Elizabeth I 1558-1603
Mid-Tudor 1558-1563
Character and aims
Better educated than Mary I with a shrewder judgement of character and more political experience from her
brief relationship with Thomas Seymour and implication in the 1554 Wyatt’s Rebellion.
Determined to preserve the prerogative powers of the Crown and hence had the short-term aims:
- to consolidate her position
- to settle religious issues
- to pursue a peaceful settlement with France
Consolidation of power
Mary I’s councillors made no attempt to interfere with Elizabeth I’s lawful succession as defined by Henry
VIII, even though many faced the potential loss of their political careers due to their Catholic stance.
- On 17 Nov 1558, Nicholas Heath, Mary I’s Lord Chancellor and Archbishop of York, announced
Mary I’s death and proclaimed Elizabeth I’s succession.
- Although Heath legally had no right to do so as Mary I’s death should have legally dissolved
Parliament, it was a significant political move that showed the political elites’ collective
assent to Elizabeth I’s succession.
- There was thus no attempt to deny Elizabeth’s succession by devout Catholics who had
never accepted the validity of Henry VIII’s marriage to Anne Boleyn.
Mary I had recognised Elizabeth I as her successor and Philip of Spain had signified his recognition of
Elizabeth I’s right of succession when he sent the Count of Feria to see Elizabeth I a month before Mary I’s
death on 17 Nov 1558.
Appointed William Cecil principal secretary and some household appointments, but did not announce any
further appointments.
- By keeping Mary I’s councillors guessing about her intentions and their chances of retaining some
royal favour, Elizabeth I maintained her royal authority over the councillors.
Showed herself familiar with the customs associated with monarchs who had newly ascended to the throne
by taking herself to the Tower to show herself to her new subjects and benefit from pageants which were
organised on her behalf by the City of London. -> Displayed a royal image.
1559 Act of Settlement
- A ‘via media’ between Catholicism and Protestantism.
- Aimed to achieve outward conformity and political loyalty.
The 1559 Act of Supremacy restored in law the royal supremacy in the Church as under Henry VIII by
describing Elizabeth I as ‘supreme governor’ as a concession to Catholic opinion.
- The papal supremacy which had been restored by statute law under Mary I was rejected, and the
heresy law revived under Mary I was repealed.
- The clergy must take an oath of supremacy or face penalties.
- Laid down fines for recusants who did not attend services.
- However, these were rarely demanded. -> ‘via media’
- Revived the powers of royal visitation of the Church which allowed the Crown to appoint
commissioners to ‘amend errors, heresies and abuses’ and thus enforce the Settlement.
- However, this gave huge potential powers to the commissioners, especially as the Act did
not define the ‘heresies’ against which they might take action.
,The 1559 Act of Uniformity specified the use of a single Book of Common Prayer which was a modified
version of the second Prayer Book introduced by Cranmer in 1552.
- The new Book of Common Prayer had variations in Eucharistic belief, including the 1549 wording
that even the conservative Bishop Gardiner felt acceptable and the 1552 wording derived from the
beliefs of the Swiss reformer Zwingli.
- The 1559 Act of Uniformity’s specification that ‘such ornaments of the church and of the ministers’
should be as before the 1549 Act of Uniformity was strongly opposed by many Calvinist clergy who
saw the ‘ornaments’ as ‘Popish’.
- Many returning Protestant exiles, including some of the new bishops appointed by Elizabeth
I, assumed the dating was an error and did not expect the clause to be enforced
The 1559 royal injunctions emphasised ‘the suppression of superstition’, which refers to Catholicism, and
the need to ‘plant true religion’, demonstrating their Protestant nature.
- Stressed that the Eucharist should be administered at a simple Communion table instead of an altar.
- Called for the removal of ‘things superstitious’ from churches and described pilgrimages and the use
of candles as ‘works devised by man’s fantasies’. -> attack on Catholic practices.
- Parish churches were required to purchase an English Bible, reasserting the 1538 royal injunctions,
and a copy of Erasmus Paraphrases as previously required in 1547.
- The visitors nominated by Cecil to enforce the injunctions were strongly Protestant.
- Reflected Elizabeth’s personal idiosyncrasies, such as her disapproval of clerical marriage from the
requirement for prospective wives of the clergy to produce a certificate signed by two JPs to signify
their fitness for the role.
The 1563 Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion sought to define the difference between the Church of England
and the Catholic Church by being broadly supportive of reformed doctrine, especially that which was
emerging out of Switzerland.
- Nonetheless, the Church of England stayed half-reformed in its structures due to the remaining
Catholic practices despite having become Calvinist in its official doctrine.
