Elizabethans GCSE History OCR B

When was Elizabeth crowned queen

1558

What was her court?

the group if people that gathered around her and followed her around the country. Looking after her and helping her rule.

What was the system of patronage?

There was no elected government so she gave positions of power to wealthy nobles and could then take this power away if they upset her. This resulted in lots of 'suck-ups' and people trying to get in favour with the queen.

How did Elizabeth use her power with her courtiers?

- used grand occasions to impress the nobles

- she wanted to impress the nobles because they owned a lot of land and she relied on them to keep the peace

- they wanted to be in favour to gain more wealth and power

- she wanted widespread support so even had some Catholic courtiers so she didn't lose their loyalty entirely

How did Elizabeth use her power in her Privy Chamber

- ladies in waiting had to show loyalty

- no marrying without permission, broke one lady's finger!

How did Elizabeth exert power over her Privy Council?

- she directly selected them = most trusted advisors

- she appointed councillors with different views, so they couldn't overwhelm her

- she showed her temper for no reason

- dismissed people if they annoyed her

- limited it to 19 people

- threw a slipper at Sir Francis Walsingham

Who was Sir Francis Walsingham?

Elizabeth's Secretary of State from 1572 - 90.

Hardworking & loyal

Who was Sir William Cecil ?

Elizabeth's Secretary of State from 1558-72 and then 1590-98

Her most trusted advisor

How did Elizabeth control parliament?

- Queen could always reject a law or close parliament

- The Privy Council organised daily business

- Members of the Privy Council were MP's

- MP's were selected by local lords to ensure they were suitable (no elections)

- Topics were off limits

What topics did Elizabethan ban from discussion in parliament?

- religion

- her marriage

- succession to the throne

- foreign policy

How did Parliament's criticism of Elizabeth pan out?

MP's were angry that Elizabeth granted monopolies to keep her courtiers happy.

So she adapted and cancelled some monopolies and then flattered the MP's with her 'Golden Speech'

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What did a monopoly allow the owner to do?

they were the only person allowed to sell or make a certain product, so they could charge what they wanted and prices went up

What did Elizabeth do when Puritan MP's demanded the CofE should get rid of bishops? NAME

- she banned the debate

- 3MP's discusses it outside parliament and she had them imprisoned for a month

- When MP Peter Wentworth urged Elizabeth to reassure her people and name a Protestant as her successor, she put him in the Tower of London, where he stayed until he died in

What's John Stubbes story? DATE

In 1579 Puritan John Stubbes wrote a pamphlet criticising Elizabeth for considering marriage to the Catholic Duke of Anjou.

Elizabeth had the pamphlets destroyed and Stubbes arrested .

He then his right hand chopped off with a butchers knife in Westminster marketplace

Elizabeth's opinion of the Earl of Essex

She liked him a lot and forgave him despite him going against customs of the court. She even put him on her Privy Council, but he wanted more. He wanted to be Secretary of State.

What was the impact of the Earl of Essex' successful attack in Spain?

Elizabeth became jealous of the attention he was receiving. And so despite knowing he wanted to be Secretary of State, she gave Robert Cecil the role.

This really annoyed Essex and so at their next meeting he rudely turned his back on her. She punched him and he half-pulled his sword out and banned from court for 2 months.

But she missed him.

How did Essex attempt (and fail) to regain favour with the Queen

By leading an army to crush rebellions in Ireland. But he failed and then really annoyed her because he gave out knighthoods on behalf of her.

What was the outcome of Essex' bedroom incident in 1600

in 1600 he barged into her bedroom, so she banned him from court and took away his power.

So he tried to gain favour with James VI the Scottish King so he could be the King's leading minister when the Queen died.

what was the outcome of the Earl of Essex' rebellion

his execution in 1601,

because only 300 joined in and so the rebellion was quickly squashed

What were Lord Lieutenants?

Important noble men responsible for 1 county.

They spent much time at court and informed the privy council of any issues. They also provided soldiers when necessary.

What were Justices of the Peace?

Educated gentry who were appointed by Elizabeth's advisors. There were 40 per county and they enforced laws, road repairs and taxes. They had a lot of influence in their area.

