Complete summary and notes on the whole of the AQA GCSE history Elizabethan England topic, including notes on the poor law, the Spanish armada, circumnavigation and much more- including the case study on Sheffield manor lodge. (keep in mind that the AQA exam board pick the case study every year and...
Elizabeth and her childhood / experiences
- Elizabeth had two siblings: Mary I (also known as mary tudor or bloody mary) and
Edward VI
- Mary I married king philip of spain and Edward VI became king at just 9 years old before
he died of TB
- Elizabeth was third in line to throne
- She was highly educated and very intelligent
- She had a difficult childhood and in 1554 she was accused of conspiring against Mary
and was placed under house arrest for a year
- Liz became Queen in 1558 aged 25
Why people didn’t like Liz as a ruler:
Gender Illegitimacy:
-In the 16th century, many believed that a monarch should -In 1533, Henry VIII divorced his wife to marry Anne
be a man and that a woman ruling was unnatural Boleyn (LIz’s mother) and in the catholic church, divorce
was seen as a sin. So many viewed the marriage
-many expected Liz to act as a figure head and give up between them as invalid, thus making Liz an illegitimate
her rule to her male counselors and advisors or she would child and heir to the throne.
marry and let her husband rule
-Liz’s issues with legitimacy weakened her claim to the
-in reality, Liz wanted to rule England and was determined throne and some believed that Mary Queen of Scots
not to give up her power. (Liz’s cousin) was a more reasonable option, and saw
her as a more relevant Queen.
Other problems that Liz faced:
- There was a lot of discussions and changes with religion and Liz needed to come up
with a religious settlement
- Mary queen of scots had a strong claim to the throne
- England was short of money and was in a costly war with France along with it’s ally
spain.
How did liz deal with problems as a ruler?:
- She proved to be a successful ruler and is remembered to be one of England’s greatest
rulers.
- With the issue of religion she created a ‘middle way’ where the church was protestant
but retained catholic features to keep everyone happy. People were also allowed to be
catholic in private
- With the issue of the economy, liz was able to get money from parliament and set up a
system of patronage
- Liz was able to stop Mary being a threat by executing her in 1587
,Liz’s royal court:
The royal court was a large group of people who always surrounded the monarch and over a
1000 people attended the court.
Some courtiers also became liz’s favourites for example:
- Robert Dudley who Liz was close to in her early reign and she made him Earl of leicester
in 1564
- Christopher hatton who she made lord chancellor in 1587 despite the fact he had little
experience
- Sir walter raleigh came to Liz’s court in 1581 and Liz gave him many valuable gifts and
the right to colonise the new world
These courtiers would flatter Liz by showering her in gifts and pretending to be in love with her.
The queen was the centre of government and political power revolved around her. Those close
to her had the greatest influence on power- for example, the courtiers didn’t have a place in
government but their close relationship with Liz meant that they had political power.
Patronage:
Patronage was where Liz would hand out titles, monopolies or offices which gave the men in her
court a source of income. Patronage was used to ensure loyalty and those who received
patronage would rely on Liz for their status and income which made them loyal to her as they
didn’t want to lose their positions.
Patronages also ensured that all members of the elite were being rewarded so that they
wouldn’t rebel against Liz.
Liz’s government:
Parliament:
This was made up of the house of commons and house of lords. They had an influence over tax
and laws, for example if Liz needed more revenue then she would have to get the permission of
parliament to raise taxes. Parliament also only met together if LIz ordered them to meet
together, and she was also allowed to decide how much advice she wanted to take from them.
Privy council
A council made up of a small group of men that were responsible for daily running of the
country. These were Liz’s main advisors and Liz could pick anyone she wanted to be in the privy
council but there was an expectation for her to pick wealthy landowners to avoid rebellion. The
privy council also discussed the most pressing issues at the time
Lord lieutenants:
, Took administrative roles in small parts of the country and dealt with local disputes, and
collected tax. They also had the role of organising a militia for the Queen when she needed it.
Justice of the peace
There job was to ensure law and order in the country- that there was peace and that laws
enforced were being carried out correctly in local areas
Court:
Wealthy people who lived with Liz and carried out basic daily tasks for her. They were put in
place to advise the queen and try to persuade her and give her advice. Over time, William cecil
was very skillful, as Liz’s court was made up of women, over time he managed to have women
that were married to the men in the privy council be part of Liz’s court.
The great chain of being
1. God gave the monarch the power to rule the country
2. Liz runs the country with the blessing and power from god
Liz believed in divine right- that rulers/monarchs were sent down to earth by god to rule over the
people.
Privy council: day to day running of the country and giving advice to the Queen. Liz could
technically appoint anyone she wanted but she had to be careful and appoint the most wealthy
landowners to avoid a rebellion
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