Queen Elizabeth I Research Paper

Queen Elizabeth I was an extremely intelligent, strategic leader and a woman who proved to England numerous times that she possessed the power of a great ruler. Elizabeth’s reign is looked back on as a Golden age, in which the power of the sea was harnessed and appreciated, and the Elizabethan Renaissance emerged bringing with it an extensive education system and laws supporting the poor. Queen Elizabeth reigned as a successful ruler in England for forty five years, strengthening protestantism and challenging gender, power and politics. Throughout her childhood Elizabeth was faced with many people trying to dictate her life however she remained involved in her studies which lead Elizabeth to develop into the intelligent woman and ruler she

Elizabeth’s succession to the throne was met with vast assumptions about gender roles. Parliament and many others made it very clear and strongly urged Elizabeth to marry in order to produce a male heir, hinting that a man would’ve been better fit to rule than the “illegitimate child of Anne Boleyn” (“Elizabeth I.”). Elizabeth however, gave no sign of self doubt. She would give her subjects her undivided attention and demonstrate nothing but respect despite what some would say of her. Elizabeth would repeatedly assure suitors and parliament that she did not need a husband, and that when she accepted her role as Queen “she had no intention of sharing it” (par.18). In fact the Queen took advantage of her unwed hand and utilized it as possibly her strongest “diplomatic weapon” (“Elizabeth I.”). If Elizabeth were to be married it would have very “strong repercussions” on English foreign relations, disrupting the balance of continental powers (par.8). By refusing to marry, Elizabeth eluded any possible power dispute in England and kept rivals at

The Elizabethan era of “1558-1603” consisted of a new and inspired culture and great success for the emerging middle class ("Daily Life in the Elizabethan Era."). During Elizabeth’s reign, a cultural revolution transpired in England that would produce expanded “new views” of human nature and nationalistic thinking consisting of “seemingly unlimited potential of human reason and spirit” (“The Elizabethan Court.”). The cultural revolution that was brought forth as a result of the golden age of Elizabeth eventually gave rise to “ the Renaissance, a cultural movement involving the rebirth of classical thinking and the arts…” (par.2). Elizabeth’s reign is also regarded as a time of “unparalleled literary achievement” in which the rate of literacy rose considerably (“Elizabeth I.”). As the amount of people who could read and write increased, playwriting greatly advanced allowing for highly influential writers like Shakespeare to emerge. Shakespeare’s profoundly popular play, Romeo and Juliet, was set in Elizabethan times and it’s characters, namely Juliet, alluded to the Queen’s well known principle of chastity (Shakespeare 11). Also, due to developing businesses and industries and the rapid increase in population during Elizabethan times, a new middle class “consisting of successful merchants and craftsmen arose” ("Daily Life in the Elizabethan Era."). The rapid increase in population provided