Why did Elizabeth go to noblemen's houses every summer and throw extravagant parties NAME & DATE

To gain their favour and support. An example of this extravagance was demonstrated in the summer of 1591 when she visited the Earl of Hertford who recreated a castle and an artificial lake for her.

How did Elizabeth control the media

- only 60 printing presses at once

- privy council published lots of positive propaganda about the Queen

-she only allowed plays to be printed if she liked them

-she shut down theatres if they criticised the Queen

How did Elizabeth control her public image DATE OF PORTRAIT

- only 2 painters were officially allowed to paint Elizabeth

- she burned the portrait of her in 1596 because she looked old

- all the pennies had a youthful looking Queen on them

-she expected her couriers to wear 'mini-pics'

he hosted a royal progression and commissioned a portrait of her standing tall over her kingdom, looking pure and strong, with God-given strength to rule NAME & DATE

Sir Henry Lee regained favour with the Queen in 1592

How did Elizabeth spread propaganda via the church

On accession day she chose vicars who wrote special sermons thanking God for a strong Protestant Queen and for protecting her from Catholic threats

when were the Act of Uniformity and the Act of Supremacy brought in?

1559

how did the Act of Uniformity affect Catholics

compulsory for all to attend protestant service and follow the same prayer book.

if they didn't go = FINE

how did the Act of Supremacy affect Catholics

Elizabeth declared herself head of the Church.

this meant any Catholic who said the pope was head of the church was a traitor.

when was the Act of Persuasions brought in

1581

how did the act of Persuasions affect Catholics (2)

raised fine for recusancy (£20/ month now only the gentry could afford not to go)

anyone who persuaded others to become Catholic = executed

when was the Act against priests brought in

1585

how did the Act against priests affect Catholics

Death penalty to anyone who sheltered a Catholic priest

When was Margaret Clitherow pressed as punishment for sheltering a priest

1586

when was the Recusancy Act brought in

1587

What was the Recusancy Act?

allowed the gov to take 2/3 of a recusants land if they couldn't afford to pay the fines

when was the Spanish Armada

1588

how did the Catholic Armada impact on Catholics

King Phillipe of Spain wanted to see the Catholic faith return to England, but all that happened was Elizabeth arrested all influential Catholics and executed 11 Catholic preachers

when was the Act of Restraining Recusants brought in

1593

what was the Act Restraining Recusants

Catholics older than 16 had to stay within 5 miles of their home and no large gatherings

when did the pope excommunicate Elizabeth

1570

what is Thomas Tresham an example of

A Catholic who despite remaining loyal to the Queen was persecuted because of his faith.

he managed to pay the recusancy fines and his way out of jail, he started a petition for Catholics who still swore allegiance to the Queen = no difference, until in 1599 he was thrown in debtors prison and was 'disgraced debased and scored'.

give the 4 different categories Catholic's fell into in Elizabethan England

- conformists

- church papists

- recusants

- plotters

What were seminary priests like ?

young English catholics who went abroad to become priests

trained to support catholics in England

told NOT to convert

What were the Jesuits priests like? NAME & DATE

priests trained to convert people to Catholicism

allegiance with the Pope

first Jesuit was Robert Parsons in 1580

shhhhhh it's a SECRET

who built the spy network

Sir Francis Walsingham

what happened to catholic priest Edmund Campion DATE

in 1581 he was captured by priest catcher George Eliot, as he was found in a priest hole.

he was tortured on the rack until he revealed the names of Catholics who helped him (e.g Tresham)

hung then taken down whilst conscious, organs removed and burnt in front of him.

what was "the bloody question" DATE

after 1585 priests on trial had to answer the bloody question

they were asked if foreign powers invaded like Spain, would they side with the Pope or Elizabeth.

if they said Elizabeth they were a bad catholic and if they said pope they'd have their head chopped off

why did the Secret Priests game plan failure lead to low numbers of catholics

priests spent too much time in London

didn't build a strong following

didn't work with lower-class catholics

Seminaries & Jesuits spent too much time bickering

When was the Throckmorton Plot?