Foreign policy
England was in a war with France that had gone very badly with the loss of Calais and the damage to royal
finances when Elizabeth came to the throne.
Under the 1559 Treaty of Cateau-Cambresis, England established peace with France and France agreed to
restore Calais to English control after 8 years provided England had kept the peace in the meantime. If
France failed to return Calais, they agreed to pay 500,000 crowns to England.
Elizabeth was reluctant to intervene in foreign domestic affairs and hence the 1559 conflict between
Scottish Protestants led by John Knox and France in Scotland while Cecil strongly supported intervention.
- Cecil sympathised with the Scottish Protestants and knew England would be more secure without a
French force north of the border.
- Cecil also wanted to remove Mary, Queen of Scots, as a potential Catholic claimant to the English
throne, and incorporate Scotland within a wider ‘imperial’ British State, which he considered
necessary for the survival of Protestant England.
- Cecil’s position was not greatly supported in the Council as it was even opposed by his
normal ally and brother-in-law Sir Nicholas Bacon.
- Cecil persuaded Elizabeth I to intervene by playing on her insecurity regarding her royal authority.
- He pointed to Francis II and Mary Stuart’s use of the English royal coat of arms on their own
heraldic device and threatened his own resignation.
- The process of intervention in Scotland is a clear illustration of how decision-making in
foreign policy was influenced by religious considerations and a key individual.
England’s intervention in Scotland in 1559 was initially limited to money and armaments and ultimately
failed militarily despite having sent the Lords of the Congregation (Scottish Protestants) conditional support
, at the 1560 Treaty of Berwick. However, the French fleet was severely damaged by a storm and the regent
Mary of Guise died, forcing a French withdrawal.
- Cecil was thus able to secure favourable terms in the 1560 Treaty of Edinburgh which included
French withdrawal from Scotland and the establishment of a Protestant government which would
have benefitted the Religious Settlement and resolved the problem without war with France.
- Elizabeth I was now seen as the protectress of Protestant rebels which would make friendly
relations with Catholic France and Spain difficult to maintain.
Although the marriage b/w Francis II and Mary in 1559 made the Catholic Guise family effective rulers of
France and Scotland, Francis II died in 1560. (Luck)
- The Guises fell from power and Mary Stuart’s influence on French policy came to an end. Mary
Stuart had to return to Scotland where she was forced to accept the power of her enemies and a
reduction in her own political influence.
Elizabeth I promised the Huguenot leader, the Prince of Conde, 6000 men and a loan of £30,000 with
control of the port of Le Havre to put military pressure on the French Crown during the religious conflict in
France in 1562 after being persuaded by Robert Dudley.
- The Huguenot army was defeated and Conde was captured.
- The French factions united to drive England out of Le Havre.
- Forced to seek an unfavourable peace settlement at the 1564 Treaty of Troyes and lost both the
indemnity it had secured at the 1559 Treaty of Cateau-Cambresis and Calais permanently.
- Although this might have proved advantageous in the long term as Calais was expensive to
maintain, Elizabeth I suffered a blow to her prestige and thus became more cautious about
supporting Protestant causes in Europe.
- Elizabeth I had demonstrated English power to a certain extent by showing France
that she could make their life difficult, making them more likely to accept the new
Protestant regime in Scotland.
Impact of socio-economic developments
Elizabeth I came to the throne at a time of widespread vagabondage, bad harvests, high mortality rates,
high taxation and a fear of social instability due to a significant cut in real wages.
- However, the high mortality rate which reduced the supply of labour did increase the bargaining
power of survivors and their chances of improving their financial prospects.
Apart from passing acts in 1552, 1555 and 1563 which failed to offer poor relief, none of Elizabeth I’s
proposed legislation to deal with the range of economic problems was passed into law.
- This meant central government was left with two rather ineffective mechanisms of dealing with the
issues–passing instruction to JPs and royal proclamations, which lacked enforcement power and as
bureaucrats would have to traverse the country investigating wage rates in every district.
- The Reformation had destroyed most religious institutions offering poor relief.
The government was more successful in restoring confidence in the currency.
- A scheme for the withdrawal of debased coins and their replacement by soundly minted coins
ensured that only sound coins were in circulation, though some individuals suffered as a result.
- Elizabeth also wisely did not resort again to debasement during the rest of the 16th century.
- Although inflation continued, the government could no longer be held responsible for the issue.
1563-1603
Management of government
The royal court
Important to Elizabeth I’s decision-making processes as it allowed her to seek advice on an individual basis
and existed wherever the queen happened to be at a particular time, enabling convenient consultation.
The Privy Council became less influential as the Gentlemen of the Privy Chamber no longer had the rights
of access to the monarch which they had formerly enjoyed under the Tudor kings.
