Elizabeth I (born in Greenwich, London today, on September 7th, 1533, and died in Surrey on March 24th, 163) was the queen of England and Ireland from November 17th, 1558 to March 24th, 163. She was the fifth and last monarch of Tudor dynasty. She never married, so she was called "the virgin queen". When she acceded to the throne, England was in a chaotic state of internal religious division, but she not only succeeded in maintaining the unity of England, but also made England one of the most powerful and rich countries in Europe after nearly half a century of rule. English culture also reached a peak during this period, and famous figures such as Shakespeare and Bacon emerged. British colonies in North America also began to be established during this period. Her reign was called "Elizabethan period" and "golden age" in English history.

childhood

Elizabeth was born in Presen Hope Palace in London. She is the only surviving child of Henry VIII and his second queen Anne Boleyn. Because her parents were married according to Protestant canon, Catholicism thought she was an illegitimate daughter. She was appointed heir to the throne at birth, and her half-sister Mary became her servant. When Elizabeth was three years old, her mother was sentenced to death for treason. A year later, Henry VIII and his third queen, Jane Seymour, gave birth to a boy: Edward. Elizabeth and Mary both became Edward's servants.

Henry's later queens were very kind to the two princesses, and Henry himself often paid attention to their growth. They were well educated and had reliable friends and companions of the same age. After Henry's death in 1547, his last queen, catherine parr, and her new husband, Thomas Seymour (he is the brother of Jane Seymour and the uncle of the new king Edward VI of England) took care of Elizabeth. Seymour was attracted by the young Elizabeth. After his wife died, he intended to marry her, but he and his brother Edward Seymour were later executed in a series of power struggles.

Elizabeth received a good education, and her teachers included Roger Asquin, a famous humanist in the English Renaissance. She was educated in classics, history, mathematics, poetry and language. During her reign, she could speak and write six languages: English, French, Italian, Spanish, Latin and Greek. Under the influence of catherine parr and her other teachers, Elizabeth became a Protestant.

Before her brother died, her status was relatively stable, but Edward died of tuberculosis or arsenic poisoning in 1553. Lady Jean Grey was queen for only nine days, then she was overthrown by her grandfather's companions and executed by Mary, who came to power later. Mary is a devout Catholic. She forced Elizabeth to convert to Catholicism. Although Elizabeth seems to be obedient, she is still a Protestant at heart. Mary is very dissatisfied with this. For a short time, Elizabeth was even put in the Tower of London. Some people think that she met her later lover, robert dudley, Earl of Leicester, here, but it is more likely that they met in childhood.

Elizabeth saved her life, but Mary's wedding to King Philip II of Spain increased the possibility of England returning to Catholicism, which made the English people and nobles very dissatisfied. Mary died childless in 1558, and Elizabeth became her legal heir. The British Parliament reaffirmed King Henry VIII's arrangement that Elizabeth should be the heir.

coronation

Elizabeth was crowned queen at Westminster Abbey on January 15th, 1559, when her position was very unstable. The date of her coronation was chosen by john dee, a famous British mathematician and astrologer at that time. It is said that it was particularly auspicious. She was crowned by the Bishop of karis Le, who was the highest person who could be found in the church at that time to recognize her legal status. In the same year, she signed the Cardo-Kampagi Treaty, which ended the Italian war.

Politics

During Elizabeth's 44-year rule, the struggle for religious differences in Britain was very strong. In the 193s, Henry VIII broke with Catholicism and the Anglican Church was established. During Edward VI of England's short reign, the teachings of the Anglican Church became more and more perfect. The Anglican Church lost its dominance during Mary's reign. Elizabeth was restored to the status of the Anglican Church. During the first two years of Elizabeth's rule, she issued a supreme law and a single decree, stipulating that the king was also the supreme leader of the church.

Although she tries to find a compromise between religious extremists, she is undoubtedly a Protestant herself. Especially in Ireland, Catholics and other people who are considered pagans are persecuted. William cecil is her closest adviser in politics, and she specially created the title of Lord Burleigh for Cecil. After Cecil's death in 1598, his son Robert Cecil became Elizabeth's closest adviser, but Robert was far from his father's ability. Another important figure in her management organization is Sir Francis Wahnham. Hua Xinghan set up a spy network all over Europe. He can guarantee that all the plots against the queen are known to him.

