tudors elizabeth

death of Queen Mary

17 November 1558

elizabeth’s coronation

15 January 1559

elizabeth’s first parliament

25 January 1559

elizabeth appointed William Cecil as her Private Secretary

20 November 1558

Elizabeth I’s consolidation of power

• Mary died in the early hours of 17 november 1558

• Within a few hours, Sir William Cecil had ridden the 16 miles north to Hatfield to tell the Princess Elizabeth. Mary’s councillors were aware that Elizabeth did not share their religious views; many guessed their political careers were over.

• no attempt to interfere with the lawful succession as defined by Henry VIII. In any case, Mary had recognised Elizabeth as her successor and her husband signified his recognition of Elizabeth's right of succession when he sent his envoy, to see Elizabeth a month before Mary’s death.

• it was in some ways a difficult succession. England suffered a series of bad harvests, food was scarce and expensive. flu epidemic brought a high rate of mortality

• political and religious situations were delicate.war against France -  the loss of Calais. The debate over the queen’s marriage. changes to the Catholic faith, as re-established by Queen Mary.

• acceptance of her succession by Mary’s key councillors.

• 17 November Nicholas Heath, Mary’s Lord Chancellor and Archbishop of York, announced Mary’s death to Parliament and proclaimed Elizabeth’s succession. he had no right to do so; Mary’s death should, in law, have brought the immediate dissolution of Parliament. 

• - significant move->  political elite of the nation assented to Elizabeth's accession. 

• Within a couple of days, nine of Mary’s councillors rode to Hatfield to assure Elizabeth of their loyalty. no attempt to deny Elizabeth’s succession by devout Catholics who never accepted the validity of her father’s marriage to Anne Boleyn.

• William Cecil appointed principal secretary(political partnership of 40 years). Elizabeth made some household appointments. she did not announce any further appointments. It made political sense for her to keep Mary’s councillors guessing about her intentions and speculating about their chances of retaining royal favour.

• Elizabeth was familiar with customs associated with monarchs acceded to the throne by taking herself to the Tower, from which she emerged on several occasions to show herself to her new subjects and to benefit from pageants which were organised on her behalf by the City of London.

• proceeded quickly (within two months) to her coronation - on the basis of astrological advice, 15 January

• gained some measure of international confirmation. The Spanish ambassador, the Count of Feria, visited Elizabeth several days before Mary’s death and after her accession tried to broker a marriage alliance between Elizabeth and Philip II. Nothing came of that, but it did demonstrate that Philip was unwilling to do anything to disrupt the smoothness of Elizabeth's succession.

elizabeth religious beliefs

• ambiguous /mixed, via media personal beliefs

• Educated by leading humanists, lived in protestant households

• Disliked long sermons and theological debates of protestant reformers

• Seen as pious in edwards reign and a heretic in marys reign

• Attended protestant services inn english but kept crucifixes in her private chapel

• 1558 privy council dominated by protestants

• Christmas day 1558 walked out of her chapel when bishop raised consecrated bread during mass

• Liked clergymen to wear vestments, hy,s to be accompanied by choir boys and organ

• Against married clergymen

• Shared many religious views with calvin

Act of supremacy 1559

• Restored royal supremacy in the church

• Papal supremacy rejected

• Reformation legislation of henry viii restored

• Heresy law revived under mary repealed

• Powers of royal visitation revived - allowed the Crown to appoint commissioners to ‘visit, reform, order, correct and amend all such errors, heresies, and abuses. (power to commissioners)

• described the queen as ‘supreme governor’ rather than as ‘supreme head’ of the Church of England as her father had been.

• oath of supremacy was to be taken by clergymen and church officials; there were penalties for refusing to do so.

Act of uniformity

• Specified use of single book of common prayer - modified version of the second book cranmer introduced in 1552 - deliberately vague to keep both catholics and protestants happy

• Modifications - variations in eucharistic belief that were possible in the 1549 wording and 1552 wording permitted. Black rubric included in 1552 prayer book omitted

• Specified that ornaments of the church and ministers should be those that were in place before the act of uniformity 1549

• Issue of contention

• Many returning protestant exiles, assumed this dating was an error, did not expect the clause to be enforced

• Many calvinist clergy saw the ornaments as popish, objected to them

39 articles of religion introduced in 1563

• form the basic summary of belief of the Church of England

• passed through convocation, given statutory authority 1571

• Pope Pius V excommunicated Elizabeth in 1570 and called on all loyal Catholics to depose her. English Catholics in an impossible position, forced to choose between loyalty to their Church and loyalty to their monarch.

• 1572 Catholics in france slaughtered protestants during st bartholomew's day

leading catholic nobles rebelled against elizabeth

• 1569

The royal injunctions 1559

• Instructions about conduct of church services,

• First injunction- ‘the suppression of superstition’ (ie. Catholic practices), the need ‘to

• plant true religion to the extirpation of all hypocrisy. enormities, and abuses.

• emphasised that the Eucharist be administered at a simple communion table rather than at the altar, which was a clear signal that religious practice should move in the direction of reform.

• Removal from the churches of ‘things superstitious. Such traditional Catholic practices as pilgrimages and the use of candles were described as ‘works devised by man’s fantasies.

• parish churches were required to purchase an English Bible, reasserting the 1538 injunctions, and a copy of Erasmus’s Paraphrases, as previously required in 1547.

• the visitors nominated by Cecil to enforce the injunctions were strongly Protestant

• the injunctions reflected some of Elizabeth's personal idiosyncrasies. her disapproval of clerical marriage was signalled by the fact that prospective wives of clergy had to produce a certificate signed by two justices of the peace signifying their fitness for such a role. queen’s desire to persuade people to ‘forbear all vain and contentious disputations in matters of religion.

The treaty of cateau-cambresis, 1559

• When elizabeth came to throne, england was in conflict with france, loss od calais, weakened crown’s finances

• Wanted to extricate england from the war, financial state of france and spain meant that philip ii and henry ii did not want to continue the war

• Peace treaty at cateau-cambresis april 1559 - agreement over calais - france would retain it for 8 years, would be restored to england afterwards if they kept the peace, if they failed to return it they'd pay 500,000 crowns

Intervention in Scotland 1559

• death in June 1559 of Henry II of France - accident in jousting match

• Succeeded by francis ii, husband to mary queen of scots, elixabeth’s cousin, main catholic claimant to the english throne - catholic guise faction to power in france, sought to use scotland as an instrument of french policy

• French troops sent to garrison major scottish fortress - john nox, leader of scottish reformation and political allies, lords of the congregation wanted power in edinburgh - conflict, requested assistance from protestants south of the border

• E;izabeth was cautious of interfering and loathed knox, cecil supported intervention - sympathised with religious predicament and knew england would be more secure without french force north of the border but sought the removal of mary to weaken her influence/claim to the throne, wanted to incorporate scotland in a british imperial state for the survival of protestant england

• Persuaded elizabeth to intervene by pointing out how francis and mary used english royal coat of arms on their own, suggested he would resign if she failed to support him

• Initially, intervention was limited to money and armaments, but towards the end of December 1559 the navy was sent to the Firth of Forth to stop French reinforcements from landing. 

