Queen Elizabeth I of England: Glorious Major Contributor of the Renaissance and Reformation Eras Crystal Weissenberger HIS 4466 Renaissance & Reformation Troy University October 6, 2004  Queen Elizabeth I of England: Glorious Major Contributor of the Renaissance and Reformation Eras Crystal Weissenberger Elizabeth Tudor was born on September 7, 1533, at Greenwich Palace. She was the second daughter of King Henry VIII of England, and the only surviving child of his second wife, Anne Boleyn. Her father was so disappointed in the birth of his second daughter that he cancelled all the pageantry that he had arranged in his anticipation of his heir’s arrival. Anne had been the reason for Henry’s break from the Holy Roman Catholic Church – the Church would not let him set aside his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, in order to marry Anne who was instrumental in first bringing Protestantism to England. She convinced Henry that he should be the leader of the new Church of England. Henry soon tired of Anne as she failed to bring to term any more live issue. He would have Elizabeth’s mother beheaded on charges of witchcraft and adultery when Elizabeth was barely two years old. The Life of Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603). (2006, August 10). The Life of Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603). Retrieved September 25, 2014, from http://www.luminarium.org/renlit/elizabio.htm. Elizabeth would vindicate her mother’s death by reinstating Protestantism and becoming England’s greatest ruler. She would become a female who dominated not only her home country in political and religious reform, but she would also be successful in the international realm as well. “Tall, red-haired, and temperamental, she was to become every inch a queen, dominating and unpredictable, using both royal anger and gentleness. Her single guiding principle seems to have been an utter devotion to her country and its interests.” Cunningham, L., & Reich, J. J. (2010). Culture and Values: A Survey of the Humanities (7th ed.). Boston, MA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, pg. 323. Queen Elizabeth I of England ushered in a “Golden Age” of prosperity for her country through religious and political diplomacy and action as well as promoting culture and the arts which would make her the major contributor of the Renaissance and Reformation eras. What would give her the advantage over her male counterparts? She would be educated as a true Renaissance noblewoman. Her lifelong companion, Kat Ashley, would see that Elizabeth was instructed “in astronomy, geography, history, mathematics, French, and other languages.” Bingham, J. (2012). The Tudors: The Kings and Queens of England's Golden Age. New York: Metro Books, pg. 146. Her first official tutor was Cambridge scholar William Grindal who “introduced Elizabeth to Greek and Latin literature, giving her a lifelong passion for the classics.” Her next tutor in 1548 would be “the Protestant humanist Roger Ascham” who would teach her about “classical studies, theology, French, and Italian.” He would brag on how Elizabeth was “the brightest star” compared with the other young noblewomen of her era, and “her mind was free of the usual ‘womanly weakness,’ being instead ‘endued with a masculine power of application.’” Ibid, pg. 147; 153 and Greenblatt, S. (2012). The Norton Anthology of English Literature: The Sixteenth Century/The Early Seventeenth Century. Vol. B (9th ed.). New York: W.W. Norton, pg. 749. She would be fluent in Latin, French, and Italian and a smattering of other languages as well. All of her education meant Elizabeth was a rare jewel for England: highly educated in languages, humanism, and all the other Renaissance gifts. This would give her a basic background to meet the challenges of the future. Her first political trial would be after her father died, and her brother Edward VI ascended the throne. She was sent to live with Henry VIII’s last wife Catherine Parr and her ambitious new husband Lord Thomas Seymour, brother of the Lord Protector, Somerset. Thomas would pay “indelicate attentions to Elizabeth.” When Catherine, then pregnant, realized the danger to Elizabeth, she sent her away, but when Seymour was arrested for “other misbehavior,” the sordid details of the whole messy affair would be brought under public speculation. This would be Elizabeth’s “first lessons in the arts of self-defense.” The Life of Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603). (2006, August 10). The Life of Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603). Retrieved September 