Problems in the Regions

Did Elizabeth I experience problems in Ireland during her reign?

Yes

What was Elizabeth I’s attitude towards Ireland?

believed Ireland should be subjected to a policy of ‘Englishness’ in both religious and secular matters

When was Elizabeth I proclaimed Supreme Governor of the Church of Ireland?

1560

Why did Elizabeth I’s attitude towards Ireland pose a problem?

she lacked power to impose Protestantism on a population that was largely catholic, mostly Gaelic in language and whose customary laws and landowners differed hugely from that of the English

What was marital law?

legal authority and political control exercised by military authority

How did John Guy describe Ireland once the English began using marital law?

“breeding ground for hunters”

How did marital law lead to bad relations with both Gaelic Irish and Old English under Elizabeth I?

‘get-rich-quick’ mentality of the English incomers and the frequent use of marital law led to bad relations with both the Gaelic Irish and the Old English - replacing the conventional rule of law with summary, often brutal, military authority

• descendants of the Normans and English who had settled in Ireland since the eleventh century

When did rebellions break out in the South of Ireland against English rule?

• 1569 to 1573

• 1579 to 1582

• 1595

What was the 3rd Irish rebellion in 1595 centred on?

centred on Ulster

Who led the 3rd Irish rebellion in 1595?

Clan chief Hugh O’Neill (named Earl of Tyrone by Elizabeth in 1585) rose up in rebellion in 1595

How did the Spanish attempt to exploit the situation in Ireland in 1595?

included an Irish contingent in the Armada of 1596

• unsuccessful; fact that Spanish and so clearly signalled their intentions caused much unease amongst Elizabeth and her councillors

What event worsened the situation regarding the 3rd Irish rebellion in 1598?

Battle of Yellow Ford in August 1598 - Rebels were victorious

What happened as a result of the Irish rebels success in the Battle of Yellow Ford in 1598?

Tyrone and his allies were in control of much of Ireland ‘beyond the Pale’

• looked as if Tyrone might establish an independent and Catholic Ireland that would look to support Spain

Why did Elizabeth I send the Earl of Essex to Ireland?

Lord Lieutenant in 1599

• concerned about potential of Tyrone establishing an independent and Catholic Ireland that would look to support Spain

Why was sending the Earl of Essex to Ireland a mistake?

Essex had a large force - but instead of confronting Tyrone - made a truce before defying the Queen’s orders and returning to court

What did Tyrone do once his truce had expired with the Earl of Essex?

Tyrone moved south and camped near Kinsale on the coast to the south-west of Cork, hoping to link up with a Spanish army

• high point of his power

seemed saved by landing in Kinsale of over 5000 Spanish troops during September 1601

After the failure of Essex, why was there significant progress under Lord Mountjoy and Sir George Carew in Ireland?

English triumphed on Christmas Eve 1601

• Tyrone retreated back to Ulser before eventually negotiating a peace with Mountjoy in March 1603

Why did Lord Mountjoy allow generous terms in his peace talks with Tyrone about Ireland in 1603?

unbeknown to Tyrone - Elizabeth had died

• Mountjoy appears to have offered generous terms in order to be able to leave Ireland and attend the new King, James I

After Elizabeth I’s death in 1603, What was King James I response to Ireland?

committed to returning to the policy, abandoned 70 years earlier

• entrusting rule in Ireland to the local nobility of whom the most important was the utterly unreliable Tyrone

Did Elizabeth I experience problems in Wales during her reign?

No - by Elizabeth I’s reign, the Welsh border was no longer a problem

Did Elizabeth I experience problems in Scotland and the North of England during her reign?

Yes

Why was it important in the North of England for Scotland to not remain independent?

as long as Scotland remained separate and independent state - possibility of border conflict remained

• continuation on the borders of a lawless subculture which placed a large emphasis on casual violence and rustling of sheep and cattle created problems for the authorities in both countries

Who on the English side of the Scottish border had administrative responsibility?

administrative responsibility laid with the wardens of three border marches

• traditionally - Wardens had seen appointed from the families of the great northern magnates such as the Percies and the Dacres

HOWEVER - Henry VIII signalled a move away from this policy by appointing southerners (strategy continued by Elizabeth)

Why was Elizabeth I’s approach to the administrative responsibility on the English side of the Scottish border a problem?

difficult for nobles without local landed base to control either the northern landed families or the border clans