The Parliament was worried that if Elizabeth didn’t marry, then her incomplete succession would mean Mary queen of Scots would succeed her, returning the country back to Catholicism. If Elizabeth married a foreigner, she would have to choose which country to marry; it would mean handing over her rule to that country. Philip II of Spain hoped to marry Elizabeth so that England would be under the rule of Spain, and he could convert the country back to Catholicism. The Pope was hoping for this match too, so he could resume being the Head of the Church Of England. However, Elizabeth wasn’t willing to get married so easily; she found a Protestant bishop to crown her, and protestant bishops and clergy soon took over the government and the church much to the protests of the Catholics and Puritans. The Commons pressurised the Queen to marry so the succession dispute would end. However when she avoided the question of marriage, members of the Commons turned against her. Like European powers, the Parliament looked to Elizabeth as they always looked at royal women; as a potential wife, and not someone who could continue to rule the country unless she married. The succession problem was only resolved when the queen named James IV of Scotland to replace her before she died. Therefore Elizabeth never did marry, taking on the image of a virgin.
It was when Elizabeth needed financial help from the government she told the Commons she would marry, but the time was not convenient for her yet. She was clever enough to listen, but not commit. She needed the Commons because:
“in the autumn of 1566, shortage of money…. forced Elizabeth to recall parliament…
because she was asking for supplies in peacetime”
The lords backed her up, because they needed her authority to pass bills, and she was able to get the Commons back on her side. By using her ‘persuasion and most imperious manner’ she was able to keep the peace within parliament. However, she found calling Parliament a regrettable necessity, and would not deal with them unless she got her way. Although, she retained her interest in every aspect of government, openly soliciting public opinion for she always believed her rule rested on English affection. She became involved in all legislation, from the writing of bills, to its passing through the House of Commons. She took an interest in the matters of the state, but D. Starskey writes the men she worked with didn’t think a woman was capable to make such decisions for the country. Though she presented herself in traditional images of the monarchy, such as carrying the sword of state, showing portraits of her riding the counties of England, and wearing the army suits, Elizabeth knew she needed powerful men to rule effectively. She made extensive use of the Privy Council and summoned Parliament ten times during her reign. Some historians feel that Elizabeth was nervy when it came to foreign affairs, because as she was a woman, she could not lead an army into battle. Although the Parliament helped the Queen pass bills, Neale writes that when she did not agree with Parliament, she would end the session. Elizabeth effectively enhanced royal government in society by increasing role of sheriffs in the counties, relying upon justices of peace to perform basic role of administrative work of the local government. William Cecil, and Burghley guided Elizabeth’s policies, but the queen made most government decisions herself without consulting the Parliament. She decided what men should help her govern, and got rid of those who did not agree with her. Therefore, most historians feel that the queen, although she was advised by Cecil and men like Burghley, used her own policies and ideas to transform the religious and financial aspects of the Tudor State.
During the latter years of her reign, Elizabeth became worried about the possibility of unity of France and Spain. The country was too weak to handle any conflict if they joined together. Although:
“Cecil laboured successfully at the restoration of armed forces, the developments
of armaments factories…the rebuilding of financial stability”
the country still needed unity with the outside powers. Elizabeth wanted the English people to have faith in the monarchy, to respect the righteousness of her rule. So she avoided costly entanglements, ‘rarely has an English monarch so abhorred foreign wars’. However domestic peace just caused domestic problems. Elizabethan England’s foreign policy lay with three powers; Scotland, France, and Spain which was controlled by Mary I’s former husband Philip II. However, Elizabeth never viewed war as anything but a waste of resources, and she sought to avoid it as much as possible. She believed that England must act as a mediator between France and Scotland, and courted both countries but never committing to a definite policy. When it became clear that Elizabeth would not marry Philip II of Spain, he attempted to secure peace, with the queen. This suited Elizabeth particularly since English wealth relied on trade with the Low Countries under Habsburg control. Elizabeth also agreed to stop the war Mary I had started with the French, and gave up English control over Calais, which was a blow to England’s prestige. Elizabeth maintained this peace for a very long time, which gave financial stability to the country, transforming the Tudor state into one of achievement in the beginning of the reign. However this did not last.
