Elizabeth I ruled England from 1558-1603. Thanks to a wise foreign and domestic policy, she made her country a great European power. The era of Elizabeth today is rightfully called the golden age of England.
Daughter of an unloved wife
The future Queen Elizabeth the First was born on September 7, 1533 in Greenwich. She was the daughter of Henry VIII and his wife Anne Boleyn. The king really wanted to get a son and heir to the throne. It was because of this that he divorced his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, who never bore him a boy. The fact that another girl was born made Henry extremely angry, although he did not personally dislike the child.
When Elizabeth was two years old, her mother was executed. Anne Boleyn was accused of treason. The court considered the imaginary facts of the queen's betrayal of her husband proven. Hot-tempered Heinrich, thus, decided to get rid of his wife, who became a burden to him and failed to give birth to a boy. He later married several more times. Since the first two marriages were declared invalid, Elizabeth and her older sister Mary (daughter of Catherine of Aragon) were illegitimate.
Girl education
Already in childhood, Elizabeth the Firstshowed her own extraordinary natural abilities. She perfectly mastered Latin, Greek, Italian and French. Although the girl was formally illegitimate, she was taught by the best professors of Cambridge. These were the people of the New Age - supporters of the Reformation and opponents of bone Catholicism. Just at this time, Henry VIII, due to his disagreements with the Pope, set a course for the creation of an independent church. Elizabeth, who was distinguished by sufficient free-thinking, later continued this policy.
She was taught along with Eduard, the younger brother from Heinrich's subsequent marriage. The children became friends. In 1547 the king died. According to his will, Edward received the throne (he became known as Edward VI). In the event of his death, in the absence of his own children, power was to pass to Mary and her descendants. Elizabeth was next in line. But the will became an important document also for the reason that the father recognized his daughters as legitimate for the first time before his death.
After the death of my father
Stepmother Catherine Parr after Henry's funeral sent Elizabeth to live in Hertfordshire, away from London and the royal palace. However, she herself did not live long, dying in 1548. Soon matured Edward VI returned his sister to the capital. Elizabeth was attached to her brother. But in 1553 he died unexpectedly.
Then followed the turmoil, as a result of which the elder sister of Elizabeth, Mary, came to power. She, thanks to her mother, was a Catholic, which did not please the nobles of England. Repressions began against Protestants. Many barons and dukes becamelook at Elizabeth as the rightful queen, under which the religious crisis would be resolved.
In 1554, Thomas Wyatt rebelled. He was suspected of wanting to hand over the crown to Elizabeth. When the rebellion was crushed, the girl was imprisoned in the Tower. She was later sent into exile in the city of Woodstock. Mary was extremely unpopular with the people because of her attitude towards the Protestant majority. She died of illness in 1558, leaving no heirs. Elizabeth the First ascended the throne.
Religious politics
Having come to power, Queen Elizabeth the First immediately took up the solution of the religious problem in her country. At this time, the whole of Europe was split into Protestants and Catholics who hated each other. England, who was on the island, could stay away from this bloody conflict. All she needed was a prudent ruler on the throne who could make a compromise and let the two parts of society live in relative peace. The wise and far-sighted Elizabeth the First was just such a queen.
In 1559, she passed the "Act of Uniformity". This document confirmed the desire of the monarch to follow the Protestant course of his father. At the same time, Catholics were not banned from worship. These reasonable indulgences made it possible to take the country away from the abyss of civil war. What could have happened if the reformers and the Catholics did clash their foreheads can be understood thanks to the ongoing bloody conflicts in Germany of that era.
Marine expansion
Today, the biography of Elizabeth the First is primarily associated with the Golden Age of England - the era of rapid growth of its economy and political influence. An important part of this success was the consolidation of London's status as the capital of the most powerful maritime European power. It was during the reign of Elizabeth the First that many English pirates appeared in the Atlantic Ocean and especially in the Caribbean Sea. These robbers were engaged in smuggling and robbery of merchant ships. The most famous pirate of that era was Francis Drake. Elizabeth used the "services" of this public to eliminate competitors at sea.
In addition, enterprising sailors and settlers, with the approval of the state, began to establish their own colonies in the west. In 1587, Jamestown appeared - the first English settlement in North America. Elizabeth the First, whose reign lasted for several decades, generously sponsored such events all this time.
Conflict with Spain
England's maritime expansion inevitably brought it into conflict with Spain, the country that had the largest and most profitable colonies in the west. Peruvian gold flowed like an uninterrupted river into the Madrid treasury, ensuring the greatness of the kingdom.
In fact, since 1570, the fleets of England and Spain were in a state of "strange war". Formally, it was not announced, but clashes between pirates and galleons loaded with gold occurred with enviable regularity. The fact that added fuel to the firethat Spain was the main protector of the Catholic Church, while Elizabeth continued her father's Protestant policy.
