Elizabethan England c1568–1603
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Elizabeth's Court and Parliament
Elizabeth I became queen in 1558 and ruled for 45 years, relying on a small group of trusted advisors and managing Parliament carefully.
Elizabeth balanced the power of her councillors and Parliament to maintain personal control over government.
Elizabeth's Court and Parliament — Key Knowledge
- Elizabeth I daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, became queen 1558 aged 25, ruled until 1603
- Privy Council key advisors who helped govern
- William Cecil Lord Burghley, chief advisor until 1598
- Francis Walsingham spymaster, ran intelligence network
- Robert Dudley Earl of Leicester, close favourite
- Parliament called only when Elizabeth needed money or new laws
- Royal prerogative Elizabeth's power to act without Parliament's approval
The Marriage Question
Elizabeth faced enormous pressure to marry and produce an heir, but she refused all suitors throughout her reign.
Refusing to marry was a deliberate political strategy — any husband would have limited Elizabeth's power or drawn England into unwanted alliances.
The Marriage Question — Key Knowledge
- Succession crisis no heir meant uncertainty over who would rule after Elizabeth
- Parliamentary pressure councillors urged her to marry and secure the succession
- Philip II of Spain suitor — alliance with Catholic Spain carried risks
- Archduke Charles of Austria suitor — a Habsburg match
- Francis Duke of Anjou suitor — a French Catholic match
- The "Virgin Queen" Elizabeth's carefully crafted image of independence
- Portraits and progresses image tightly controlled to project strength and majesty
Social Hierarchy and Poverty
Elizabethan society was rigidly ordered, and poverty became a growing problem that the government addressed through new laws.
The distinction between deserving and undeserving poor was central to Elizabethan social policy and shaped welfare for centuries.
Social Hierarchy and Poverty — Key Knowledge
- Social hierarchy monarch → nobility → gentry → yeomen → merchants → craftsmen → labourers → vagabonds
- The gentry growing in wealth and influence, built grand houses such as Hardwick Hall
- Deserving poor the sick, old, and orphaned — considered worthy of help
- Undeserving poor vagabonds and "sturdy beggars" — considered idle and punished
- 1601 Poor Law overseers of the poor appointed in each parish
- Poor rate a local tax to fund poor relief
- Poorhouses shelter for the deserving poor
- Punishment for vagabonds whipping and imprisonment for the undeserving poor
Culture and Education
Theatre flourished in Elizabethan England, and education expanded, though both were shaped by social class and religious attitudes.
The growth of theatre and education reflected rising prosperity, but access was heavily limited by class and gender.
Culture and Education — Key Knowledge
- Purpose-built theatres first opened 1576 — The Theatre in Shoreditch
- The Globe opened 1599, associated with Shakespeare
- William Shakespeare playwright and poet, dominant figure of Elizabethan theatre
- Christopher Marlowe playwright, contemporary of Shakespeare
- Puritan opposition to theatre believed it was immoral and spread plague
- Grammar schools expanded in number, increasing literacy among boys
- Universities Oxford and Cambridge, mainly for gentry and above
Exploration and Privateering
Elizabethan sailors explored the world, raided Spanish treasure ships, and attempted to establish colonies.
Exploration was driven primarily by profit and competition with Spain rather than pure adventure.
Exploration and Privateering — Key Knowledge
- Francis Drake's circumnavigation 1577–1580, second person to sail around the world
- Walter Raleigh and Virginia 1585–1590, attempted English colony in North America — failed
- Privateering licensed raiding of Spanish treasure ships, highly profitable
- Growth of trade new trade routes and markets expanded English commerce
The Religious Settlement of 1559 (4.3a)
Elizabeth established a "Middle Way" between Catholicism and Protestantism through three key measures in 1559.
The Settlement aimed to avoid the religious extremes that had torn England apart under Henry VIII, Edward VI, and Mary I.
The Religious Settlement of 1559 (4.3a) — Key Knowledge
- Act of Supremacy made Elizabeth Supreme Governor of the Church of England
- Act of Uniformity imposed the Book of Common Prayer, made church attendance compulsory
- 39 Articles of Religion defined the Church of England's beliefs — broadly Protestant but kept some Catholic-style ceremony
- The "Middle Way" a deliberate compromise intended to satisfy both Catholics and Protestants
Catholic Threats (4.3b)
Catholics at home and abroad posed a persistent threat to Elizabeth's Settlement and her personal safety.
