Elizabeth I ruled England in 1558-1603. Thanks to her wise foreign and domestic policies, she has made her country a great European power. The era of Elizabeth today is rightfully called the golden age of England.
Unloved wife's daughter
The future Queen Elizabeth I was born on September 7, 1533 in Greenwich. She was the daughter of Henry VIII and his wife Anna Boleyn. The king really wanted to get a son and heir to the throne. It was because of this that he divorced his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, who had never given birth to a boy. The fact that another girl was born, extremely angered Henry, although he did not feel personal hostility to the child.
When Elizabeth was two years old, her mother was executed. Anna Boleyn was accused of high treason. The court found the alleged facts of the Queen's betrayal to her husband proved proven. Hot-tempered Henry, therefore, decided to get rid of his wife, who became a burden on him and failed to give birth to a boy. He later married several more times. Since the first two marriages were invalidated, Elizabeth and her older sister Maria (daughter of Catherine of Aragon) were illegitimate.
Girls education
Already in childhood, Elizabeth the First showed her own outstanding natural abilities. She perfectly mastered Latin, Greek, Italian and French. Although the girl was formally illegitimate, the best professors of Cambridge were engaged in her training. These were the people of the New Age - supporters of the reformation and opponents of bone Catholicism. Just at that time, Henry VIII, because of his disagreements with the pope, headed for the creation of an independent church. Elizabeth, who was distinguished by sufficient freethinking, later continued this policy.
She was taught along with Edward, the younger brother from Henry's subsequent marriage. The children became friends. In 1547, the king passed away. According to his will, the throne was received by Edward (he began to be called Edward VI). In the event of his death, in the absence of his own children, power should have passed to Mary and her descendants. Next in line was Elizabeth. But the will became an important document also for the reason that the father for the first time before his death recognized his daughters as legal.
After father’s death
The stepmother Catherine Parr after the funeral of Henry sent Elizabeth to live in Hertfordshire, away from London and the royal palace. However, she herself did not live long, having died in 1548. Soon matured Edward VI returned his sister to the capital. Elizabeth was attached to her brother. But in 1553 he died unexpectedly.
Then there was turmoil, as a result of which the elder sister of Elizabeth Maria came to power. Thanks to her mother, she was Catholic, which the nobles of England did not like. Repression began against the Protestants. Many barons and dukes began to look at Elizabeth as the rightful queen, in which the religious crisis would be resolved.
In 1554 there was an uprising of Thomas Wyatt. He was suspected of wanting to transfer the crown to Elizabeth. When the rebellion was crushed, the girl was imprisoned in the Tower. She was later sent into exile in the city of Woodstock. Mary was extremely unpopular among the people because of her attitude to the Protestant majority. In 1558, she died of an illness, leaving no heirs. Elizabeth the First ascended the throne.
Religious policy
Having come to power, Queen Elizabeth I immediately took up the resolution of the religious problems in her country. At this time, all of Europe was split into hateful Protestants and Catholics. England, located on the island, could remain aloof from this bloody conflict. All she needed was a prudent ruler on the throne, who could make a compromise decision and allow the two parts of society to live in relative calm. The wise and far-sighted Elizabeth One was just such a queen.
In 1559, she adopted the “Uniformity Act”. This document confirmed the desire of the monarch to follow the father’s Protestant course. At the same time, Catholics were not banned from worship. These reasonable concessions allowed us to divert the country from the abyss of civil war. What could happen if proponents of the Reformation and Catholics nevertheless clashed their foreheads, one can understand thanks to the ongoing bloody conflicts in Germany of that era.
Marine expansion
Today, the biography of Elizabeth the First is primarily associated with the Golden Age of England - an era of rapid growth of its economy and political influence. An important part of this success was the consolidation of London's status as the capital of the most powerful European maritime power. It was during the reign of Elizabeth I in the Atlantic Ocean and especially in the Caribbean that many English pirates appeared. These robbers smuggled and robbed merchant ships. The most famous pirate of that era was Francis Drake. Elizabeth used the “services” of this public to eliminate competitors at sea.
In addition, enterprising sailors and immigrants, with the approval of the state, began to establish their own colonies in the west. Jamestown, the first British settlement in North America, appeared in 1587. Elizabeth the First, whose reign lasted several decades, all this time generously sponsored such events.
Conflict with Spain
England's naval expansion inevitably led her to conflict with Spain, the country that possessed the largest and most profitable colonies in the west. Peruvian gold flowed continuously into the treasury of Madrid, providing greatness to the kingdom.
