Unit 1: Queen, Government And Religion Flashcards
Who was Martin Luther?
-He was born in 1483, he lived and worked as a monk
-He taught at a university and posted the 95 thesis in 1517
-His actions began the ‘reformation’
What was the reformation
A period where there was ‘reform’ of the church. Those who protested against the Catholic Church were called Protestants
What did Roman catholics believe in 1558?
They believe the pope is the head of the church, the pope is helped by cardinals, archbishops and bishops. The church is a link between God and people, priests can forgive sins and bread and wine turn into the body and blood of Jesus. They also believe in the 7 sacraments
What practices do Roman Catholics do?
Wore richly decorated robes called vestments, the bible is in Latin and only priests can read it, the mass is in Latin. They sang hymns with church organs and had richly decorated altar clothes, wall paintings and statues of saints
What part of England were majority catholic?
Catholics were the majority of both and west England
What did Protestants believe in 1558?
They believed the monarch was the head of the church, there is a personal relationship with god via prayer and the bible. Only god can forgive sins. The monarch is helped by archbishops and bishops, 2 sacraments only baptism and holy communication. The bread and wine only represent Jesus dying for them
What practices do Protestants take part in?
Only clergy appointed by a bishop can preach, wore vestments but not too richly decorated. The bible is in English for everyone to read and the holy communion was always in English, singing hymns with church organs. Altar cloth no wall paintings
What part of England were majority Protestant?
Mostly south east of England
What did puritans believe in 1558?
Nobody was head of the church, there is a personal relationship with God via prayer and the bible. Only God can forgive sins, churchgoers elected to make the rules, the bread and wine only represent Jesus dying for us. Only 2 sacraments: baptism and holy communion
What practices do puritans take part in?
Ordinary people can preach, only wore black gowns the bible is in English for everyone to read, the holy communion in English and no music. Very plain chapels whitewashed walls no statues plain tables and benches, lain windows
What part of England was majority puritans?
Most London and east
What is ‘divine right’
The belief that monarchs are chosen by God
What was parliament
It was made up of the House of Lords and the House of Commons
Why was the privy council important?
-It contained men chosen as advisors and heads of department
-They met frequently sometimes daily, advised on big decisions of state such as; war religion and marriage
-Responsible for overseeing finances, meeting foreign ambassadors, letter drafting and controlling the business of parliament
What were Elizabeth’s decisions on her advisors?
-As soon as she became Queen, Elizabeth made William Cecil her Secretary of State
-She aimed for about 20 councillors rather than the 50 Mary had
-She cleverly thanked all past councillors
What did Elizabeth do well when choosing her advisors?
-She choose people she trusted
-She kept 10 of Mary’s advisors to not upset people
-She didn’t pick her best friend (Robert Dudley) to avoid jealousy
-She choose a hard working man to be head of the privy council
What were Elizabeth’s main problems she faced in 1558?
-choosing her councillors
-financial weakness
-challenges from abroad
-religious divisions
-could a woman rule
-problem of legitimacy
-marriage and the succession
-creating peace and prosperity
Why was financial weakness a problem in 1558?
In 1558 the roy finances had been severely strained by the war with France and Elizabeth inherited a debt of £300,000
Why were challenges from abroad a problem in 1558?
The two most powerful countries in Europe (France and Spain) were catholic. England was at war with France, France was allied with Scotland which provided a base for an invasion of England. Defending the country was the monarchs most important duty, but a queen could not lead her country into battle. Defeat in war could lead to Elizabeth being deposed
Why was religious divisions a problem in 1558?
Elizabeth had to think about the people that did not agree with her decisions, she had to choose whether to keep the catholic religion or return to Protestantism
Why was Elizabeth being a woman a problem in 1558?
Many powerful nobels felt Elizabeth was too weak to rule and she should marry
Why was legitimacy a problem in 1558?
Elizabeth’s legitimacy was questioned by most catholics, they believed that because her parents marriage had not been legal that meant Elizabeth was not legitimate
Why was marriage and the succession a problem in 1558?
It was important to know who the next monarch would be, if Elizabeth died and had not married or had a child people feared there would be a civil war with ambitious princes and foreign nobles
Why was peace and prosperity a problem in 1558?
All monarchs needed to enforce law fairly and try to reduce hardship and poverty. If harvests, wars or other events went badly, then poverty unemployment and high prices could increase the monarchs unpopularity and lead to rebellion
How did Elizabeth solve the financial problem?
-She cut back government spending and strictly monitored the cost of her house hold
-Officials were ordered to balance her accounts and make sure debts were called in
-Crown lands were sold off over 20 years this brought in £600,000
How did Elizabeth solve the challenges from abroad?
She signed a peace treaty (the treaty of Cateau) 3 months after she became queen
How did Elizabeth solve the problem of religious divisions?
- Elizabeth didn’t make any public announcements about religion for the first few months of her reign
- her and the privy council were drawing up a religious settlement for the church
What did Elizabeth do about marriage problems?
Elizabeth and her council could not decide on a suitable candidate, Elizabeth decided against all candidates
How could Elizabeth solve legitimacy, peace and prosperity and being a woman?
Elizabeth could not solve these problems, she would just have to prove herself and hope for good weather
What was the religious settlement?
It was a compromise between Elizabeth and catholics, it made catholics follow Protestant teachings in public but in private they could do what they want.
How did the religious settlement benefit catholics?
Elizabeth made the wording in the bible vague and easy for catholics to interpret. They could wear vestments and decorations were allowed
How did the religious settlement benefit Protestants?
Services were still spoken in English, they had pilgrimages and religious shrines were banned
What was the act of supremacy?
This made Elizabeth the supreme governor of the Church of England. All clergy and officials had to swear an oath of allegiance. This allowed catholics to interpret this less seriously than a head of the church which was the pope for them.
What was the act of uniformity?
It established the appearance of churches and the form of services. It introduced a new book of common prayer to be used in all churches. The wording of services was purposely left unclear to allow catholics to interpret the wine and bread as the body of Christ
What did the act of uniformity order?
Everyone to attend church on Sunday or be fined 1 shilling a day for each absence, which was around a weeks earnings but never strictly enforced
How was the religious settlement going to be enforced?
William Cecil issues the royal injunctions, these were a set of instructions to enforce the two acts. All clergy had to teach royal supremacy and report anyone who didn’t attend church,
What was the puritan challenge and what did Elizabeth do?
Due to having crucifixes in her churches many of her new puritan church leaders threatened to quit and she couldn’t afford to loose them. She allowed some churches to remove Jesus from the cross
What caused the treaty of Edinburgh?
In 1560 Scotland’s Protestant lords rebelled against Mary of guise, who had been ruling for her daughter Mary queen of Scot’s, they didn’t like the catholic influence she brought to Scotland. Elizabeth started sending secret money to the rebels and eventually sent troops too.
What was the treaty of Edinburgh?
The rebellion ended with this treaty, it said Mary queen of Scot’s would give up her claim to the throne, after the unexpected death of her husband Mary returned to Scotland. Even though she was queen the Protestant lords controlled the government
Why was Mary queen of Scot’s a threat to Elizabeth?
-she was viewed as more legitimate than Elizabeth especially by catholics
-she refused to accept the treaty of Edinburgh
-she was the queen of Scotland which borders England and was close to the north which had already rebelled in 1569
-Mary was the heir and had a son