In 1558, there was a widespread revaluation of custom rates in Europe, and so Philip II saw this opportunity to remind the queen of her dependence on foreign trade, with Spain and the Low countries, yet in 1563, he tried to stop this. Although this cost the queen her revenues, she moved her trading posts to Emden in 1564. In 1581, the Dutch, then part of the Spanish Empire, proclaimed their independence. Therefore, Elizabeth warned the Spanish of great English intervention if the Spanish continued to pose a threat to the Netherlands. A treaty was set out for the English to supply the Dutch with ‘5000 foot and 1000 horse troops, and £126000 per annum’. Nevertheless, the Netherlands were defeated and they were given over to Spanish rule, and England lost its important trading port of Antwerp. Philip II continued to intervene with English trade, to disrupt the reign of Elizabeth, and to ruin the financial stability. Elizabeth’s only real hope was to join forces with the French by marrying Anjou, the brother of King Henry III of France, conversely, Elizabeth did not want to do this. Elizabeth was pragmatic and decided to try and negotiate with the Spanish army and Alva, and at first Philip II agreed to restore trade with England and restore religious toleration with the Netherlands. It was soon made clear Philip II wanted the rule of England completely, and would not maintain religious neutrality. However, as these negotiations were taking place this gave the queen time to ‘strengthen the defences on land and fit out the fleet’. Philip II, turned Catholics loyal to the queen into ‘criminal traitors’, because he wanted England to be a Catholic country as it had been under Mary I. He also massacred many Protestants in his own country. This led to further conflicts with Spain and France. The stability, with which Elizabeth’s reign transformed the Tudor state, was now coming into conflict with other powers as it had been under her predecessors.
In 1559, there was a Protestant rebellion in Scotland, which the Queen favoured. When Henri II of France died, there was political unrest in the country. The English land and naval forces were able to exploit this opportunity in 1560. The French troops were driven from Scotland, and a pro- English government was set up. Mary Queen of Scots who had only shortly been married to Henri II of France came back to Scotland, but soon after was forced to abdicate after she was said to have participated in the murder of Elizabeth’s cousin Lord Darnely, and married a supposed rapist. Elizabeth had her imprisoned. However Mary was the sole heir to the throne, and the birth of James I gave her an advantage, and this was a worry to those who did not want to go back to Catholicism. However, in 1571, the Ridolfi Plot was discovered, the attempt to overthrow Elizabeth by Mary. Nobles asked the queen for immediate execution, but Elizabeth could not bear to execute he cousin and the next heir to the throne. The Bond of Association was prepared so that the whole country promised if Elizabeth is assassinated, then Mary wouldn’t be allowed to take the throne. Once the council persuaded her that one of Mary’s plots may succeed, the queen signed the death warrant. It is said Elizabeth wanted to get rid of Mary, because she was afraid Mary was a puppet for Philip II. After the execution of Mary Queen of Scot, Philip II was outraged because he was involved in the plots, and Mary was the only hope to bring the England back to Catholicism. So too were Mary’s former home of France. Both countries wanted to punish Elizabeth, but only the Spanish empire could afford to do so. When the Spanish Armada set out in 1588, with the blessings of the Catholic church, the Queen responded to the threat with bravery, and her speech at Tilsbury to the troops was so inspiring. Spanish fleet had set out with an estimate of 130 ships, 2400 cannons and 30000 men, so therefore, the Spanish were short on ammunition and provisions. The English were better armed and had heavier and powerful guns. Although the Spanish had less ammunition, many believe it was the bad weather and the winds which led to the destruction of the fleet. This gave Spanish loss and the defeat for the fight of Catholicism. England did not feel it was successful in naval terms however, and during the 1590s, they tried to fight Spain for lands such as Portugal, but this led to more money being spent and the loss of many men. The Tudor state was not the same as it had been at the beginning of Elizabeth’s reign. The peace and prosperity that Elizabeth had wanted was now coming under threat. The Tudor state under Elizabeth is seen as the ‘golden age’, however, this was far from the truth by the latter years of her reign.