• The Lords of the Congregation were offered conditional support at the Treaty of Berwick in February 1560, and in March 1560 an army was sent north.

• The army and navy blockaded Leith, outside Edinburgh where most of the French force was situated

• The siege failed, but other circumstances forced a French withdrawal; the French fleet was damaged by storm, and the regent Mary of Guise died. Cecil secured favourable terms in the Treaty of Edinburgh in July.

• The Lords of the Congregation were accepted as a provisional conciliar government and, with the death of Francis IJ in December, the Guises fell from power, Mary Stuart’s influence on French policy came to an end and she had to return to Scotland. 

• forced to accept the political and religious power of her enemies. 

• the interests of Scottish Protestants had been protected and the political influence of Mary had been significantly reduced. 

Intervention in France, 1562

• Conflict broke out between Catholics and Protestants in France in March 1562. Robert Dudley, encouraged Elizabeth to put military pressure on the French Crown when it was in a relatively weak state to ensure the return of Calais. Elizabeth promised the Huguenot leader, 6000 men and a loan of £30,000, with control of the port of Le Havre as security.

• The Huguenot army was defeated and Condé was captured; on the Catholic side the Duke of Guise was assassinated.

• both sides leaderless, the French factions agreed to accept peace terms and united to drive the English out of Le Havre. The English were forced to seek an unfavourable peace settlement at the subsequent Treaty of Troyes in 1564.

• Elizabeth lost the indemnity she had secured at Cateau-Cambrésis, she lost Calais as well, permanently.in the long run that might have proved an advantage (Calais was expensive to maintain and it was tempting to use it as a starting point for invasion), the blow to Elizabeth's prestige -  became more cautious about supporting Protestant causes on the European continent: possibly too cautious in her attitude to the Netherlands.

Possible suitors, elizabeth

• Philip ii spain - political stability and continuity

• Wanted to work against france, did not want france through mary queen of scots to gain influence in england

• Elizabeth was evasive, philip made other suggestions

• Two of philips cousins, archdukes of austria, were the younger sons of the hre - ferdinand wouldn't be suitable as a catholic, charles was a possibility - accepted that elizabeth had no intention of marrying him

• Prince eric of sweden - protestant, heir to swedish throne, friendship - lavish gifts, not intention of marrying him, little benefit in european diplomacy

• During 1559 - rumours about eligible bachelors

• Earl of arundel - catholic

• Leading member of gentry, sir william pickering s[ent many hour with her - nothing to be gained politically

• Only serious contender for elizabeth was robert dudley, his wife was ill, assumed that they'd marry - found dead at the bottom of stair, rumours her husband tried to kill her 

• Marriage would remain impossible under these circumstances - remained close friends

• 1563 - obvious she didn't want to marry

• Delt wit petitions from parliament, foreign ambassadors making a case for an advantageous marriage to an eligible european

• Negotiations with archduke charles later 1560s

• 1579 - elizabeth in her mid 40s, duke of alencon welcomed to england - dabbled in courtship but real purpose was to aid international diplomacy

smallpox

• October 1562

• hampton court, elizabeth taken ill - small[px

• Serious epidemic - she recovered - made her marriage seem important, if she dies it could've been a civil war

Poor relief, elizabeth

• Poverty and vagabondage, widespread in late tudor england, number of causes of poverty

• - increase in population, real wages for labouring poor were lower than a century earlier, wage rates falling behind rises in prices

• Harvest failures created food shortages, especially in mid 1550s and mid 1590s

• The old and infirm suffered worst

• Offerings of private benefactors continued - no longer enough

• Cecil was concerned that numbers of homeless and unemployed people presented a threat to law and order

• Contemporaries differentiated between the deserving and undeserving poor, former entitled to limited assistance, latter punished (included old, widows)

• Before the reformation the main poor relief was within the church, reformation destroyed most

• Parliament had made various stumbling attempts to deal with the problem. Acts had been passed in 1552 and 1555. The Elizabethan regime continued this. A further ineffective Act was passed in 1563, but its impact was haphazard. 

• National legislation continued to lag behind local provision which had been set up in a number of boroughs, most notably Norwich and Ipswich it was not until the 1570s that parliamentary legislation began seriously to get to grips with the problem.

Stabilising currency, elizabeth

• The government was more successful in restoring confidence in the currency.

• Both Northumberland and Mary had sought to re-stabilise the currency.

• it was Elizabeth who was able to do so. Early in the reign a scheme was announced for the withdrawal of debased coins and their replacement by soundly minted coins. 

• While some individuals suffered as a result of the scheme, it did ensure that only sound coins were in circulation and the government wisely did not resort again to debasement during the rest of the century. Prices still continued to rise but at least the government could no longer be held responsible for the problem.

impact of religious developments, 1558-63

• The Elizabethan settlement was undoubtedly Protestant — but how Protestant?

• Many returning Protestant exiles initially saw the queen as the “English Deborah’ the Old Testament heroine who had protected the Israelites from their Canaanite enemies, would protect from the evils of Catholicism.

• Elizabeth was somewhat reluctant and many of the religious problems of the reign were to stem from Elizabeth’s unwillingness to fulfil this role allotted to her by her more religiously enthusiastic councillors

• own sceptical and sometimes conservative approach to religious matters.

• Protestant emphasis can be seen in the appointment of new bishops, Some of the early appointments to bishoprics were of moderates

• most of the new bishops were returning exiles  - strategy to reshape the hierarchy of the Church of England along more evangelical lines.

• Elizabeth disapproved of clergy marrying, distrusted preaching and ensured the preservation of the musical culture of the cathedrals and university colleges. 

•  Settlement emphasised the Erastian nature of the Church of England.

• The queen's view - settlement was an act of State which defined the relationship between Crown and Church, and it established the Church's doctrinal position 

• Others believed it  represented the starting point for a process of spiritual renewal which would bring about the establishment of a true Church in England and saw the English as God's elect nation. 