In fact, since 1570, the fleets of England and Spain were in a state of "strange war." Formally, it was not announced, but the clashes of pirates and galleons loaded with gold occurred with enviable regularity. Oil was added to the fire by the fact that Spain was the main defender of the Catholic Church, while Elizabeth continued her father’s Protestant policy.
Destruction of the Invincible Armada
The maneuvers of the monarchs could only delay the war, but not cancel it. An open armed conflict began in 1585. He flared up over the Netherlands, where local rebels tried to get rid of Spanish power. Elizabeth secretly supported them, supplying money and other resources. After a series of ultimatums from the ambassadors of both countries, the war between England and Spain was officially declared.
King Philip II sent an invincible armada to the British shores. That was the name of the Spanish Navy, numbering 140 ships. The conflict was to decide whose naval forces are stronger and which of the two powers will become the colonial empire of the future. The English fleet (with the support of the Dutch) consisted of 227 ships, but they were much smaller than the Spanish. True, they had an advantage - high maneuverability.
It was she who was used by the commanders of the English squadron - the already mentioned Francis Drake and Charles Howard. The flotillas collided on August 8, 1588, in the battle of Graveline off the coast of France in the English Channel. The Spanish Invincible Armada was defeated. Although the consequences of the defeat were not immediately reflected, time showed that it was this victory that made England the greatest naval power of the New Age.
After the Battle of Gravellino, the war continued for another 16 years. Battles also occurred in America. The result of a long war was the signing of the Peace of London in 1604 (after the death of Elizabeth). According to him, Spain finally refused to intervene in the church affairs of England, while England promised to stop the attacks on the Habsburg colonies in the west. In addition, London had to stop supporting the Dutch rebels who fought for independence from the court of Madrid. An indirect consequence of the war was the strengthening of parliament in English political life.
Relations with Russia
Back in 1551, the Moscow company was created by London merchants. She became in charge of all English trade with Russia. Elizabeth the First, whose reign was to stay in the Kremlin by Ivan the Terrible, maintained correspondence with the tsar and was able to achieve exclusive rights for her merchants.
The British were extremely interested in economic ties with Russia. The increased merchant fleet allowed the establishment of the sale and purchase of numerous goods. Europeans acquired furs, metals, etc. in Russia. In 1587, the Moscow company received the privileged right of duty-free trade. In addition, she founded her own courtyards not only in the capital, but also in Vologda, Yaroslavl and Kholmogory. Elizabeth I made a great contribution to this diplomatic and commercial success. The Queen of England received a total of 11 large letters from the Russian Tsar, which today are unique historical monuments.
Elizabeth and art
The golden age, which is associated with the era of Elizabeth, was reflected in the heyday of English culture. It was at this time that the chief playwright of world literature wrote Shakespeare. The queen, who was interested in art, strongly supported her writers. Shakespeare and his other creative colleagues were involved in creating the London theater network. The most famous of them was the Globe, built in 1599.
The ruler tried to make spectacles and entertainment accessible to the widest public. A royal troupe was created at her court. Sometimes Elizabeth I herself played in the performances. Photos of her lifetime portraits clearly show that she was a beautiful woman, in addition, who appeared on the throne at the age of 25 years. The queen's natural abilities were attached to external data. She was not only a polyglot, but also a good actress.
Last years
Even on the eve of her death, the old Elizabeth I of England continued to be actively engaged in public affairs. In the last period of her reign, there was an increase in the contradictions between the royal power and parliament. Especially painful were economic issues and the problem of taxation. Elizabeth sought to replenish the treasury in case of future military campaigns. Parliament opposed this.
On March 24, 1603, the country learned that Elizabeth the First, beloved by all the people, had died. The Queen of England really enjoyed the location of her fellow citizens - the name of Good Queen Bess was assigned to her. Elizabeth was buried in Westminster Abbey with a huge confluence of subjects.
The problem of succession
The whole reign of Elizabeth was an acute question of succession to the throne. The queen has never married. She had several novels, but they were informal. The ruler did not want to tie the knot due to childhood impressions of the family life of her own father, who, among other things, ordered the execution of Elizabeth the First mother.
The queen did not play a wedding, even despite the entreaties of parliament. Its members formally appealed to Elizabeth with a request to marry one of the European princes. For them it was a matter of national importance. If the country would have remained without a clear heir, a civil war or endless palace coups could have begun . The Queen of England was married to Philip II of Spain, the German Archdukes from the Habsburg Dynasty, the Swedish Crown Prince Eric, and even the Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible.
But she never got married. As a result, the childless Elizabeth before her death elected Jacob Stuart, the son of the Scottish Queen Mary, as her heir . By mother, he was the great-great-grandson of Henry VII - the founder of the Tudor dynasty, to which Elizabeth the First English belonged.