After tackling the threat of Catholics abroad, Elizabeth had to tackle internal problems. After Mary’s reign the English state was deliberately weak and poor. It had no standing army, no efficient police force, and weak and inefficient bureaucracy. Elizabeth’s government enacted legislation known as the poor laws, which made every local parish responsible for its poor, creating workhouses. Parliament also passed bills to ensure fair prices in times of shortage, and they regulated wages in times of unemployment. The queen issued a new currency that contained a standard amount of precious metal, which raised confidence in the currency. During Elizabeth’s reign, England expanded overseas, private shipbuilding boomed, and the chief commodity was woollen cloth largely sold to Antwerp. However, Antwerp was lost during the trade wars with Spain, and this affected England. Elizabeth and her advisors may have been able to secure a few golden years, cutting down debt and reducing inflation; but continued population placed strains on the economy, made worse by serious harvest failures. This led to the great inflation, and the 1590s were the worst years of the century; this was marked by starvation and epidemic disease. Taxes were raised, crown lands sold, and Elizabeth asked for parliamentary grants to repair the country. The financial situation was worse than what it had been at the beginning of her reign. However, whilst the Crown became poorer because she had to take out grants to continue naval battles; the higher class made a profit out of munitions, food, clothing and shipping. JR Green writes that many thought she was a queen for the nobility, and the rest of society was beginning to suffer.
Some historians feel that Elizabeth’s image was not so strong. Grey wrote that the queen ‘can’t look that strong because she had no heir, money and she was a female’. Elizabeth started to become paranoid against her superiority and ideas, and so imprisoned those that were against her views. As seen in Chris Haigh’s book ‘The reign of Elizabeth I’, Camden felt that the reign was one of ‘wise rule and national achievement’ He presents the reign to be of harmony and felt:
“The Queen’s priorities to secure purity in religion, safe defence for her realm and the
devotion of her people, were done without heavy debts”
However, the book presents that Elizabeth’s public image was a cluster of images, and propaganda did not show the real Elizabeth. The queen faced much opposition, as has been seen above, from religious groups, and from the European powers. Chris Haigh wrote, the queen ‘died unloved and almost lamented’. She became bankrupt, showing the queen merely shelved her problems, and avoided trying to solve them; such as the succession issue, and her ‘sale of crown lands to finance war’. Haigh writes that after the Elizabethan settlement, the queen did not feel as strongly to do anything more, because there was no reason of why she would.
In conclusion, the beginning of Elizabeth’s reign showed a great transformation in the Tudor state. She was able to learn from the mistakes of Mary and bring the country back to financial stability. she pushed out many Puritans and Catholics that did not agree with her views, and transformed the Catholic state into a Protestant one. However, this Protestantism wasn’t extreme, and Elizabeth still allowed Catholic beliefs as long as the Catholics conformed to her beliefs. Elizabeth tried to keep the Tudor state away from conflicts with the other European powers, and this enabled the country to tackle problems at home, and increase the prosperity and wealth. Nonetheless, this did not last for long. The Tudor state under Elizabeth came under conflict and instability. Even though Elizabeth’s regime successfully tackled most of these problems, especially after the defeat of the Spanish Armada, the costs of war caused major effects on the economy. The rich became richer, the poor became poorer, and by the end of her reign, the Tudor state was in worse condition as it had been when she came to the throne. The transformation of the Tudor state was one which at first was of great improvement, and then by the end of her reign was one of loss. The Tudor state began to lose any respect they could have for a woman in such a position, and were relieved when she finally named James I as the heir to the throne.