The excommunication made every Catholic a potential traitor in the eyes of the government, intensifying persecution.
Catholic Threats (4.3b) — Key Knowledge
- Papal Bull Regnans in Excelsis 1570 — Pope excommunicated Elizabeth and declared her subjects did not owe her obedience
- Seminary priests trained abroad and sent secretly to England to reconvert Catholics
- Jesuits Catholic order that sent missionaries to England from the 1580s
- Recusancy fines penalties for refusing to attend Church of England services
- Priest holes secret hiding places built into Catholic houses to conceal priests
Plots Against Elizabeth and Mary Queen of Scots (4.3b)
Three major Catholic plots aimed to replace Elizabeth with Mary Queen of Scots, who was eventually executed after 19 years of captivity.
Elizabeth hesitated for years over executing a fellow queen, but the Babington Plot left her with little political choice.
Plots Against Elizabeth and Mary Queen of Scots (4.3b) — Key Knowledge
- Mary Queen of Scots Catholic, legitimate claim to the English throne through descent from Henry VII
- Fled Scotland 1568 — arrived in England and was held as a prisoner
- Ridolfi Plot 1571 — plan to replace Elizabeth with Mary, backed by Spain
- Throckmorton Plot 1583 — Catholic conspiracy involving the Spanish ambassador
- Babington Plot 1586 — Walsingham's spies intercepted coded letters proving Mary's involvement
- Execution of Mary February 1587, after 19 years of imprisonment
- Walsingham's intelligence network used spies and codebreakers to uncover the Babington Plot
The Puritan Challenge (4.3d)
Puritans pushed for further Protestant reform, but Elizabeth resisted any changes that would undermine her Settlement.
The Puritan challenge showed that the Religious Settlement was under pressure from Protestants as well as Catholics.
The Puritan Challenge (4.3d) — Key Knowledge
- Puritan demands no vestments, no bishops, plain churches, simpler worship
- Archbishop Whitgift enforced conformity to the Settlement from 1583
- Marprelate Tracts 1588–1589 — anonymous printed pamphlets attacking bishops
- Elizabeth's resistance she saw Puritan demands as a threat to her authority over the Church
Causes of the Spanish Armada
A combination of religious, political, and military factors led Philip II of Spain to launch his Armada against England in 1588.
The Armada was the culmination of decades of deteriorating relations between England and Spain.
Causes of the Spanish Armada — Key Knowledge
- Religious conflict Catholic Spain vs Protestant England
- English support for Dutch rebels England aided the Protestant Dutch revolt against Spanish rule
- Drake's raid on Cadiz 1587 — destroyed ships and supplies, known as "singeing the King of Spain's beard"
- Execution of Mary Queen of Scots removed the Catholic alternative to Elizabeth but angered Philip II
- Philip II's ambition aimed to restore Catholicism in England and stop English interference
The Armada Campaign
The Spanish Armada of 130 ships sailed to collect an army from the Netherlands, but English tactics and weather prevented the invasion.
The Spanish plan depended on precise coordination between the Armada and Parma's army, which proved impossible.
The Armada Campaign — Key Knowledge
- Armada plan 130 ships to sail to the Netherlands, collect the Duke of Parma's army, then invade England
- English advantages smaller and faster ships, experienced sailors
- Key English commanders Sir Francis Drake, Lord Howard of Effingham, John Hawkins
- Fire ships at Calais sent into the anchored Armada, scattering the Spanish fleet
- Battle of Gravelines 1588 — English guns damaged Spanish ships, Armada could not link up with Parma's army
Defeat of the Armada and its Significance
The defeated Armada sailed north around Scotland and was devastated by storms; the victory transformed Elizabeth's reputation.
The Armada's defeat was a defining moment of Elizabeth's reign, though it owed as much to weather and Spanish errors as to English skill.
Defeat of the Armada and its Significance — Key Knowledge
- Retreat around Scotland the Armada sailed north after Gravelines, unable to return through the Channel
- Storms destroyed many Spanish ships off Scotland and Ireland — only about half the fleet returned to Spain
- Elizabeth's Tilbury speech "I know I have the body but of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king"
- Protestant survival England remained Protestant, boosting national confidence
- War continued conflict with Spain did not end until 1604
- English naval confidence the victory encouraged further naval expansion and exploration
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Elizabethan England c1568–1603
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