• the view held by many of the queen's key advisers, including Cecil and Robert Dudley -> Puritanism emerge from this.

• two key developments:

• 1. The 1562 publication of An Apology of the Church of England by John Jewel, bishop of Salisbury. Jewel, who had been in exile during Queen Marys reign, argued that the Church of England was returning to the true position abandoned many centuries earlier by the Church of Rome. ‘We are come, as near as we possibly could, to the church of the apostles and of the old Catholic bishops and fathers. There was thus an essential continuity between the early Church, as described in the Acts of the Apostles, and the beliefs of the reformers.

• 2. The publication in 1563 of the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion. The Articles sought to define the difference between the Church of England and the Catholic Church. They were broadly supportive of reformed doctrine, especially that which was emerging out of Switzerland, though they attempted to adopt a broad and comprehensive approach to essential Beliefs

• The convocation proved to be unsuccessful in achieving the wider aims of its leading members concerning the remaining features of catholic practice within the church and tis structures, disciplinary procedures, services and clerical dress Vision of reform not shared by the queen, c of e, was but half reformed in its structures

Functions of the privy council, elizabeth

• To enforce the religious settlement of 1559, requiring justices of peace to investigate compliance in individual counties, overseeing laws against catholics

• To adjudicate partly as a court of law when sitting as the star chamber and when sitting as a board when dealing with issues like local maladministration

• John guy - to manage parliament. Can be debated whether this was a function of the council as a whole rather than individual councillors

• To discuss matters of state and offer policy advice from discussions to the queen

• Manage crown finances with lord treasurer and chancellors of the exchequer

• Oversee operation and appeals of regional councils

• Administer realm by instructing officials- lord lieutenant, sheriffs, jps… councillors involved themselves in local administration, built networks of influence in counties

• Councillors had considerable influence on appointment of jps

• Enforce laws and regulations of issues such as law and order, wages, vagrancy

• Oversee arrangements for national defence, supervising operation of trained bands in individual counties, serving lords lieutenant with militia responsibilities in individual counties

Tactics elizabeth used to control the council

• Participated in discussions to prevent them agreeing with advice she would reject, only discussed with small groups

• Kept notes to question them and catch them out

• Consulter with men outside council like foreign ambassadors

• Promoted divisions, encouraged them to compete for rewards

• Displayed anger and violence - exclusion from court, arrest, execution

• Displayed affection

Divisions in the council, elizabeth

• 1562 (smallpox, council stronger/threat) - elizabeth and council disagree over her wish to meet mary, queen of scots, she does not go

• 1567 - council splits over elizabeth’s decision to marry catholic archduke charles of austria. Division causes elizabeth to hesitate and reject charles

• 1569-7 council meets frequently to discuss dangers from arrival of mary, queen of scots, in england, the english catholics and threat from france and spain. Council is divided by favouring protestants or mary and france. 

• 1578 - main issues, council divided over giving military aid to protestant rebels. Split between intervention and against it - two groups. 

• 1579-81 - negotiations over proposed marriage between elizabeth and french duke alencon. Hostility towards this match. Majority councillors opposed, october 1579 give no opinion. Elizabeth creates four new catholic councillors, asks them for advice, three refuse to oppose marriage. Exchanged betrothal rings 1581, eventually rejects him, saying her people are against it

• 1586 - pushes elizabeth to call parliament to sanction death warrant for mary queen of scots, elizabeth reluctantly signs 1587, secretary davison dispatches without permission, sent to the tower

• 1590 - new generation of politicians, with a party of supporters each, at local and parliamentary level. Essez is ambitious, elizabeth ensures political vacancies go to cecil essex demands councillors say if they are for him or cecil - two factions. Essex is executed after uprising 1601 .

Parliament, elizabeth

• Law making - 438 acts passed

• Granting tax - most important funcctoin, in all but two sessions asked to grant revenue

• Giving advice, elizabeth not interested in listening to advice, irritated when mps discussed what she felt was royal prerogative

• etermined to preserve the prerogative powers of the Crown which meant that she insisted on taking the most important decisions. Clashed with parliament:

• The right to call, prorogue and dissolve parliament.

• Declare war and make peace.

• Appoint and dismiss ministers and judges.

• Determine the monarch’s marriage.

• Name a successor.

Archbishop whitgift

• 1593

• Sought the pasing of punitive act against sectaries even though this was opposed by mps such as walter raleigh with close links to the crown. One of burghleys associates made a speech criticising whitgit, the queen took this as personal criticism barring the politicians advancement

Peter wentworth

• Example of what happens when you go against royal prerogative

• Gained notoriety as he was imprisoned for comments in the house of commons. 1576 asserted matters which elizabeth regarded as part of her prerogative powers.

• 1576 - released on queens orders

• 1593 second occasion he raised the issue of succession, imprisoned until death in 1597

Golden speech 1601

• Delivered by elizabeth to mps as final parliamentary session of her reign drew to a close, drew a veil over poor relations which had blighted this parliamentary session

1601, monopolies

• Relationship with parliaments broke down at the end of her reign over the issue of monopolies

• One occasion when crown officers lost control over house of commons, not helped by problems faced by robert cecil, who lacked skill as a parliamentary manager with fewer resources to undertake this task than his father. Compromise achieved, session ended with golden speech

elizabethan Foreign policy, france, spain

• France presented the danger - refuse to return calais 1559, framcos ii marries mary queen of scots - catholic guise family rulers of france and scotland. 

• Spain present danger because catholicism

• Netherlands unsure relations

• Alliances - treaty of cateau cambresis france and spain 1559

• Philip ii marries henry ii of frances daughter, dies, new king francis ii marries mary queen of scots 1559

• To prevent mary of guise power in scotland elizabeth sends army and fleet to protestant lords, treaty of edinburgh signed - french withdraw from scotlnad, council establishes protestantism1560

• French wars of religion - elizabeth sends aid to huguenots but they make peace and english driven out 1562

• Philip snes army to netherlands to restore spanish control

• Embargo on english property in netherlands because cecil orders bullion from spanish ships to be unloaded 1568

• Marriage negotiations between elizabeth and younger brother of french king 1570-1

• 1572 Treaty of blois, england and france, defence treaty

• 1588 spanish armada defeated by english navy battle off gravelines

• 1596 philip launches second armada but is destroyed by gales

• 1597 - essex to intercept ird armada but sails to azores after treasure fleet, misses, leaving england undefended but third armada is wrecked by storms