1583

Who did the Throckmorton plot involve

Jesuit Robert Persons, Francis Throckmorton, the Duke of Guise.

(& supported by Spanish King & the Pope)

What was the aim of the Throckmorton plot

French Duke of Guise plotted to invade England, overthrow Elizabeth and place Mary QoS on the throne

what were the consequences of the Throckmorton plot

Robert Cecil persuaded Elizabeth to pass the bond of association

When was the Babington Plot?

1586

who was involved with the Babington plot

Anthony Babington, Jesuit John Ballard, Mary QoS.

how did the Babington plot pan out

Ballard persuaded Babington to kill Elizabeth, he sent Mary secret messages in beer barrels but one of Walsinghams spies intercepted them and made copies.

what were the events leading up to Mary QoS execution

Mary argued at her trial that God had made her Queen, the notes had been forged and people had given evidence under torture, but she was found guilty

Elizabeth didn't sign Mary's death warrant for weeks and when she did sign it Cecil immediately sent it off.

Elizabeth was furious as she never gave order to send the warrant - "Lizzie is innocent"

Why was there beef with Spain

- Queenie refused to marry King Phillipe of Spain

- Spain ruled the Netherlands and Elizabeth sent money to help Protestant dutch rebels to rebel against the Spanish

- Pope said it wasn't a sin to kill Lizzie

- Drake (& others) plundered Spanish galleons

Who was Dutch Protestant rebel and only other Protestant leader in Europe?

William of Orange

why did Elizabeth send 7000 men to fight against the Spanish in the Netherlands

because in 1584 one of Phillipe's subjects killed dutch protestant leader William of Orange. Rendering Elizabeth leader the only protestant leader in Europe. She felt vulnerable and thought the Spanish would attack her next. So she attacked them first.

When was the Spanish Armada?

1588

Why did the Spanish Armada fail?

- English skill outweighed Spanish skill

- English were lucky

-King Phillip made silly mistakes

why did English skill cause the Spanish Armada in 1588 to be unsuccessful

- they let 'Fireships' go into the path of the armada, causing the Spanish to scatter

-because the Spanish scattered they lost there strong crescent formation, making them an easy target

-the English ships were small, zippy and easily manouverable

-the English had a strong & experienced navy

-Francis Drake had a good knowledge of the weather and the seas.

why did English luck cause the Spanish Armada in 1588 to be unsuccessful

- a storm struck, Francis Drake told the English that the Spanish would be finished off by that. They were. 44 Spanish ships were wrecked near Scotland.

- strong winds caused the 'Fireships' to work even better than usual

-the armada were driven North by strong winds

-Spanish guns were a bit rubbish

why did King Phillip's mistakes cause the Spanish Armada in 1588 to be unsuccessful

- he put the Duke of Medina in charge, but he was an inexperienced sailor

-Duke of Parma's army was blocked by other Dutch ships in the Netherlands so couldn't join the armada in time.

- the Spanish panicked when they saw the fireships and sailed North, of course

How close did the Spanish get to landing on English soil DATE

in 1601 a Spanish army landed in Ireland, they hoped to join in with the Irish/Catholic rebellion against the English. But they were easily defeated and it didn't last long.

what were the 3 types of country poor

Yeoman, Husbandman, Laubourer

5 different death penalties:

hanging

beheading

hung, drawn & quartered

burnt at the stake

pressing

attitudes towards the homeless

well it's against the law to take them in so not very highly valued

how do we know how important the harvest was

between 1594 and 1597, there was 3 years if bad harvests and tens of thousands of people died

around __% of the population were gentlemen but they owned __% of the land in England

