The Legitimacy of Queen Elizabeth I.

Kristin Pinkerton

Elizabethan England was a glorious period. The economy, commerce, art, education, and population were all rapidly emerging during Queen Elizabeth’s
reign, 1558 to 1603.  Queen Elizabeth helped create the “new” England, setting precedent for policies and rulers, but most importantly she ruled for the people (Creighton, 35), something which was uncommon. While Elizabeth set precedent, the legitimacy of her reign was often questioned since she was the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn.

Her father, King Henry VIII was a very temperamental man. His world was only made of his supporters, his enemies were eliminated; this was also the way his love life was. He was married a half dozen times in hopes that each of his wives would have given birth to a boy. If his wife didn’t give birth to a boy, an heir to the throne, soon after the birth the marriage dissolved. His first wife, Catherine of Aragon, originally married to his brother, made Henry a father to a girl, Mary. Henry was unhappy because Catherine had given birth to a girl. New woman had captured his attention-Anne Boleyn. Anne was a smart woman; she stayed away at first because Henry was still married, playing hard to get. Henry was fascinated with her and sought a divorce from Catherine, because that was the only way he could have Anne (Mason).

Henry sought a divorce from Catherine, on the grounds of Cannon because Catherine was married to his brother, so the marriage wasn’t valid. This was an issue at the time of marriage, however; the Pope at the time granted an exemption to make the marriage legal. But with Henry being the way he was, he said the Pope didn’t grant an exemption. Not only did this cause problems with Henry and the church, it led to the passage of the Act of Supremacy. The Act stated that the King was the head of the church and broke England’s connection to Rome. However, Henry quickly gained a friend, Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury. He granted the nullification of Henry’s first marriage, so Henry was now free to marry Anne.  Henry being quick as fox, married Anne and she became pregnant. Anne gave birth on September 7, 1553 to Elizabeth.  Henry was very disappointed; he was yearning for a son. Anne became pregnant again, but miscarried. Henry’s
fascination with Anne was over. He accused her of adultery and beheaded her leaving Elizabeth motherless (Masson). So Henry married four times and only had one son.

Henry died in 1553 leaving three children: Mary, Elizabeth, and Edward VI. There was no question of who was going to get the throne; Henry’s goal was fulfilled with Edward.  He finally had a son to take the throne. Edward VI took the throne in 1553 at the age of nine, but he was very sick and died at 14.  Edward’s wife then took the throne, Lady Jane Grey, for a very short period of nine days. Mary Tudor then took the throne from Lady Jane Grey and became known as “Bloody Mary.” She was a Catholic, who wanted to return England to back to Catholicism.  Her reign only lasted five years and upset much of England. Then the last great Tudor and next in line became Queen Elizabeth.

Elizabeth took the throne in 1558 with much opposition. Some didn’t consider her to be the legitimate heir. Her legitimacy depended on Henry’s divorce from  Catherine. Many Catholics claimed the divorce was never legal so the marriage wasn’t legal and Elizabeth was a bastard child.  So many Catholics claimed Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland and England because she was legitimately the next in line to the throne. Mary Stuart was the great-granddaughter of Henry VII (Pollen, 1). This claim caused friction between Mary and Elizabeth that lasted a lifetime.  Elizabeth’s legitimacy should have never been questioned because she ruled for England. She did many good things and improved upon the country. Legitimate or not, she was Queen for 45 years, “one of the most prosperous times in English history” (Thomas).

The “Virgin Queen” was well educated in language, art, and religion. She helped shaped Elizabethan England with the patronage of plays, music, literature, and recreation. She could play both roles of man and women, but she played the role of the Queen best.   For some, Elizabeth was a threat, not only was she a women with power, but a women who could manage power.

She was welcomed into the throne in 1558 by many Protestants, who didn’t like her Catholic sister and her Catholic ideas. While Elizabeth was welcomed into the throne, she was also welcomed by treasury on brink of bankruptcy (Bassnett, 37). She reformed the currency, increased the agricultural labor force, and both the wealthy and lower classes benefited and the middle class emerged. The Queen was able to pay debts and increase the country revenue. With an economy on the mend, the welfare of the country and people improved.

Queen Elizabeth worked hard for the people. She reduced the sized of the Privy Council so it would operate efficiently; and picked her advisors carefully. Not only did she choose her advisors carefully, but she also was careful when it came to religion. Personally her religion was a mystery, by the public she was considered to be Protestant and a supporter of the Church of England. She restored Protestantism and changed her tittle from “Supreme Head of the Church” to “Supreme Governor” (Creighton, 33-34). Elizabeth walked on fine line to please both Protestants and Catholics; she wanted to keep England at peace during her reign (Mason).

Not only was the Queen popular with her subject, she was very popular among men. The Queen was not married, although there was pressure from her advisors
and there was a long line of suitors waiting for the Queen.  Not being married also helped foreign policy. She often became interested in suitors from other countries to avoid conflict with that country.  And the Queen knew that choosing a foreign suitor would upset other countries and create conflict.  The Queen also realized that if she got married she would have to give up her power to her husband.  “She loved power too much to give up any part of what she possessed” (Creighton, 37).  She didn’t want to take the passive, traditional role of Queen and by not taking that role, she set precedent for future female rulers.

Queen Elizabeth’s reign lasted until her death in 1603; which deeply saddened England. She made England confident and brave along with her subjects.  While she did have her share of religious, foreign and personal problems she tried to keep them at a minimum, keeping the country happy. She may have been an illegitimate ruler to some of her subjects, but for 45 years she was a legitimate ruler. Elizabeth was and still is today the heart and soul of Elizabethan Era.
 

Bassnett, Susan. Elizabeth I, A Feminist Perspective
New York, NY. Berg Publishers Limited, 1998.

Creighton, Mandell.  Queen Elizabeth
1899 ed. United States: Thomas Y Crowell Company, 1966.

Masson, Jean. “Tudor Times.”October 1996. All About Romance. 21November 2000.

http://www.likesbooks.com/tudor

Pollen, J.H. “The Catholic Encyclopedia: Mary Queen of Scots. The Catholic Encyclopedia Online. 10 April 2000.
http://www .new advent.org/cathen/0976a.htm

Thomas, Heather. “The Life and Times of Queen Elizabeth.”1998. 21 November 2000.
http://www.elizabeth.org/