Mary queen of scots, threat

• Spent much of her childhood in france, returned to scotland in her late teens, seen as a threat to elizabeths position as queen of england

• 1542 mary born, only child of james v

• 1548 taken to france to be educated at court by her mother brought up as catholic

• 1558 married heir to french throne, 1559 he became king francis ii

• 1560 francis died.beginning of French wars of religion

• 1561 mary returned to scotland to assume role of queen, peace restored between england and scotland, government portestant, reival groups of nobles threatened civil war, mary not allowed power

• 1565 mary married lord darnley, great greandson henry vii - speculation that she wanted english throne. Mary was pregnant but ot was rumoured it was david rizzio her secretary and lover - lord darnleys henchmen killed him in front of her. Mary gave birth to james - heir to scotgttish throne and after his mother to the english throne

• 1567 darnley recovering from an illness, mary taken lover earl of bothwell, darnley and his valet killed in explosion (or strangled before). Mary amd bothwell ran away together and were married. Marriage ended and bothwell fled to denmark, mary was forced to abdicate in favour fo her son. Earl of murray, protestant lord became regent

• 1568 fled to england

• Elizabeth should show support but this would mean attacking her protestant allies, 

• She kept her under house arrest for 19 years, focal point for catholic and noble discontent, potential pawn for france and spain to depose elizabeth 

• Mary was an increasing problem as a prisoner in england

• Rebellion of northern earls 1569 - spanish ambassador de spes in touch with mary stuart with disgruntled noblemen encouraged rebellion

• Spanish troops in netherlands - duke of alva refused to intervene until english revolt

• reluctant for the execution of another anointed monarch mary faced trial at foreringhay castle in northamptonshire

• privy councillors and nobles assisted by judges tried her, several of those commissioned pleaded illness - feared regicide, concerned of condemning mother of possible future monarch

• at eliuzabeths command - no sentence

• four months delay of ordering execution, parliament petitioned her but refused to sign death warrant until 1 february 1587,

• Eventually executed

1568-72 years of crisis

• duke of alva’s army in netherlands sent by philip ii to suppress protestant revolt, threatened english security

• Deep - water harbours on dutch coast, and easterly winds made english target for spanish invasion

• 1568 - alva defeated dutch rebels led by william, prince of orange

• Elizabeth didnt have the means to challenge him directly, reluctant to send aid to protestant rebels

• Policy of harassment - encouraged seamen to make life difficult for spanish in the new world

Trade embargo, elizabeth spain

• Spanish governments reaction to confiscation of genoese load - rapid

• Alva seized english ships and property in the netherlands, philip did the same to spain - embargo on all trade between england and spain

san juan de ulua

• Hawkins slaving voyages 1562, 1564, 1567 attempt to break spanish trading monopoly in americas

• Attack on hawkins san juan de ulua 1568 increased tension between england and spain

• in …. spanish bullion ships on the way to the netherlands to pay spanish army, refuge from pirates in english ports

• Bullion was a loan by genoese bankers

• Cecil may have convinced elizabeth the money was still the property of the bankers, possible she decided to take over the load to make it difficult for alva or for revenge for san juan

• Spanish response was severe - cecil criticised for deteriorated relationship

• November 1568

spanish armada

• philip believed he was engaged in catholic crusade

• the spanish armada was huge, many vessells taked from portuguese

• sailing of armada delayed due to successful english attack on spanish ships harbour at cadiz april 1587

• set sail 22 july 1588

• objective to reach port of gravelines in spanish netherlands - intended that army by duke of parma would borad ships to invade england

• sighted off the coast at cornwall, battle in channel 30 july to 6 august

• English guns proved more effective than Spanish ones, though the English ran out of ammunition

• Probably 6 Spanish ships were sunk, no English

• armada forced due to unfavourable winds to return to spain - lost many ships

• By 6th August the Armada was anchored at Calais waiting for the Duke of Parma’s army to arrive, Parma was late

• On the night of 7th August, the English sent ‘hell-burners’ into the Calais harbour – it broke up the Spanish formation

•  further Armadas were planned in the 1590s but amounted to little

Cult of gloriana

either:

• manufactured and used by elizabeths ministers as political propaganda, silence criticism and brainwash

• Need to replace the cult of virgin mary and to turn Elizabeth’s gender into a strength. It had little to do with the daily concerns of government and did not prevent criticism of the Queen.

puri†ans

• Puritans believed in the eradication of ‘popish superstition’ and their emergence can be traced back to the failure of the Convocation of Canterbury in 1563 to go further in its reform of the Church, However, some groups within the broader

• challenge to the Elizabethan settlement.

The Vestiarian Controversy

• tensions between the queen, who desired conformity/obedience on complete acceptance of the settlement, and ‘Puritans, who believed in the eradication of ‘superstitious’ practices, led to the Vestiarian Controversy.

•  Several figures within the Church decided that they could not obey the rules on clerical dress laid down in the Act of Uniformity and royal injunctions as this specified the wearing of Catholic and therefore ‘superstitious’ dress

• The queen forced the issue by dismissing the Oxford academic Thomas Sampson from his post at Christ Church College for his refusal to wear the required vestments.

• Archbishop Parker, and five bishops, issued the ‘Advertisements’ in March 1566 which required clergy to follow ‘one uniformity of rites and manners’ in the administration of the sacraments and ‘one decent behaviour in their outward apparel. 

• Thirty-seven London clergymen refused to signify their support and were consequently deprived of their posts.

• The whole business showed the extent of the queen's determination to enforce the settlement, but reforming bishops were caught between conflicting

Presby†erian movement

• The Presbyterian movement was part of the Puritan movement, believed that the Church of England, calvinist in its doctrine, should be further reformed in its structure and its forms of worship. grew out of Calvin's views on Church organisation/discipline, partly in reaction to the Vestiarian Controversy

• Some Presbyterians questioned the scriptural basis for the authority of bishops and other aspects of the Church. criticisms in two pamphlets known as the two Admonitions, first attacked the Book of Common Prayer and called for the abolition of bishops, second Admonition provided a detailed description of a Presbyterian system of Church government.

• geographically narrow movemen attracted some high-ranking support. 

• clergymenfell foul of the authorities because of their alleged sympathy for the Presbyterian movement.

• grew in the 1580s. Ideas for Church government through local assemblies and provincial and national synods were developed, but attempts to bring change through Parliament failed, despite the efforts of Peter Turner in 1584 and Anthony Cope in 1587.

whitgift

• pamphlet war between Thomas Cartwright, a Cambridge academic, and the vice-chancellor of Cambridge University, John Whitgift.

