Queen Elizabeth I's Speech To The Troops At Tilbury

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Queen of England from 1558 to 1603, Queen Elizabeth I, in her “Speech to the Troops at Tilbury”, rallies her troops to defend their country against an invasion by the Spanish Armada. Her purpose is to incite bravery in her troops to go into battle and unify them with their country and with God. She adopts an authoritative but loving tone in order to plant motivation in her troops. Queen Elizabeth opens her speech by acknowledging the words of naysayers and reassuring her army of her faith in them. She appeals to them through her attitude of independence and strength in saying she has “placed her chiefest strength and safeguard in the loyal hearts and good-will of [her] subjects,”. She employs these words in order to show her army her faith in them and boost their morale. The Queen’s confidence in her troops conveys a trusting tone that aids in increasing the confidence and courage of the somewhat hesitant British troops. …show more content…

She does this by uttering the most remembered words of the speech, “I know I have the body but of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king,” She plants the image of a small, frail girl in her troops’ mind in order to create a new level of credibility of herself to her men as well as to give her men something worth fighting for; they must defend their defenseless Queen. Through these words, she reassures her troops that although Spain may invade their country, she will never leave their side and will reward them for their “virtues in the

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