Destruction of the Invincible Armada
The maneuvers of the monarchs could only delay the war, but not cancel it. Open armed conflict began in 1585. It broke out over the Netherlands, where local rebels were trying to get rid of Spanish power. Elizabeth secretly supported them, providing them with money and other resources. After a series of ultimatums from the ambassadors of both countries, the war between England and Spain was officially declared.
King Philip II sent the Invincible Armada to the British shores. This was the name of the navy of Spain, numbering 140 ships. The conflict was to decide whose maritime power was stronger and which of the two powers would become the colonial empire of the future. The English fleet (supported by the Dutch) consisted of 227 ships, but they were much smaller than the Spanish. True, they also had an advantage - high maneuverability.
It was precisely this that was used by the commanders of the English squadron - the already mentioned Francis Drake and Charles Howard. The fleets clashed on August 8, 1588 at the Battle of Gravelines off the coast of France in the English Channel. The Spanish Invincible Armada was defeated. Although the consequences of the defeat were not immediately felt, time showed that it was this victory that made England the greatest naval power of the New Age.
After the Battle of Gravelines, the war continued for another 16 years. Battles also took place in America. The result of a long war was the signing of the London Peace in 1604 (already afterdeath of Elizabeth). According to him, Spain finally refused to interfere in the church affairs of England, while England promised to stop attacks on the Habsburg colonies in the west. In addition, London had to stop supporting the Dutch rebels who fought for independence from the Madrid court. An indirect consequence of the war was the strengthening of Parliament in British political life.
Relations with Russia
As far back as 1551, the Moscow Company was founded by London merchants. She became in charge of all English trade with Russia. Elizabeth the First, whose reign fell on Ivan the Terrible's stay in the Kremlin, maintained correspondence with the tsar and was able to achieve exclusive rights for her merchants.
The British were extremely interested in economic ties with Russia. The growing merchant fleet made it possible to arrange the sale and purchase of numerous goods. Europeans purchased furs, metals, etc. in Russia. In 1587, the Moscow Company received the privileged right of duty-free trade. In addition, she founded her own courts not only in the capital, but also in Vologda, Yaroslavl and Kholmogory. Elizabeth the First made a great contribution to this diplomatic and commercial success. The Queen of England received a total of 11 large letters from the Russian Tsar, which today are unique historical monuments.
Elizabeth and Art
Golden Age, which is associated with the era of Elizabeth, is reflected in the heyday of English culture. It was at this time that the main playwright of world literature, Shakespeare, wrote. The queen, who was interested in art, supported her writers in every possible way. Shakespeare and his other colleagues in the creative workshop were involved in the creation of the London network of theaters. The most famous of them was the Globe, built in 1599.
The ruler tried to make spectacles and entertainment available to the widest possible public. A royal troupe was created at her court. Sometimes Elizabeth the First herself played in performances. Photos of her lifetime portraits clearly show that she was a beautiful woman, in addition, she was on the throne at the age of 25. The natural abilities of the queen were attached to external data. She was not only a polyglot, but also a good actress.
Recent years
Even on the eve of her death, the old Elizabeth the First of England continued to actively engage in state affairs. In the last period of her reign, there is an increase in the contradictions between the royal power and parliament. Economic issues and the problem of taxation were especially painful. Elizabeth sought to replenish the treasury in case of future military campaigns. Parliament opposed this.
On March 24, 1603, the country learned that Elizabeth the First, beloved by all the people, had died. The Queen of England really enjoyed the favor of her fellow citizens - the name of the Good Queen Bess stuck to her. Elizabeth was buried in Westminster Abbey with a huge gathering of subjects.
Succession Problem
Throughout the reign of Elizabeth, the issue of succession to the throne was acute. The queen never married. She had several novels, but they were informal. The ruler did not want to tie the knot because of her childhood impressions of the family life of her own father, who, among other things, ordered the execution of the mother of Elizabeth the First.
The Queen did not get married, despite the persuasion of Parliament. Its members, in official form, turned to Elizabeth with requests to marry one of the European princes. For them, it was a matter of national importance. In the event that the country would be left without an unequivocal heir, a civil war or endless palace coups could begin. Philip II of Spain, the German archdukes from the Habsburg dynasty, the Swedish Crown Prince Eric and even the Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible were predicted to be the suitors of the English queen.
But she never married. As a result, the childless Elizabeth, before her death, chose Jacob Stuart, the son of the Scottish Queen Mary, as her heir. On his mother's side, he was the great-great-grandson of Henry VII, the founder of the Tudor dynasty, to which Elizabeth the First of England belonged.