• Cartwright and Presbyterians believed that a Church founded on ‘superstitious’ or ‘popish’ principles must be spiritually flawed and the 1559 settlement had to be modified, while Whitgift argued that the Presbyterians’ attitude was destructive and would split the Church.

• The Archbishop of Canterbury, John Whitgift, was determined to destroy Presbyterianism. issued Three Articles to which clergy had to subscribe:

  • Acknowledgement of the royal supremacy.

  • Acceptance of the prayer book as containing nothing ‘contrary to the Word of God.

  • Acceptance that the Thirty-Nine Articles conformed to the word of God.

• The second Article created a crisis of conscience for many clergy, not just Presbyterians, who thought that some parts of the prayer book lacked scriptural justification. 

• Whitgift was forced to back down under pressure from councillors such as Leicester and Walsingham. He reduced the second Article to a simple acceptance of the prayer book and most clergy were able to justify accepting this by arguing that their preaching ensured godliness within the Church.

• Whitgift’s campaign had some success: he forced Burghley’s protégé, George Gifford, out of his post, and Cartwright was refused a licence to preach, despite Leicester's pleas. However, the Church paid a price. 

• By treating radical and moderates alike, Whitgift caused much despair among clergymen.

• Moreover, while he undoubtedly had the complete support of the queen, his policies and attitudes were regarded with suspicion by many of her ministers.

• By the late 1580s Presbyterianism was in decline. Very few Puritan clergy were prepared to break with the Church by refusing to accept the Three Articles, and the failure of Cope’ ‘Bill and Book in 1587 showed the futility of a parliamentary approach. 

• Presbyterianism was further weakened by the death of its key organiser, John Field, in 1589. No synod was held after 1589 and the reputation of the Presbyterian movement suffered on account of the satirical Marprelate tracts.

Radical Puritans (Separatists)

• Separatism  - most extreme form of Puritanism,mainstream Puritans regarded Separatists with abhorrence

• wanted to separate from the Church of England altogether. Separatists regarded the Church of England as incapable of reforming itself sufficiently to root out all ‘popish or ‘superstitious’ practices and they wanted to create independent church congregations. 

• opposed to the queen’s status as Supreme Governor of the Church of England. Separatism as a movement emerged in the 1580s. 

• Robert Browne became the leader of a significant congregation in Norwich, but his challenge soon petered out, and he went into exile in the Netherlands with some of his congregation in 1582.

• He later returned to England and made his peace with the authorities in 1585, aided by the good offices of his relative, Lord Burghley. Henry Barrow and John Greenwood led Separatist movements in London, although the numbers involved were small

• activities were sufficient to alarm the authorities and led to the passing of the Act against Seditious Sectaries in 1593. Barrow, Greenwood and John Penry were tried and executed ‘for devising and circulating seditious books. 

• why the authorities chose to adopt such harsh measures against such a numerically insignificant movement is difficult to explain, but vindictiveness on the part of Archbishop Whitgift has been put forward as an explanation 

•  Elizabethan Separatism was destroyed.

The decline of Puritanism

• Puritan influence declined in the late 1580s, partly because of the deaths of Leicester, Mildmay and Walsingham, its political supporters at court, and partly because the defeat of the Spanish Armada reduced the perceived threat of Catholicism and lessened its attractions. Furthermore, the disappearance of Presbyterianism meant that Puritan attitudes became more acceptable within the traditional Church structure.

• The fundamentally Calvinist beliefs of the Church of England were reaffirmed in the lambeth articles of 1595, acceptable to puritans and opponents like whitfit

• 1559 book of common prayer accepted by both

• Church papists - loyal to queen, accepted her as supreme governer but were conservative and disliked radical changes, sacraments were necessary for salvation

• Recusants - refused to attend church services, believed in catholic doctrine, wouldn't compromise - ⅓ nobles

• Seminary priests - english catholics trained for priesthood in flanders, taught it was their duty to return to england and save lost souls

• Jesuits - catholic missionary order, to destroy heresy, oath of allegiance to pope

Ca†holic †hrea†

• Elizabeth not wishing to make ‘windows into men’s souls. Elizabeth adopted an attitude of toleration towards Catholics in the early years of her reign but toleration of Catholics was conditional on obedience, and not all Catholic practices were tolerated.

• Much energy was spent on removing Catholic imagery from parish churches and on searching out images that had been hidden away

• old religious ‘mystery plays’ were abolished because of their link to the feast of Corpus Christi and hence to the doctrine of transubstantiation. 

• Most English Catholics survived as ‘church papists, outwardly conforming, obeying the law by attending Anglican services.

•  an active minority followed the Catholic bishops, who had] refused to conform to the Oath of Supremacy in 1559. 

• some Catholic intellectuals went into exile, most frequently to the Spanish Netherlands, rather than conform, some priests survived as private chaplains to Catholic members of the nobility who protected them or conducted secret Catholic services -  recusants.

• The Northern Rebellion of 1569 (with its Catholic religious undertones) provoked a punitive attitude towards Catholics.

Penal laws against catholics

• 1571 Act made the publication of papal bulls treasonable.

• The 1581 Act to Retain the Queen's Majesty’s Subjects in their Due Obedience. This made it treason to withdraw subjects’ allegiance to either the queen or the Church of England. Saying Mass became punishable by heavy fine and imprisonment and the fine for non-attendance at church was raised to the prohibitive figure of £20 per month. Although the laity were not too harshly treated, 4 Catholic priests were executed in 1581, and 11 in 1582.

• The 1585 Act against Jesuits and Seminary Priests. This made it treasonable for priests ordained under the Pope's authority to enter England. This made it much easier for the courts to secure convictions for treason; 123 priests were convicted and executed under the terms of this Act from 1586 to 1603.

• savage increase in the financial penalties with the fine for recusancy being set at £20 per month in 1581

• 1587 the law was tightened and any recusant who defaulted on his payment of fines could have two thirds of his estate seized by the Exchequer. The persecution of recusants was at its height from 1588 to 1592.

• The tightening of legislation was partly a response to the international situation and the worsening relations with the Catholic King Philip II of Spain and partly because of fear of Catholic rebellion, made worse by the onset of Catholic missions of priests intent on upholding and spreading the Catholic faith. 

• The pressure against Catholics was reinforced by the drafting of a ‘Bond of Association for the Preservation of the Queen's Majesty’s Royal Person’ by Burghley and Walsingham in October 1584 in response to the Throckmorton Plot. 