The issue of heirs

The biggest criticism of Elizabeth is that she didn't provide an heir. Others always thought that she would get married and have children, and many people pursued her, including her former brother-in-law, Spanish Philippe, and her favorite Count Leicester. Many people think that the Earl of Leicester is her lover. Elizabeth wisely avoided them. A few years later, when her rule was consolidated, it became more and more obvious that she would never get married and have children.

When asked why she didn't get married, she mentioned her situation during her sister's reign. At that time, she was not only Mary's most taboo person, but also rebels such as Sir thomas white used her name. Therefore, she wisely realized that if she appointed an heir, her position would be weakened, and this would provide an incentive for her enemies, because they could use this heir against her. But without an heir, England would fall into civil war if she died from time to time. This became very obvious when she almost died of smallpox in 1562. For some time, Elizabeth seriously considered getting married and having children. But a Catholic husband is obviously impossible, and a Protestant husband, such as the Earl of Leicester, will immediately aggravate the sectarian struggle in the court. No matter who she chooses, there will be no good result. Regardless of her personal inclination, her situation at that time made it impossible to realize any consideration of spreading the Sect.

She had some possible heirs at that time, but Elizabeth ignored them all. Her cousin Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland, is a Catholic. Before she fled from Scotland, even after that, she was always a very likely heir. Although Elizabeth accepted Mary after she was expelled, she imprisoned her to ensure that she could not threaten her position. Mary's son James was a child at that time, and he would not be considered until he was tested. Other candidates are unlikely. One of Elizabeth's female companions, Lady Catherine Grey, Jean Grey's sister, angered Elizabeth by marrying against her wishes. Mary Grey, Catherine Grey's sister, is a short person with a back. At that time, Elizabeth had always hoped that Mary I in Scotland would convert to Protestantism and find a husband that Elizabeth thought was reliable, so she put off the issue of her heir during Mary's imprisonment in England.

At the same time, she still has the possibility of getting married. She once considered finding a husband in many French Wang Zizhong. The first suggestion was that Henry (later Henry III), the Duke of Orleans, who was 2 years younger than her, was the younger brother of Charles IX, the French king. When the proposal was rejected, she also considered Fran? ois, the younger brother of the French King, the Duke of Alancon. But Francois's early death ruined the plan.

In p>1568, the last Englishman eligible to be her heir, Lady Catherine Grey, died. Elizabeth was forced to reconsider Mary, Queen of Scots. Elizabeth suggested that Mary marry the Earl of Leicester, but Mary refused the suggestion. But by this time, Mary's son James had received a Protestant education. In 157, the French king persuaded Elizabeth to let Mary return to Scotland. But Elizabeth made many harsh demands, one of which was to let James stay in England. Nevertheless, her counselor Cecil continued to try to help Mary return to Scotland. But the Scots refused to accept the queen, so they failed.

The end of religious tolerance

Just then, the new Pope Pope Pius V excommunicated Elizabeth on February 25th, 157. This prevented Elizabeth from continuing her policy of religious tolerance.

At the same time, her enemies conspired against her, which made her very angry. Mary has been trying not to challenge Elizabeth for 2 years. But then she fell into the conspiracy of her Catholic sympathizers. The mastermind of these plots is anthony babington, whose purpose is to rescue Mary and make her take Elizabeth's place. This is a good opportunity for Elizabeth to eliminate this great enemy. In 1587, she executed Mary (it is said that she was reluctant to give this order).

War with Spain

Elizabeth provided troops and money to Henry IV, a Protestant in France, so that he could gain the French throne. During the Eight-Year War, he provided troops to the Dutch Protestant Prince William I (Silent) to make him resist Spanish rule. Moreover, after a slave fleet led by Sir frank derek and Sir John Hawkins was seriously injured by the Royal Spanish Navy in 1568, Spain's money-carrying fleet was constantly looted by English pirates. King Philip II of Spain decided to invade England under the pretext of Mary's death to repel England's challenge to Spain on the European continent and its overseas colonies.

In September p>1588, a great storm and Elizabeth's naval generals defeated the armada sent by Spain. Nevertheless, Spain defeated a larger English counterattack fleet in 1589. The war lasted until 164, and the two sides tied, and England failed to gain the upper hand at sea or on land. A guerrilla war broke out in Ireland from 1594.