2% gentlemen, 50% of land owned

similarities between rich & middling sort

- owned land & orchards

-Servants

- well built houses

-steady income

what % of kids died before their 10th birthday

25%

how did the vagrant poor differ from the settled poor

they moved about from farm to farm looking for work, they were the most desperate people in society. Whereas the settled poor made up 30% of the pop in some places

give 6 causes of poverty in Elizabethan England

- population growth = less food & jobs to go around

-farmers couldn't meet the growing demand for food - prices increased

-wages of poor labourers failed to keep up with the rising price of food

-bad harvests = high prices

-downturn in demand for English wool

-plague

when was the law that banned people from taking in vagabonds

1572

what was the punishment for vagabonds aged 14+

whipped, and then burnt through the ear with a hot iron

which city was under pressure due to a growing number of poor people

York

what action did the York authorities take in 1588 (5) SPECIFIC

- York gentry forced to pay a 'poor rate'

- 'viewers' were appointed to put York's poor in categories depending on need

- the impotent poor were given 3 pence so they didn't have to beg

-people who could work were given wool so they could spin in their homes

- vagabonds were put into houses of correction or banished

when was the Elizabethan Poor Law introduced

1601

What did the Elizabethan Poor Law do (5)

- 4 overseers of the poor for each parish

-poor rate collected from all households

-begging was forbidden

-impotent poor were looked after in almshouses

-anyone who refused to work was sent to houses of correction

evidence that Elizabethan age was a golden age of culture (5) DATE

- some good music e.g William Byrd

- after 1580 the development of printing led to fab literature e.g Shakespeare

-new purpose built theatres e.g the globe

- they celebrated lots of festivals e.g Whitsun, May Day, Midsummer's Eve, Harvest

- Christmas was celebrated by performing plays

evidence that English culture was not that great tbf

- most art was foreign

- blood sports e.g cock-fighting & bear bating

- football was popular but dangerous

- alehouses although popular encouraged: drunkeness, gambling & prostitution

who was a case study of a witch

Ursula Kemp

why do historians blame the rise of witchcraft accusations on village tensions

years of hardship & bad harvests

less likely to help poor old neighbours

might leave muttering and coincidentally bad luck might have followed

why do historians blame the rise of witchcraft accusations on society's attack on women

evidence of misogyny

witches were always women

magistrates & jury were always men

why do historians blame the rise of witchcraft accusations on Puritan concerns

as protestantism became more established, religious people were concerned about the devil which increased witchcraft prosecutions.

in counties like Essex there were many Puritan ministers trying to establish godly communities - witchcraft accusations were particularly high here.

why were most theatres built outside London's city walls

- actors were seen as vagabonds

-caused big crowds & riots

-not accepted in culture yet

-controversial plays

Why were London authorities against theatres (particularly the Globe)

-drew servants & apprentices away from their work

-attracted rogues, thieves & prostitutes

-during times of plague the large crowds meant disease spread more quickly

Why did the Puritans write pamphlets attacking theatres SPECIFIC

- they associated the plays with paganism

-they thought they were a reminder of the miracle plays that flourished in Catholic England

-theatres were in dodgy areas and people could be led into sin.

what were Walter Raleigh's motives

to find El Dorado city of Gold & establish England's first colony in Virginia

what were Walter Raleigh's achievements DATE

Eventually in 1607 Walter Raleigh set up a successful colony in Virginia. After 3 unsuccessful expeditions. But all his expeditions gave him useful knowledge about N. America.

He went to El Dorado but never found any gold.

what were James Lancaster's motives

he wanted to find opportunities for trade, to make England a bigger and better world power

what did James Lancaster achieve DATE

In 1600 Elizabeth made James Lancaster commander of the East India Company's first fleet. Which established first trading factory in the East.

he failed in finding trading opportunities in the West Indies so he pillaged loads of ships instead

what was Ralph Fitch's motive

To make the first attempt to establish trading links between the UK and the Mughal empire in India

what did Ralph Fitch achieve

Unfortunately the Portuguese were already established in India so Ralph Fitch & the English merchants made little progress in establishing trading links with the Mughal Empire. But he did gain useful knowledge.

what were John Dee's motives

he believed he could use his interest in navigation and his desire for England to be a bigger world power, to create the British Empire

what did John Dee achieve

he became an adviser to the Queen

helped sailors learnt he navigational skills they needed to find their way across unknown oceans and subsequently wrote a book

he justified why England had claim to America

what were Francis Drake's motives

- to get knighted

-pillage loads of ships

-bring back tons of treasure