Elizabeth I was the only surviving daughter of Henry VIII and Anna Bolena even though Henry VIII desired a son for the succession. Also, after Elizabeth was born, Anna Bolena had three more children.
Three-year-old Elizabeth was declared illegitimate, so she lost the title of princess and was raised in Hatfield Palace with her half-sister Mary. Eventually, however, Elizabeth was admitted to the court and formed a strong friendship with her stepmother until 1557. Thanks to Catherine Parr, Henry’s sixth wife, Elizabeth was educated by extremely Protestant people. Elizabeth, however, was very intelligent and cultured and had an excellent memory.
Henry VIII died in 1547 and Edward VI was his successor. Caterina Parr then married Thomas Seymour and kept Elizabeth with her.
In 1553 Edoardo died of smallpox and left a pact that declared Lady Jane Gray heir. Maria then married Filippo Di Spagna, an extremely Catholic, and his Protestant subjects did not like this very much.
After a few years, Mary was expecting a child, and Elizabeth returned to court. Philip, however, was worried that Mary would die in childbirth, and he preferred that the crown be passed to her rather than Mary, Queen of Scots.
This preference from Philip was born for political reasons, in fact, Maria Stuarda was promised to Francis II and in this way, the British Isles would go to France. During her reign, Mary persecuted the Protestants and so she was called “Mary the Bloody”, and also tried to convert Elizabeth who pretended to be Catholic but remained Protestant.
On November 17, 1558, Mary died of cancer and Elizabeth ascended the throne on January 15, 1559. One of the concerns during Elizabeth’s reign was religion, but she was very tolerant.
The Act of Supremacy of 1559 established that public officials recognize the sovereign’s control over the church. Elizabeth I renamed a new Private Council and furthermore the court conflicts diminished a lot.
To conclude we highly recommend the film “Elisabeth The Golden Age” that talks about her life and the fantastic deeds she did also to deepen her history a little more.
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