope, love etc
What was the Royal Court
Centre of all political power
Consisted of Elizabeth, servants and courtiers
Royal Court travelled with Queen on her progresses
Patronage meaning
Elizabeth grants special favours to Nobles in exchange for loyalty
(E.g Nobles might want to gain important position in local government)
What did patronage lead to
Court factions
(Rivalry between courtiers where they split off into different groups and Elizabeth can favour one over the other)
Privy council meaning
Elizabeth’s chief advisors ministered and appointed by the Queen
How often did the Privy council meet
2- 3 times a week (frequently)
Examples of what Privy council discussed when they frequently met
War, religion, marriage etc (things they would advise Elizabeth on)
Examples of Privy Councilers
Francis Walsingham
Robert Dudley
William Cecil
Robert Cecil
Christopher Hatton
Main reason why Elizabeth met with Parliament
Tax, law
(Also Mary Queen of Scots, religion, marriage, succession and foreign affairs)
How often did Elizabeth meet with Parliament
Almost never
Only 13 times over 45 year reign
Main residence in London
Whitehall Palace
True or false, Elizabeth could close Parliament if she wanted to
True
E.g if they displeased her like asking about marriage
One reason why Parliament was more powerful than Elizabeth (other than that she was more powerful as she called it when she wanted to and could close it down)
Had power to raise money through taxation
Two houses in Parliament
Lords
Commons
Role of JP in local governmnet
Maintain law and order in local area
Report to Lord Lieutenants
Role taken on by rich countrymen to improve status
30-60 per county
E.g oversee maintenance of highways, give licenses to beggars
Oversee work of parish constable/ night watchman/ overseer of poor
Who did JPs report to
Lord Lieutenant
2 examples of specific things JPs did
Oversee maintenance of highway
Give licenses to beggars
Most high up important role in local government
Lord Lieutenant
Role of Lord Lieutenant
Held by Nobles (and Often by Privy Councillors)
Report to Queen what’s happening in local area
Supervise work of JPs
Control local milita
1 per county
2 types of lesser officers
Parish Constable
Night Watchman
Role of Lesser official (Parish constable/ Night watchman)
Lasts 1 year
Held by tenant/ farmer
Report to JPs
Keep an eye on inns/ ale houses
2 roles of local government that report to JPs
Lesser official (parish Constable/ Night watchman)
Overseer of poor
Role of overseer of poor
Collect poor rate
Overall role of local government
Maintain law and order in local area
E.g check for criminals, collect poor rate, oversee maintenance of highways, give licenses to beggars etc
One key example of court faction due to patronage
Between William Cecil and Robert Dudley
Cecil didn’t want war and was Protestant
Dudley wanted war and was Puritan
What key things did Elizabeth have to consider when she became Queen
Religion- whether to put forward a Catholic or Protestant country (she also had to bear in mind that the 2 most powerful countries in Europe, Spain and France, were Catholic)
Whether to marry- many feared if she didn’t marry there would be a civil war with wealthy nobles fighting for power due to having no clear heir
Also many thought due to being a woman she was too weak to be a good leader
Many Catholics thought she was an illegitimate Monarch
(These we reasons why she had to make sure she was a popular Monarch)
What rebellion was Elizabeth accused of being in that made her relieved when Mary 1 died
Wyatt Rebellion (a Protestant plot)
This lead to her being arrested and imprisoned in the Tower of London
What Protestant plot did Mary 1 accuse Elizabeth for being involved in which lead to her being arrested and imprisoned in the Tower of London
Wyatt Rebellion
What year did Henry V111 die
1547
How many weeks did royal progresses last for
10 weeks
Who is heir to the throne after Elizabeth
Mary Queen of Scots as they are cousins
Elizabeth has no children so Mary is the only legitimate heir as Elizabeth is the last descendant of Henry V111
Did Parliament have freedom of speech
No
They were meant to however the reality was that they didn’t as Elizabeth controlled what topics were to be debated and made it clear that certain topics weren’t to be discussed e.g marriage
Why did Elizabeth need Parliament to raise money by raising taxes
Costly foreign wars e.g with Spain (Spanish Armada) meant she needed more money and Parliament was the only way she could get this money
Taxes needed to be raised to fund the ‘poor relief’ to be able to provide help for the poor
To help her pay off the Marian debt (£227,000) which she had inherited from Mary
How much debt did Elizabeth inherit from Mary 1s reign
£227,000
2 main functions of Parliament
Raise tax (e.g to help fund poor rate, to cover costs of costly foreign wars e.g Spanish Armada, to help pay off £227,000 Marian debt), pass laws (and e.g for religious settlement, poor laws, laws against puritans)
Who organised Elizabeth’s progresses
Sir Christopher Hatton
What year did Elizabeth 1 die
1603
