Elizabeth i siblings

10 facts about queen elizabeth 1
What did queen elizabeth 1 do for her country
Who succeeded elizabeth 1

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A different kind of Queen

The reign of Elizabeth I is often thought of as a Golden Age. It was a time of extravagance and luxury in which a flourishing popular culture was expressed through writers such as Shakespeare, and explorers like Drake and Raleigh sought to expand England's territory overseas. This sense of well-being was embodied by Queen Elizabeth who liked to wear sumptuous costumes and jewellery, and be entertained in style at her court. But life in Tudor England did not always reflect such splendour. The sixteenth century was also a time when the poor became poorer, books and opinions were censored, and plots to overthrow the Queen were rife. Elizabeth's ministers had to employ spies and even use torture to gain information about threats to her life.

In 1558 the Protestant preacher John Knox wrote, 'It is more than a monster in nature that a woman should reign and bear empire over man.' So was he right? Were women fit to rule the country? The people had lived through the unpopular reign of Mary I, known as 'Bloody Mary' for her merciless persecution of Protestants.

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Almost 500 years ago, a princess called Elizabeth became Queen of England.

People were worried. It was unusual to be ruled by a woman, because at the time, they were seen as weak and not as clever as men.

But Elizabeth proved them wrong!

She was strong, loved by many, and some say, became one of England's greatest ever rulers.

Elizabeth was the daughter of King Henry VIII. She didn't expect to be Queen. She was third in line to the throne. Both her brother and sister died without having children so Elizabeth became Queen.

To show people she could rule the country well, she had portraits painted of her as strong, mighty and rich, just as a queen should be.

But Elizabeth had enemies like King Philip of Spain.

In 1588, he sent the Spanish Armada, a fleet of more than 100 ships, to invade England. Elizabeth stayed strong. She told her soldiers and sailors: "I know I have but the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and of a king of England too." Her ships attacked and the weather helped blow the Armada away from Englan

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Elizabeth, the last Tudor monarch, was born in Greenwich on 7 September 1533. She was the daughter of Henry VIII and his second wife, Anne Boleyn. When Elizabeth was just two years old, her mother was beheaded for adultery on the orders of her father and she was exiled from court. In later years Catherine Parr, Henry's sixth wife, took a keen interest in the young Elizabeth and made sure that she was educated to the highest standards.

In 1553, Elizabeth's older half-sister Mary became queen. Mary was determined to re-establish Catholicism in England and viewed the Protestant Elizabeth as a direct threat. Elizabeth was briefly imprisoned in the Tower of London in 1554 following a failed rebellion, of which she claimed no knowledge.

A Golden Age

In November 1558, after the death of Mary I, Elizabeth succeeded to the throne. Some see Elizabeth’s 45 year reign as a golden age of English history. She was a shrewd and intelligent woman who was fluent in six languages.

Elizabeth’s first priority on becoming Queen was to return England to the Protestant faith. Yet she declared that