Expert: Joseph Logue - 2/3/2012

Question
Hi I'm doing a presentation on queen Elizabeth the first and i was hoping you could answer some questions for me.

1. Why do you think Elizabeth thought so fondly of her father Henry vi even after he executed her mother Anne Bolyen  ?

2. How did Elizabeth stay so well loved by her people ?

Answer
Hello Jacy,

1.  That's a tricky question, but be careful:  Elizabeth's father was Henry VIII, not Henry VI.  Additionally, Elizabeth was less than 3 years old when her mother was executed, so it would be difficult to state that she was so devoted to her mother (more, probably, to her memory) that she could not be fond of her father.  Elizabeth did not spend much time with Henry; it is most likely that she regarded him chiefly as her king and predecessor.  She was barely 14 when Henry died.  When she became queen, she would become more appreciative of Henry's accomplishments and the arduous road of a monarch.

2.  Her longevity, chiefly, is the reason she became so beloved.  After the contentiousness between her deeply Protestant brother, Edward VI, and then the reactionary and brutal reign of her sister, Mary I, Elizabeth's willingness to allow freedom of conscience was a peaceable end to many of the religious wars.  (Officially a Protestant, Elizabeth was not anti-Catholic like Edward, and not as doctrinaire as Mary.)  Her long reign, 45 years, also allowed her subjects to have a stable head of state for the first time in many years.  There is probably an element of nostalgia as she neared her end, as she was the last of the Tudors - her cousin's grandson would follow her as James I, and initiate the House of Stuart.  Despite a devastating drought in the 1590's, the age also saw the rise of Shakespeare and others (Jonson, Spencer) who would shower her with literary praise that is still being read and studied.

Good luck with your presentation.

Sincerely,

Joseph Logue