Why Is Queen Elizabeth 1 Important

One of the most important monarchs in England’s history was Queen Elizabeth I. Her reign was known as the “Golden Era’ of England. She came to power during a very difficult time in England’s history. England was divided by religion and time when strong leadership was needed to reunite the country. Even though England had a monarchy it also had a Parliament that assisted the Queen in governing the country. The of House of Commons and the House of Lords were the two bodies of Parliament.. The House of Commons was comprised of people who were elected and the House of Lords was made of men from noble families. Parliament had three main functions; legislation, advice and, taxation. Even though Parliament had these powers the monarch could exercise

This freedom of speech did not mean Parlement could speak about anything they wished, or even issues that were of concern. The freedom only meant that the members of Parliament could debate issues that the monarch decided were important. In addition to Parliament the Queen had a Privy Counsel. During Elizabeth’s reign as Queen the Parliament only met 5% of the time while the Privy Council met daily. The Privy Council took care of the work of the day to day government. Just like with Parliament, Queen Elizabeth would not allow the Privy Council to discuss her marriage or the succession of the crown. Even though Queen Elizabeth I did not allow these discussions she had a strong partnership with her council. The “Golden Era” was not golden for everyone. During this time the poor became greater in number. In 1563, 1572, 1576 and 1597 English Parliament introduced acts to deal with the poor. In 1601 the Poor Law passed, and created a nationalized system to care for the poor. This was one of the most important laws of the time. In order to raise money to care for the poor there was a local income tax but, that turned into a property tax based on the value of the