Exam (elaborations)
GCSE History Elizabeth Mock Paper
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A mock paper I did at school. I got 36/40 so I typed up the questions and the answers I produced.
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How convincing is Interpretation A about Queen Elizabeth and marriage. Explain your answer usingInterpretation A and your contextual knowledge.
Interpretation A is arguably convincing because it reveals that Elizabeth’s ‘death before 1587 would probably
have led to a civil war’ suggesting that before 1587 nothing was secure in terms of her marriage and the
succession to the throne. The interpretation highlights the problems with Elizabeth’s need to marry and it
exposes the criticism of Elizabeth in failing to agree the succession. This issue was often raised at Privy Council
meetings and was also raised in Parliament by the MP, Wentworth. Furthermore, the Queen was pressurised
into marrying in the early years of her reign and this is revealed when Williams states, ‘Despite pressure from
her Council…’ The Queen faced difficulties in choosing a suitor; she feared losing power to a King and also
potentially alienating other nations or even her own subjects. Furthermore, the Interpretation is convincing
because it reveals that ‘The Catholic religion of suitors…ruled them out.’ This is convincing because she was a
Protestant and the Privy Council did not a Catholic to compromise her religion.
The Interpretation is also convincing when it is revealed that her death ‘before 1587 would have probably led
to a civil war’. This is convincing because if Elizabeth had died before 1587 there may have been a civil war
because Mary, Queen of Scots, executed in 1587, was the only successor to the throne and she was Catholic.
This may have prompted a Protestant rebellion, because many Protestants would not have wanted a Catholic
Queen on the throne and this is convincing because the religious settlement had made England a Protestant
country so it was difficult for Elizabeth to marry a Catholic. Furthermore, growing anti-Catholic feeling would
have made a Catholic husband unpopular and this might have undermined support for her rule.
However, the Interpretation is limited in its knowledge and as it is vague in certain areas. The last sentence
suggests that she outlived the problem of marriage and succession as it says ‘she lived long enough for the
problem to solve itself’. It could be referring to her surviving smallpox in 1562. If she had died without a
marriage or heir, then this would have caused problems in England. Furthermore, the last section could be
limited because the Crown passed to James I, the son of Mary Queen of Scots, privately he was a Catholic and
publicly he was a Protestant. Also, there were two attempts on his life early in his reign and this does not
represent a stable transition.
Therefore, the interpretation is mostly convincing, it lacks specific detail in places and does not directly
reference Mary, Queen of Scots by name. Furthermore, it is unclear as to whether the problem did ‘solve itself’
because James I’s reign was not without problems.
Explain what was important about the arrival of Mary, Queen of Scots in England in 1568.
The arrival of Mary, Queen of Scots in England in 1568 was very important because it created a threat to
Elizabeth’s reign. The appearance of Mary, Queen of Scots created a problem in itself because it triggered
many plots and rebellions against Elizabeth from Catholics in the country and caused a problem for Elizabeth
because she did not know what to do with Mary, Queen of Scots.
Mary, Queen of Scots gave committed Catholics hope that Catholicism could be restored. For example,
Elizabeth faced a threat in 1569, when the Northern Rebellion attempted to overthrow Elizabeth and replace
her with Mary. This was an important event because it destabilised Elizabeth’s position because the Northern
Nobles and the Earl of Northumberland were involved and Elizabeth had believed that they were her
supporters and that they could be trusted. Elizabeth had taken land from the Northern nobles and they
resented this. Mary’s appearance in England had created a rallying point for English Catholics and this posed a
major threat to Elizabeth’s rule.
Mary’s arrival continued to have important significance up to and beyond her execution. In 1586, the
Babington Plot gave Walsingham a way to show Elizabeth that her cousin was a threat and not to be trusted.
Mary had been implicated in the past, in the Throckmorton Plot, 1583, but Elizabeth refused to take action
against her. In October 1586, Mary was found guilty of treason, as Walsingham used his network of spies to
gather evidence against Mary. Elizabeth was reluctant to execute Mary because of the Divine Right of Kings
and she felt that this act could weaken her own position and undermine her own claim to rule by the Divine
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