• Anyone who took the oath of association was required to execute summarily [i.e. murder] anyone who attempted to usurp the Crown or make an attempt on Elizabeth's life.

The Catholic missions

• In 1568 a college was founded at Douai, in the Spanish Netherlands, in order to train Catholic priests to be sent to England and to keep Catholicism alive and win new converts. 

• By 1575, 11 of these ‘seminary priests’ had arrived in England, by 1580 there were about 100, and 179 arrived in England between 1580 and 1585.

• dangerous work as they had to operate, in secretive circumstances, from the country houses of Catholic gentry and aristocracy.

• Merely being a Catholic priest was sufficient, from 1585, to incur the death penalty.

• The Society of Jesus began sending Jesuit priests to England in 1580.

• The Jesuits combined high intelligence and organisational skills with a dedication to the cause of the restoration of Catholicism to England. 

• The first Jesuits to become involved in attempting to re-Catholicise England were Robert Parsons and Edmund Campion. (Campion was captured and executed in 1581.)

• the success of the missions was limited. While the Catholic gentry were enabled to retain their faith, humbler Catholics were often ignored

• ‘The educated priests associated more readily with their protectors than the ‘ordinary people’ and often became more like household chaplains.

• Catholicism thus became more of a ‘country-house religion’ than the popular faith it had been in the 1560s. priests themselves became divided as a result of a bitter dispute over leadership of the missionary movement, thereby weakening the Catholic mission.

views on the war against spain

• Elizabeth sought national security, but for many, at court and in the army it was war for both national/religious survival against Catholic conspiracy

• Some wanted confrontation in Netherlands of Duke of Parma, others like John Hawkins favoured a more expansive naval campaign, while accepting a land campaign in the Netherlands - argued that war in the Netherlands tended to be expensive/difficult, while England had success with small-scale naval attacks in the Caribbean and on mainland Spain in 1585 and 1587.

• 1559 philip offered to marry elizabeth - gesture to show support

• 1562 - philip protested to elizabeth about her support for huguenot rebels against catholic government in france

• philips government in netherlands banned imports of english cloths - tp protect netherlands against plague from england, ban reflected annoyance balance of trade in english favour while elizabeth ignored piracy in the channel (but distanced from them supported by peace party in privy council felt war with spain was beyond english capabilities, second group of courtiers favoured military action) and english merchants spreading protestantism in netherlands banned imports from netherlands bit both sides backed down and normalised trade relations 1564

• 1563

• 1566-7 revolt of netherlands, spanish duke of alba sent to netherlands to crush calvnist rioting and restore firm government - northern coast of channel insecure - albas army might turn against Decade of spanish rule, tensions with n netherlands developing into civil war 1566. Philip sent duke of alba and 10,000 troops to restore order done in brutal manner

• england once completed in netherlands

• 1568 - spanish expelled english ambassador from madrid, replaced its ambassador in london with hard line catholic, de spes - added tensions, he made contact with mary queen of scots

1568- caribbean spanish government ships attacked john hawkins fleet, trespassing on spains monopoly of atlantic slave trade - source of spanish grievances

elizabeth seized bullion transported through channel for albas army - already owed pay, caused crisis, retaliation confiscating english ships at ports in netherlands, elizabeth banned trade with netherlands and spain until 1573

1568 -

• de spes negotiated with northern earls, rebellion for mary on throne

1569

• elizabeth considered marriage to duke of anjou, brother of king of france to prevent france and spain acting together against her

1570

 ridolfi plot

• philip and de spes implicated - de spes expelled, repression of catholics in england

• Philip authorised alva to send financial aid to catholics in north england - changed his mind despite papal bull excommunicating elizabeth 1570

• Nothing to prevent english seamen attacking spanish ships, pursued marriage alliance with french duke of anjou

1571

treaty of blois

• 1572: formal anglo french defensive alliance against spain - didnt happen because e didnt want war with netherlands to support france

intensification of civil war in netherlands, rebels seized port of brill - elizabeth accused of giving safe harbour to rebels by spain

1572

• spanish commander duke of parma recovered lost lands in netherlands to rebels - increase risk of spanish invasion of england

1579

philip ii inherited portugues crown and its empires in africa and asia

1580

• spanish ambassador mendoza expelled after implicated in throckmorton plot to install mary as queen - anglo spanish war closer, english privateers capturing spanish treasure fleets

1583-4

treaty of joinville signed between spanish and french catholics - death of henry iii’s last brother put huguenot next in line to french throne - catholics alarmed, approached spain (philip believed he could attack england without french reaction)

1584

• elizabeth signed treaty of nonsuch with dutch rebels - parmas recovering territory convinced her of action, sent 7000 troops to maintain rebellion, unofficial start of anglo-spansih war

• The troops, badly + irregularly paid, ill disciplined - alienated the Dutch

• Dutch felt betrayed when officers William Stanley + Rowland Yorke, joined Parma.

• English commanders quarrelled + Leicester quarrelled with the Dutch (who thought Elizabeth was trying to do a deal behind their backs with Parma.) Leicester returned to England, resigning in January 1588. -> Philip thought he could exploit the divisions between the English and Dutch.

1585

• End of 1572, philip and elizabeth settled differences

• Trade restored in convention of Nymegen 1573, withdrew support for english pirates in caribbean due to 1574 treaty of bristol

• … elizabeth expelled dutch sea beggars - dutch protestant privateers sheltered in english ports, considered war with philip ii, had been attacking spanish shipping in channel

• Return to netherlands , captured port brill - revolt of netherlands began

• 3 years, english public opinion and councillors called for elizabeth to help dutch rebels prevent spanish military conquest and centralisation of netherlands

• Elizabeth refused to give aid to not antagonise spain

• Did not share enthusiasm of supporters when french government sent army to southern netherlands to support rebels

• Sent volunteer force under humphrey gilbert to prevent Flushing from french hands but kept good relations with french court after massacre of st bartholomew,

• alva crushed revolt easily

• 1572

1580s, elizabeth adopted more anti spanish position

• supported portugues pretender don antonio

• knighted francis drake on circumnavigating the globe

• treated spanish ambassador contemptuously

william of orange, dutch rebel leader assassinated

1587

Trade, elizabeth

• value of internal trade exceeded foreign trade

• biggest single development in internal trade - growth in the shipping of coal from Tyne to the Thames to meet the growing demands of the London market, some exported across the North Sea, developing trade with France.

• wider range of foreign luxury goods imported during Elizabeth's reign - goods becoming affordable for a wider range of the population.

