Queen, Govt And Religion

Question 1

What was the court

Answer 1

body of people (courtiers) who lived in same house as the monarch (key servants, advisers and friends)

Question 2

What is the privy council

Answer 2

approximately 19 leading courtiers, advisers, senior officials (e.g. William Cecil).

Question 3

What was a Lords Lieutenant

Answer 3

one for each county chosen by monarch. Members of nobility, sometimes on Privy Council, helped to maintain

Question 4

What was Justices of the peace

Answer 4

large landowners, kept law and order in their areas. Unpaid role but a position of status so was an popular job

Question 5

What problems did Elizabeth face in 1558?

Answer 5

Legitimacy

Society

Financial weaknesses

Relations with other countries

France and Mary Queen of Scots

Religion

Question 6

Why was Legitimacy a problem for elizabeth

Answer 6

as the daughter of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII after his divorce from Catherine of Aragon, not everyone accepted Elizabeth’s legitimacy (especially Catholics)

Question 7

Why was Society a problem for elizabeth

Answer 7

Women were thought to be inferior. A queen ruling by herself was very unusual so many felt that Elizabeth should marry

Question 8

Why was Financial weaknesses a problem for elizabeth

Answer 8

England had fought costly wars before Elizabeth became Queen. Crown was £300,000 in debt when she took throne.

Question 9

Why was Relations with other countries a problem for elizabeth

Answer 9

England was weak compared to others (France and Spain= most powerful and were both Roman Catholic). England had also recently lost control of Calais and Elizabeth was keen to regain this. There was also a concern about the potential of France and Spain forming a Catholic alliance against England and its Protestant Queen.

Question 10

Why was France and Mary Queen of Scots a problem for elizabeth

Answer 10

Many Catholics saw Mary Queen of Scots as the legitimate monarch. Mary was half French and therefore had a lot of support in France.

Question 11

Why was Religion a problem for elizabeth

Answer 11

In 1558, country was divided by religion (Catholic until Henry VIII’s reign), many thought country’s differences would lead to civil war

Question 12

What was the Elizabethan religious settlement

Answer 12

Elizabeth tried to follow a Middle Way in religion, which both Catholics and Protestants could accept. They passed two Acts of Parliament – the Act of Supremacy and the Act of Uniformity. Together, these are
known as the Elizabethan Church Settlement.

Question 13

What did catholics like about the religious settlement

Answer 13

Could still believe in transubstantiation

Churches still had a Catholic ‘feel’ (eg images allowed in churches)

Question 14

What did catholics dislike about the religious settlement

Answer 14

Queen was head of the Church (‘Royal Supremacy’)

Forced to use the book of Common Prayer
Pilgrimages banned

Question 15

What did Protestants like about the religious settlement

Answer 15

Ended control of Pope Royal Supremacy

Book of common prayer in English More basic churches Bible in English

Question 16

What did Protestants dislike about the religious settlement

Answer 16

Catholic ‘feel’ to some churches

Catholics could still believe in transubstantiation

Question 17

What did Puritans (radical Protestants) like about the religious settlement

Answer 17

Ended control of Pope

Everyone had to attend church

Question 18

What did Puritans (radical Protestants) dislike about the religious settlement

Answer 18

Images still allowed in churches

Royal Supremacy – no one should be head of the church

Catholic ‘feel’ to some churches

Catholics could still believe in transubstantiation

Question 19

What was the most serious challenge to the settlement?

Answer 19

Puritans

Catholics

Foreign powers

Question 20

Why was puritans a serious challenge to the settlement

Answer 20

Many Puritan clergymen ignored the settlement, meaning Elizabeth’s aim of uniformity was not met. The main problems that the Puritans had was with the use of crucifixes and vestments

Question 21

What was the Crucifix controversy

Answer 21

to Puritans, the crucifix represented idols so they disagreed that they should be displayed in church. Elizabeth was forced to back down because many of the Puritan bishops were very influential

Question 22

What was the vestment controversy

Answer 22

Elizabeth wanted priests to wear special vestments but many Puritans felt that they should not wear special clothing at all. After Matthew Parker, the Archbishop of Canterbury, issued further instructions in his ‘Book of Advertisements’ the majority of priests consented to Elizabeth’s
demands.

Question 23

Why were Catholics a serious challenge for the religious settlement

Answer 23

The papacy issued instructions to not attend church services in 1566 but did not offer much other leadership, as it was focusing on the Counter Reformation in Europe. Many of the English Nobilty in the North of England were recusants (Catholics that refused to go to Elizabethan church services). The Earls of Northumberland and Westmorland for example, disliked Elizabeth as they had been relatively influential under Mary I. They then lead to revolt of the Northern Earls. Elizabeth was eventually successful in defeating the revolt but it showed how dangerous the Catholic threat was and this prompted her to be harsher with Catholics.

Question 24

Why was foreign powers a serious challenge to the religious settlement

Answer 24

Protestantism was rising across many parts of Europe but many leading Catholic powers were a threat to
Elizabeth’s settlement. Religious war broke out in France in 1562 and Elizabeth was worried about this threatening her position if it this conflict spread to England. Elizabeth’s helped Protestant rebels in Scotland in 1560 and France in 1562 and this further irritated Catholic monarchs such as Phillip II of Spain.

Question 25

Why was Mary Queen of Scots a problem

Answer 25

Many Catholics saw Mary Queen of Scots as the legitimate monarch (she was Elizabeth’s second cousin and had a direct link to the throne). Mary arrived in England in 1568 after the Protestant Scottish Nobles revolted after the suspicious death of her husband.

Elizabeth was unsure what to do with Mary. She did not want to hand her over to the Scottish Lords but she also did not want to allow her to go abroad so she decided to keep her in England in captivity.

Question 26

What happened in the Dutch revolt

Answer 26

The Netherlands belonged to Spain at this time but events such as the Spanish Inquisition led to the Dutch Revolt starting in 1566

Elizabeth’s wanted to support the Dutch rebels but also wanted to avoid war.

She allowed Dutch rebels to take shelter in English ports (Sea Beggars), took money from Spanish ships (‘Genoese Loan’) and provided financial help to the Dutch rebels.

Robert Dudley (Earl of Leicester) also led failed military expeditions in the Netherlands which worsened relations between the English and the Spanish further.

By the 1580s, Elizabeth felt that she could no longer avoid conflict with Spain and signed the Treaty of Nonsuch 1585 in support of the Dutch rebels

Question 27

What are the four causes of the revolt of the northern Earls

Answer 27

Religion
Politics
Mary Queen of Scots
Individuals