Topic 1 - Elizabeth And The Government Flashcards
What were courtiers and what did they do?
- Courtiers were members of the court and about 500 lived and worked with Elizabeth.
- They were personally selected by the Queen and competed for power and influence.
- The Court was wherever the Queen was so it was a group of people not a place.
- In summer Elizabeth and the courtiers went on royal progress (tour of England) and they would stay with nobles.
- Banquets, masques, plays and tournaments were put on for the courtiers and they acted as propaganda, glorifying Elizabeth’s image.
What is Patronage?
Patronage is giving particular men important duties or privileges. It caused competition and factional rivalry (groups joined forces against each other) but ensured loyalty to the Queen.
What was the Privy Chamber?
- Courtiers didn’t have constant access to the Queen.
- The Privy Chamber was her private space, with her own servants and ladies-in-waiting.
- The Privy Chamber was at the heart of the Court.
- Only her most trusted courtiers were ever invited into the Privy Chamber.
What was the Privy Council?
- It was a group of ministers selected by Elizabeth to help her govern the country.
- It met at Court almost daily.
- Elizabeth’s council had 19 members.
- Her first council was a clever compromise of nobles and later it became an effective group of full-time politicians drawn from the gentry,
- William Cecil and Francis Walsingham were her most important ministers.
William Cecil:
- Secretary of State (1558-72) and (1590-98)
- Lord Treasurer (1572-90)
- Elizabeth heavily relied on him.
- Correspondance passed through him.
- He was a moderate Protestant but more willing to suppress Catholics than the Queen.
- He avoided foreign religious disputes which could lead to costly Wars.
- He was prepared to challenge Elizabeth and was loyal to her.
Sir Francis Walsingham:
- Secretary of State (1572-90)
- Responsible for foreign affairs.
- He was a strong Puritan and believed the Catholics were a threat and should be repressed.
- Cold and distant and never flattered the Queen.
- He ran a network of informers (spy’s) uncovering plots against Elizabeth.
- Elizabeth once threw a slipper at him.
- He was hardworking and well educated.
Why was the 1950s a challenging decade for Elizabeth?
- Elizabeth’s closet advisers Walsingham and Cecil died, opening up new opportunities for new courtiers to compete to gain influence.
- England experienced a series of bad harvests, famine, plague and rising poverty.
- Englands expensive war with Spain dragged on.
- Elizabeth had no heir so there was uncertainty around succession.
- Elizabeth was less popular and her previously tight control of the Royal court broke down.
Who was the Earl of Essex and why was he executed?
- He was one of Elizabeth’s favourite courtiers.
- In 1589 he defied Elizabeth by joining Drake’s failed attack on Lisbon and in 1590 he married without her permission.
- Essex was jealous when Elizabeth replaced Cecil with his son Robert as Secretary of State.
- Elizabeth sent him to Ireland in 1599 to defeat a Catholic rebellion but he made a truce.
- Elizabeth banned Essex from court in 1600 and took away his government jobs so he was financially ruined.
- Essex led a short lived rebellion in 1601 and he underestimated how much support there was for Elizabeth.
- He was arrested and executed.
What was Parliament like?
- The Queen ruled mostly by royal proclamation.
- If Elizabeth wanted to change the laws or raise taxes she summoned Parliament.
- The Queen could open and close parliament whenever she liked.
- MPs weren’t elected, they were selected by local lords.
- Parliament sat for only 35 months of Elizabeth’s 45-year reign.
- Between 1580-1603 Elizabeth called Parliament more often then previously because she needed laws and financial support to deal with religious threats and war with Spain.
What did Parliament speak about and who decided?
- Privy councillors organised parliamentary business. Some served as MPs.
- The Queen appointed the speaker who decided the agenda.
- Some topics such as religion, marriage foreign affairs and the succession couldn’t be raised by MPs.
What opposition did Elizabeth face from MPs and privy councillors?
Some MPs started to discuss sensitive topics. Even privy counsellors stirred up ‘off limits’ issues such as foreign policy or the succession which they wanted the Queen to confront.
What did the Puritan MPs want?
Puritans wanted freedom of speech for MPs. Two puritans were in hanged in 1583 for putting forward such views. Bur this issues was raised again in Parliament in 1584 and 1586.
What did John Stubbs do?
In November 1579, John Stubbs, a Puritan MP, wrote a pamphlet criticising Elizabeth’s proposed marriage to the French Catholic Duke of Anjou, Stubbs had his right hand cut off, as did his accomplice, William page.
What did Peter Wentworth do?
In 1593, Puritan MP Peter Wentworth was imprisoned in the Tower of London for urging Elizabeth to name a Protestant successor. He died there four years later.
What was the complaint in 1589 and how did Elizabeth respond?
Complaint - The MPs complained about purveyances (the queen’s right to buy supplies at cheap prices).
Response - Elizabeth said this didn’t concern MPs but she would look into their complaints.