• cloth trade with the Netherlands, while important, declined

• Antwerp cloth market had declined  early 1550s.

• Sir William Cecil was anxious for political reasons to end the dependence on a single market.

• alternative trade developed, north German port of Emden, major move  to Amsterdam, commercial growth came at the expense of Antwerp (under Spanish control)

• attempts to establish new overseas markets took place, eg in Russia(economically marginal)

• English trading patterns in the 1580s:

• main markets for English wool moved from the southern to the northern Netherlands

• increase in trade with the Ottoman Empire.

•  England remained  backward in its exploitation of trading opportunities in Elizabeth's reign.

trading companies set upto widen England's trading interests, relatively modest (elizabeth)

• The Muscovy Company incorporated in 1555 to trade with Russia and northern Europe, failed in the long term to compete effectively with the Dutch.

• Eastland Company 1579 to trade in the Baltic - limited effect.

• Levant Company, 1581 Turkish Company - success in trade with Ottoman Empire.

• East India Company1600 to trade with Asia, less investment than Dutch East India Company, difficult to compete short term

• a significant change -  Eastland Company apart, all joint-stock companies owned by their shareholders in a model of organisation essential to future capitalist development

Slave trade, elizabeth

• main centre of African trade was Guinea, used as the starting point for John Hawkins’s move into the Americas. - invented the English slave trade, three expeditions from 1562, acquiring slaves in Africa then transported/sold in South America. 

• first two expeditions proved to be financially successful, although irritated the Spanish authorities.

• by second expedition in 1564, Hawkins had secured investment from prominent courtiers including the Earl of Leicester, support from the queen supplied ships 

• third expedition attracted royal support but went disastrously wrong when Hawkins’ fleet was blockaded in the Mexican port of San Juan de Uhia, although some of the gold did get back to England. Hawkins’s activities antagonised further the already strained relations between England and Spain, 

• queen was prepared to become involved - willing, for profit, to risk antagonising Philip I.

Exploration and colonisation, elizabeth

• little importance at the time, greater in light of subsequent development-  extension of trade to the mainland of North America, attempt to form a colony in Virginia. 

• explorer humphrey gilbert suggested England should colonise North America

• encouraged by Richard Hakluyt (linked to Walter Raleigh) through him presented to the queen.

• support of a number of prominent investors, in 1585 patent from the queen to colonise Virginia, two expeditions land on Roanoke Island (North Carolina)

• attempts at colonisation disastrous → poor organisation, luck and reluctance by the queen to give priority due to war with spain, colonisation of virginia had to wait until reign of james i

Prosperity and land, elizabeth

• landowners benefitted from economic trends, landed incomes rose, gained range of new material possessions

• increased icnome from land - profitted from generoistiy of herny viii and edward vi when disposing for quick profit, knockdown prices of land acquired through dissolution of church property

• huge proliferation of building - boom

• at modest levels of society, farmers benefitted from rise in agricultural prices

• improvement in living, increase in agricultural production

prosperity and trade, elizabeth

• lack of hard evidence, historians in first half of twentieth cneutry argue trade was good - supported by shipbuilding

• second half century historians - pessimistic, long term decline in cloth trade, reinforced as financial institutions were less sophisticated than counterparts in netherlands, germany and italy

urban prosperity, elizabeth

• old established towns like stamford and winhcester declines

• urban decay associated with coported boroughs dependent on cloth indistry - migrated to rural areas

• other old establish towns like york and norwich improbed

• new settlements like manchester and plymouth developed

• prosperous towns had broade ange of manufacturing industry, or unincorporated - industry developed without hindrance from regulation

• growth of london may have had a detrimental effect but some benefitted from supplying to its economic needs

depression, elizabeth

• for many wafes fell - esp at harvest failure

• 9 of 44 harvests poor

• 1594 - 7, four successive poor harvests - catastrophic

• 1596 wages collapsed less than half of nine years prior

• 1596-7 crisis, worst in north - starvation

economic conditions, elizabeth

• south east wealthiest, followed by norfolk, suffolk, inner west country counties

• poorest countries in north, and the west wdilands

Society in elizabethan england

•  under aristocratic domination during the reign of Elizabeth

• few hereditary peers. The highest peerage title, duke, carried inherent dangers, each of the foyr dykes 1547-72, somerset, northumberland, suffolk, norfolk met with bloody traitors end

• after 1572 - didnt create dukes

• nobility more peaceful than earlier times, less concerned with defence

• below dukes, other four ranks of peerage sought to enhance prestige - building projects - accomodate queen in appropriate surroundings on royal progresses - houses such as vurghley and wilton built grand scale

• (below peearge) gentry increased in size, proportion of wealthy increased - wide social range - influential knights, figures of immportance to modest landowners, country gentlement, esquires - local government work as JPS

• other levels differed little

• gap between rich and poor widened - start of consumer society among prosperous members of landed, mercantile and professional classes

• end of reign - 4 mil pop

• most lived in countryside, only large city was london - 150,000, many migrants from other parts of country

• largest provincial cities - norwich and bristol, most less than 5000

Act of …. established the principle that local ratepayers should be required to pay a rate for the relief of their own poor.

1572

• first act to attempt to create a national system of poor relief to be financed and administered locally. Under the Act, towns were required to make provision for the employment of the deserving poor.

•  Poor Law Act of 1576

Elizabethan Poor Law Act of 1601

• the parish became designated as the institution required to raise the rates for, and to administer, poor relief

• each parish to appoint overseer of poor - efficient colleciton of poor rates and appropriate distribution of relief

• relieve impotent poor, set able-bodied to work, appreentice poor children - supervised by jps

• government ensured minimum level of subsitence off desrving poor - intact until 1834

act against vagrancy 1547

repressive and unenforceable, repealed wuickly - notion that undeserving poor should be whiped

branded added to punishments available to authorities (to undeserving poor),later first time offenders whippedand sent to parish of their birth, repeat offenders potentially executed

1572, 1597

Problems in ireland, elizabeth

• elizabeth adopted policy of englishness in religious + secular matters

• lacked power to impose protestantism on largely catholic population, gaelic in language, customary laws and landownership different from english

• english comers went to ireland to get rich, use of martial law led to bad relations with gaelic irish and old english

elizabeth proclaimed supreme governor or church of ireland

1560

rebellions in ireland, elizabeth

• in the south against english rule, 1569 - 73, 1578-82 (linked with spanish incursion into county kerry - anglo- irish relations worsened with brutal response of lord deputy of ireland lord grey)

