Summary
Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn
In 1533, England witnessed the birth of Elizabeth I, the offspring of King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, his second queen. Previously, Henry had been wed to Catherine of Aragon, who had given birth to a daughter named Mary. Tragedy struck when Elizabeth was merely two; her mother Anne Boleyn met her end by beheading, a grim chapter Elizabeth only learned about much later. Following this event, Henry took Jane Seymour as his third wife, and she bore him his only surviving son, Edward. Henry's matrimonial journey didn't end there; he went on to marry Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard, and finally Catherine Parr in succession.
Despite each royal heir hailing from different mothers, Mary, Elizabeth, and Edward shared their upbringing, receiving fair treatment from their stepmothers. Elizabeth's early years were particularly shaped by her governess, Mrs. Ashley, and her private tutor, the learned Roger Ascham. Ascham marveled at Elizabeth's sharp intellect, her passion for knowledge, and her remarkable skill in mastering foreign tongues.
Reign of King Edward VI
At the tender age of fourteen, Elizabeth's world shifted dramatically as her father, Henry VIII, passed away in 1547, leaving nine-year-old Edward to ascend the throne. With Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset, appointed as the young king's Protector, a new chapter began. Meanwhile, Thomas Seymour, Edward's brother, wed the late king's widow, Catherine Parr. Elizabeth found herself residing with her stepmother and Thomas Seymour, who scandalously began to harass the teenage princess. After his wife's demise, Seymour harbored ambitions to wed Elizabeth, seeking to bolster his political influence. However, in 1549, he was seized for political machinations and executed under his brother's orders. The same fate befell Edward Seymour in 1552, convicted of treason, paving the way for John Dudley, Earl of Warwick, to seize control of the government under the child king's reign.
In 1553, Edward VI succumbed to tuberculosis. His death sparked a conspiracy that briefly placed Lady Jane Grey on the throne for a fleeting nine days. John Dudley orchestrated the marriage of his son to Lady Jane, persuading the ailing king to declare her his successor. Yet, Elizabeth's sister Mary, the legitimate heir, had the people's support to dethrone Lady Jane. Tragically, the young Jane Grey, coerced by her parents into this precarious position, was executed for treason, alongside her father, husband, and father-in-law.
Reign of Queen Mary I
In 1553, the thirty-seven-year-old Mary ascended as Queen Mary I of England. The following year, Sir Thomas Wyatt led a rebellion of three thousand men against her rule, which was swiftly quashed, resulting in Wyatt's execution. These tumultuous events cast suspicion on Elizabeth, who was suspected of complicity, despite the absence of evidence. Mary's distrust of her half-sister led to Elizabeth enduring a reign overshadowed by imprisonment and suspicion, first in the Tower of London, then as a captive in various households, always watched with wary eyes for signs of conspiracy.
Mary's marriage to King Philip II of Spain in 1554 deepened Elizabeth's troubles. Though sisters, their bond was strained by religious differences, with Mary a staunch Catholic and Elizabeth a Protestant. Mary's reign was marked by her fervent quest to restore Catholicism in England, earning her the moniker 'Bloody Mary' due to her brutal persecution of Protestants, culminating in the execution of around 300 individuals, sometimes in groups.
Elizabeth Ascends the Throne
In 1558, with Mary I's passing, twenty-five-year-old Elizabeth assumed the throne as Queen Elizabeth I of England. Upon her ascension, she appointed William Cecil as her secretary, entrusting him as her foremost advisor throughout her reign. Elizabeth faced persistent challenges,...
(This entire section contains 1228 words.)
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not least from Mary Queen of Scots, a Catholic rival who plotted to usurp her. The queen also grappled with Parliament over the matter of an heir, as she chose not to marry, keeping her court and subjects speculating about potential suitors. Despite these pressures, Elizabeth enjoyed a close, if scandalous, relationship with Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, a man deemed unsuitable for royal matrimony.
Elizabeth bestowed upon Dudley various courtly roles and noble titles, and he harbored hopes of one day wedding the queen, though she never hinted at accepting such a proposal. After Dudley's wife died under suspicious circumstances in 1560, having tumbled down a staircase, he secretly remarried. Despite occasional tensions, Elizabeth maintained her bond with Dudley until his demise.
The Threat of Mary Queen of Scots
Mary Queen of Scots captivated the allegiance of many Catholics, who deemed her the legitimate monarch of England over Elizabeth. Her very existence posed a relentless threat to Elizabeth's reign and safety. Throughout Elizabeth's tenure as queen, Mary found herself embroiled in numerous schemes and conspiracies aimed at seizing the English crown. In 1565, she wed Henry Stewart, the earl of Darnley. Scandal erupted two years later when Darnley was found strangled, his residence reduced to rubble in an explosion. Suspicion fell upon Mary for orchestrating her husband's demise to wed the earl of Bothwell, a union she entered into a mere three months later. This controversy led to her dethronement as queen of Scotland, with her infant son being crowned King James VI in her stead. In a desperate bid for refuge, Mary fled to England, only to be imprisoned by Elizabeth for the next eighteen years.
During these years, numerous plots to place Mary on the English throne surfaced, all quickly crushed, as were several uprisings in her name. In 1569, a rebellion by English Catholics in northern England was quashed by military might. The following year, Pope Pius V excommunicated Elizabeth I, urging Catholic subjects to rise against their Protestant queen. This edict intensified the crackdown on Catholics within England.
By 1571, the Ridolfi Plot had been unearthed. This conspiracy, conceived by the Florentine Roberto Ridolfi, aimed to assassinate Elizabeth and facilitate a Spanish invasion to crown Mary Queen of Scots. Although Ridolfi himself was beyond England's reach, the earl of Surrey, Thomas Norfolk, was implicated and subsequently executed for his involvement.
In 1580, Pope Gregory XIII openly advocated for Elizabeth's assassination, and by 1583, another conspiracy was discovered. Francis Throckmorton led an effort involving a French invasion to enthrone Mary. Once uncovered by Elizabeth's secretary, Francis Walsingham, Throckmorton endured torture until he confessed and was executed. In 1586, Walsingham played a pivotal role in thwarting the Babington Plot. Anthony Babington, together with Spanish allies, orchestrated a scheme to murder Elizabeth and elevate Mary. Babington and six other accomplices met their ends on charges of treason. Evidence later surfaced implicating Mary in this plot, culminating in her execution for treason in 1587. Even though Elizabeth publicly opposed the execution, it was at her command.
Later Years
In the twilight of her reign, Elizabeth's advancing age became more apparent, and her once robust popularity waned. From 1586 onward, her favored companion was Robert Devereux, the dashing second earl of Essex and stepson of Robert Dudley, despite being thirty-four years her junior. In 1600, Devereux failed disastrously in quelling an Irish rebellion, prompting Elizabeth to strip him of his political role and place him under house arrest. Undeterred, Devereux attempted a coup against the queen in 1601, rallying 200 to 300 men to his cause. His rebellion faltered, leading to his execution for treason.
Queen Elizabeth I breathed her last in 1603, marking the end of the Tudor dynasty that had commenced in 1485 with King Henry VII. Her chosen successor was King James VI of Scotland, son of Mary Queen of Scots, who ascended as King James I of England.
