A detailed study guide tailored to the Edexcel specification. It covers the key aspects of Elizabeth I's reign, including the challenges she faced, the Spanish Armada, religious tensions, and the Elizabethan Golden Age. The notes provide in-depth analysis of important events such as the Essex Rebel...
ELIZABETH HISTORY REVISION
Society and government in 1558
Elizabethan England was a violent and a dangerous place as it lacked a permanent police force or
army. The Law itself was also based on heavy inequality.
Society
There was a social hierarchy in Elizabethan England, determined by wealth and the land owned, as
shown here(top to bottom):
The monarch was at the top being the most important of the nobility.
They would be followed by the nobility and gentry.
They would be followed by yeomen, who were people with a small amount of land, so
essentially lower gentry.
This was followed by tenant farmers who would farm lands owned by yeomen or gentry.
Then were the landless people, who were often very poor and even below them would be
the homeless people.
There was also a hierarchy in towns:
At the top would be wealthy merchants.
They were followed by professionals such as doctors and lawyers.
They were followed by wealthy business owners.
These were followed by craftsmen.
Then there was the unskilled labourers or the unemployed people.
Government
Court
They lived in the same palace(or near) the monarch and would be members of the nobility. They
were often her key advisors and friends. Their role was to keep Elizabeth entertained as well as
advising the monarch. Also courtiers had huge influence on the monarch(not power)
Privy Council
The Privy Council had around 19 members meeting 3 times a week chosen by the monarch. They
were made up of leading courtiers as well as nobles and senior officers such as Sir William Cecil.
Their roles were to advise the monarch, ensure the monarch’s order was carried out, monitor JPs as
well as overseeing law and order.
Parliament
It was made up of the House of Lords and House of Commons. Parliament only met around 10 times
during Elizabeth’s reign. They could only be called and dismissed by Elizabeth. They would normally
be called to increase taxation or to pass new laws.
Lords Lieutenant
,Each county would have their own Lord Lieutenant who would be from the nobility and often also on
the Privy Council. They were essential to maintaining the monarch’s power. They oversaw the
enforcement of policies and were in charge of training the local militia.
Justices of Peace(JPs)
JPs were large landowners who ensured that law and order was maintained in their area. They were
unpaid and being a JP was a position of status which made it very popular. They also reported to the
Privy Council. They also ensured all the policies would be carried out as well as hearing court cases
every 3 months for serious crimes.
The monarch
Elizabethan England was centred on the monarch because it believed that their rule came directly
from God. She could:
Declare war and make peace
Call and dismiss Parliament
Rule in legal cases where the law was unclear
Grant titles, lands, money and jobs
Patronage is when you provide someone with an important job or title. This was an effective way of
getting support from people and Elizabeth could also take back what she gave.
Secretary of State
This was her most important Privy Councillor. This was the person she was closest to in the
government and directly advised her regarding matters with the monarch. William Cecil held this
position until 1573 but was replaced by Burghley.
Relationship with Parliament
Parliament often had to be called to raise taxation as it could not be done without the agreement of
Parliament. This is because Elizabeth could issue direct orders but they could not be enforced in the
local courts. The Parliament could vote against the queen but it rarely ever happened.
The Royal prerogative was when only Elizabeth had the right to vote upon certain matters and said it
was her right to be able to stop them from discussing certain matters including foreign policy,
marriage and succession.
Legitimacy
To inherit the throne, the monarch had to be legitimate and it was not possible to be legitimate
unless the parents were married. Elizabeth’s legitimacy had caused doubts because Henry VIII had
divorced his first wife, Catherine of Aragon to marry Elizabeth’s mother Anne Boleyn to produce a
male heir. However, the Pope did not grant the divorce of Catherine of Aragon and so Henry created
the church of England with himself as the head, and then granted himself a divorce.
, Strict Catholics refused to acknowledge the divorce because the Pope didn’t agree to it and so not
everyone accepted that Elizabeth was legitimate. In 1536, Henry declared Elizabeth illegitimate but
did reverse this decision later on.
Gender and marriage
Having a queen rule the country was very unusual as the Christian religion taught that women should
be under the authority of men. Also, monarchs were expected to lead men into battle.
Advantages of marriage:
Having children would ensure England’s stability as there would be no vacancy for the heir,
meaning there would be no conflict over who will succeed the throne.
Having a husband would allow them to lead the army into war and fulfil one of the duties of
the monarch
Disadvantages of marriage:
Wives were expect to keep quite and become sidelined and the husband would have
authority over her. She would also lose authority over England.
The only suitable candidate was a foreign prince, who would then put his own country’s
needs first and England after.
Women were not supposed to be in a position of authority or power, it was normally the husband or
the father. Many people thought she should marry but she had no intention of doing so, turning
down offers from even Phillip II of Spain, arguably the most powerful country in Europe.
Most of the people thought that women were not capable of ruling, which was worsened by Mary I’s
reign as England allied with Spain in a war against France which they lost and the morale was low.
Their finances were poor and people were dying of hunger. Mary’s marriage with Phillip II was
extremely unpopular and even caused many rebellions. Mary was also known as “Bloody Mary” after
burning 300 people, which were not popular.
Elizabeth’s character and strengths
Elizabeth I was very smart and highly educated and had an excellent grasp of politics. She
experienced being in prison under Mary I’s reign after suspected treason. She also understood the
dangerous world of politics where people would try and gain power.
Elizabeth was very charismatic and could make great speeches. But she did also have a very bad
temper and also took a long time to make up her mind about serious subjects.
Challenges at home and abroad
Financial Weakness
Despite having the divine right, they still had to raise their money. They could do this by renting their
own Crown Lands as well as taxes from trade. They could also enforce increased taxation, but this
had to be agreed by Parliament first. They could take loans as well as fine people by taking their
property or lands if they committed crimes.
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