• third rebellion linked to anglo spanish war, difficult/expensive for crown to suppress, centered on ulster, earl of tyrone 1595 with spanish to exploit situation, including irish contigent in armada of 1596 - unsuccessful, but spanish intentions caused unease

• battle of yellow ford august 1598 - successful - tyrone and allies in control of iraldn beyond the pale (he might establsih independent catholic ireland with spanish support)

• elizabeth sent earl of essez to ireland as lord lieutenant 1599, made truce despite large force, defied orders and returned to court

• truce expired - tyrone moved south, camped near kinsale on coast, southwest of cork - link up with spanish army

• new lord lieutenant - english progress

• landing in kinsale over 3000 spanish troops september 1601 - english triumphed december

• tyrone returned to ultster - peace with lord lieutenant march 1603

wales, elizabeth

• welsh border no longer problem, continued integration of england and wales

• wales remained relatively poor, linguistic and cultural difference

• council of wales and marches in operation, little border issues

• welsh language disappeared as medium of government but as medium of religion, translated book of common prayer and bible into welsh, dictionaries…

• welsh gentry prospered, many weslh implicated in essez rebellion - political discontent towards end of reign

north of england, elizabeth

• scotland was separate and independent state - possibility of border conflict

• continuation on borders of lawless subculture - emphasis on violence, rustling of sheep/cattle - problems for authorities in both countries

• enlgish side of border - administrative responsibility with wardens of three border marches - traditionally appointed from families of great northern magnates, henry viii appointed southerners - continued by elizabeth - difficult for nobles without local landed base to control northern fmailies or border clans

• severe harvest, rising, prices, plague - despration but stability held - authorities feared vagabondage, severe treatment of undeserving poor

• food riots in london, kent, hampshire, norfolk

• mid 1590s

oxfordshire rising 1596

• heavy handed response - not a rising but bad scheme by four men

• desperate by poverty to seize armaments and march on londong - fear of social dislocation, didnt reflect reality

northern rebellion, 1569

•  Durham and the North Riding of Yorkshire, linked to rising in cumberland 1570

• by leading northern nobility, earls of northumberland and westmorland, religious fervour among leaders and ordinary

• leaders had political motives - ‘dishonoured’ displaced from traditional aristocratic control of northern government

• argued tied in with conspiracy, westmorlands brother in law, duke of norfolk - proposed norfolk marry mary queen of scots - resotred to scottish throne - angry response by elizabeth

• november - rebels marched on durham , seized city, heard mass in cathedral

• marched on york, camping, no attempt to capture or march south and pressure government but moved into county of durham, besieged crowns hold of barnard castle, captured december

• crown force on its way north - earls disbanded and fled to scotland

• january - northumberlands cousin restarted rebellion in cumberland, forced defeated naworth east of carlisle, royal force under command of queens cousin lord hunsdon

• rebellion failed due to - disorganisation, lack of clarity of objectives, porr leadership, lack of foreign support, decisive action by authorities

• crown servants acted well, cecil spent time - map of durham to come to decisions

• rebellion revealed lack fo comprehension of differences between north and south, problems of manageing localities, difficulty of raising forcees

• ruthlessness of punishment from elizabethan government - mass execution of rebels ordered

• rebellion geographically limited, no support from conservative nobility of rest of north, little enthusiasm to dethrone elizabeth (not widespread enthusiasm for government but not replacement)

• council of north reconstituted 1572 to reinforce crowns hold, under control of earl of huntindon - outsider, influence as relative of the queen, puritan - disadvantage at court in north but religious committment seen as advantage to crown

problems in 1590s

• By 1597, the council only had 11 members

• The Queen refused to allow Burghley to retire, which meant his job wasn’t being done properly

• Ineffectiveness

• Cecil allowed his son Robert to take over some of his responsibilities- angered Essex

• War continued, Huge drain on resource, Lacked direction because of scarce resources, Unable to secure final victory

• Decline in yield. - Poor yields meant economic hardship for many

• No attempt to revise the system= lack of money

• Abuse of monopolies as a result

• Rise of Robert Cecil and the Earl of Essex

• Over reliance on the middle-aged relatives of her elderly advisors

• Power-grabbing

• Queen unable to stand up to Essex- undermined her authority

• Lack of taxation

Elizabeth's control of privy council and parliament

• Decline in royal authority and quality of administration 1590s

• Anxieties over succession, concern over the ministers, problems in privy council and factions

• Crisis involving earl of essex - execution for treason 1601 - difficulties of authority

• 1603 - unity achieved, english people apart from minority of militant catholics were loyal to the crown

• Queen reigned too long, reputation tarnished by later events of reign - younger generation looked forward to accession of king

Control of religious and social discontent

• Start of 17th century, economic circumstances would lead to commercial domination - setting up of  trading companies to challenge domination of spanish, portuguese, dutch - interest in americas

• Cottage industries - nail making, hosiery, brewing - production rose, domestic demand thriving

• Socially divided - weakth

• Most of the time the population could be fed - only one subsistence crisis in 1590s, deaths from starvation

• 1594 - 1597, poverty and harvest failure, helped reform of poor law 1598 and 1601

• end of her reign religious situation was favourable, level of Catholicism declined. 

• English Catholics were divided between a majority who tried to accommodate conflicting loyalties to Crown and faith and a minority who identified wholeheartedly with the bull of excommunication and who sought a Catholic succession. 

• Church of England became an institution with which the majority could identify, albeit in a rather loose way. Puritanism as a dynamic movement had faded and the majority of Puritans had become assimilated within the Anglican mainstream. Separatism  virtually disappeared.

• substantial degree of religious unity.

essex rebellion

• Essex was one of Elizabeth’s closest companions. He became a Privy Councillor in 1593 and led a successful expedition to attack the Spanish port city of Cadiz, returning to England a hero in 1596.

• However, their close relationship deteriorated when Elizabeth twice promoted her advisor Cecil instead of the Earl of Essex, who was sent to Ireland to defeat a rebellion. Instead, Essex made peace with the rebels against Elizabeth’s orders. He was then banned from court and financially ruined. Essex was a desperate man and set out to seize power. He attempted to gather the people of London to start a rebellion and overthrow the government, but failed and was executed for treason in 1601

art, elizabeth

• English painting influenced by flemish models flourished

• Formal portraiture important - queen a frequent sitter 

• Portrait miniature most important

• Golden age in architecture - queen reluctant to commission new buildings but courtiers and wealthy individuals made up for this 

• First named english architect