Elizabeth's favourite in the last few years was Robert Devereux, who was the adopted son of the Earl of Leicester. She even forgave him some misdemeanors, but Robert took part in a riot in 161 and Elizabeth had to put him to death.

Death

Elizabeth never married, and her death ended the Tudor dynasty. In her later years, when she had to determine her successor, she became more and more inclined to her nephew, James, the son of Queen Mary of Scots, who was executed by her. But she never officially named him heir. On March 24th, 163, she died in Richmond Palace in Surrey. She was buried in Westminster Abbey. Her successor is James I. This James had become James VI of Scotland at that time. At this time, England and Scotland belonged to the same monarch, and under the rule of a dynasty, the first step in the process of British reunification-royal union-began, but England and Scotland were still recognized as two countries internationally, and the two countries still maintained their own independent governments. Fifty years after her death, the British Civil War broke out and Britain became a short-lived republic.

English culture

Elizabethan period is an important period for the development of English culture. Literature, especially poetry and drama, entered a golden age. Britain's visit to other continents, especially to America, has entered a new stage. Like her father, she is also engaged in writing and translation. She personally translated Horace's The Art of Poetry. Some of her speeches and translations have been handed down to this day.

Elizabeth's popularity

In the "1 Greatest Brits" voted by the BBC, Elizabeth ranked in the top ten. She often appears in plays or novels. Queen Elizabeth and Queen Mary of Scots filmed by Glenda Jackson in 1971 were very popular. In 1998, when Cate Blanchett played the queen in Elizabeth, Judy Dench played the old queen in Shakespeare's love story. Miranda richardson played a surreal queen in the TV series Black Viper. The gay pioneer Quentin Crisp played her in Orlando. Benjamin britten described the relationship between Elizabeth II and Robert Devereux in his opera praise for her coronation.

The myth of Elizabeth

The reign of Elizabeth and many characters at that time were of special significance to the later rulers of Britain. Sir Walter Larreg, Sir Derek and Sir Martin Frobisher became the archetypes of later explorers, while Sir william shakespeare, Sir Christophe Marlow and Sir Francis Bacon became the models of future writers. Religiously, Elizabeth ruled with an iron fist, but at the same time she gave her commanders and advisers more freedom than her rivals on the mainland.

Although she sometimes worked out the strategy of military action (for example, the English expedition to Spain and Portugal in 1589), she never personally served as a military leader like Henry V, oliver cromwell or Sir Winston Churchill. Many military or exploration undertakings are decided by the captain personally, and royal permits (especially for piracy) are reissued later. At that time, the literary creation did not get the support of the royal family. This shows that many events and cultural creations in the Elizabethan era are actually the sum of many personal actions. This is symbolic for the British people later, especially during the imperialist period.

Modern historical research and evaluation of Elizabeth

Modern European historians and biographers have made a more realistic and objective evaluation of Tudor times. Militarily, Elizabeth's England was not very successful. Although the Spanish Armada was defeated, it was only the beginning of a war that lasted for nearly 2 years from 1585 to 164. What English soldiers did on land (mainly in Holland and France) was mediocre, and in the naval battle after 1588, they also lost more than they won.

the naval battles of p>1589 and 1595-1596 suffered heavy losses. Pirates were also attacked in the Azores from 159 to 1591 and in England in 1597. In 1595, a Spanish attack team landed in Cornwall and threw most of the county into war. This is one of the few occasions in history when foreign troops landed in Britain. To make matters worse, in the last years of Mary I and the first five years of Elizabeth, England was expelled from the French mainland. This dealt a great blow to England's self-esteem, and made England completely give up its ambitions in the mainland.

Elizabeth's hesitation about absolute military action is particularly unfavorable. In the expedition to Spain and Portugal in 1589, the British army did not carry siege guns and artillery. But there are reasons for her caution. Perhaps they are based on long-term considerations: without a solid strategy, she doesn't want England to get involved in expensive and unlikely adventures. Therefore, she does not want to waste precious resources when fighting against a powerful army or fleet.

The economy of Elizabethan England was very unstable. At that time, England's wool exchange with Holland and Lufthansa North Germany