25, 2014, from http://www.luminarium.org/renlit/elizabio.htm. Her first experience in dalliance-gone-awry would have a major impact on her life. She had felt the first shiver of danger to not only her life, but also her place in the succession to England’s throne – and that would be something she was unwilling to risk for a mere man. When her sister Mary arose to the throne after their brother’s death, Elizabeth was careful to always show herself to be a loyal subject to Catholic Mary I. “She would not renounce her Protestantism until Catholicism had been made the law of the land, but she followed Gardiner’s advice to her father when he said it was better that he should make the law his will than try to make his will the law.” The Princess would be unable to avoid the plots that would spring up around her without her knowledge or consent, however. Protestants would be persistent in attempting to replace “Bloody Mary” with her Protestant sister, Elizabeth. Elizabeth would be “sent to the Tower in March 1544” after the incident called Wyatt’s Rebellion. She would steadfastly deny any knowledge or involvement with the affair. Later she was “transferred to Sir Henry Bedingford’s charge at Woodstock.” Ibid. While there she would carve into her window these lines: Much suspected of me, Nothing proved can be, Quoth Elizabeth, prisoner. Elizabeth I Poem: Written with a Diamond on her Window at Woodstock. (2006, December 4). Elizabeth I Poem: Written with a Diamond on her Window at Woodstock. Retrieved September 25, 2014, from http://www.luminarium.org/renlit/elizawoodstock2.htm. This couplet tells us much of the young woman’s fortitude in the face of adversity. She had courage, and had faith in her belief that she was destined to one day rule England. By “Christmas…Elizabeth was once more received at Court” by her sister. She would move to Hatfield “in the autumn of 1555…where she spent most of the rest of Mary’s reign, enjoying the lessons of Ascham.” The Life of Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603). (2006, August 10). The Life of Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603). Retrieved September 25, 2014, from http://www.luminarium.org/renlit/elizabio.htm. Elizabeth would succeed Mary I in November 17, 1558. Phillips, C., & Haywood, D. J. (2013). The Complete Illustrated History of the Kings & Queens of Britain: A Magnificent and Authoritative History of the Royalty of Britain, the Rulers, Their Consorts and Families, and the Pretenders to the Throne (2013 ed.). London: Aness Publishing Ltd, pg. 114. The “Golden Age” had begun. Queen Elizabeth I’s first challenge would be to bring about religious peace to her troubled kingdom. She had no desire to “make windows into men’s souls” and she would be content “as long as her subjects gave an outward show of conformity.” Elizabeth I. (n.d.). BBC News. Retrieved September 30, 2014. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/people/elizabeth_I. Elizabeth gave a speech in 1559 to Parliament urging them to pass her Religious Settlement. The eloquent speech castigates the advisors present for the parts they played in the past in helping her sister Mary I with the Inquisition in England: Our realm and subjects have been long wanderers, walking astray whilst they were under the tuition of Romish Pastors, who advised them to own a Wolf for their head (in lieu of a careful Shepherd) whose inventions, heresies, and schisms be so numerous, that the flock of Christ have fed on poisonous shrubs for want of wholesome pastures. Queen Elizabeth I: Response on Religion, 1559. (2006, December 6). Queen Elizabeth I: Response on Religion, 1559.. Retrieved September 25, 2014, from http://www.luminarium.org/renlit/elizspeechreligion.htm. In April 1559, “The Acts of Supremacy and Uniformity established Elizabeth as the Supreme Governor of the Church of England,” and implemented her cautious changes. Phillips, C., & Haywood, D. J., pg. 114. In the early years of her reign she knew she had to act gently in returning the nation’s religion to Protestantism because “many Catholic gentry held important positions in local governments.” She felt that if her countrymen who were Catholic were to remain “loyal to the Queen and discreet in their worship, she” could accept them. Elizabeth I and the Catholic Church. (n.d.). Elizabeth I and the Catholic Church. Retrieved September 22, 2014, from http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/elizabeth_catholic_church.htm. This would be the first example that “she would not be a figurehead,” and she would hold “firmly to the reins of power, subtly manipulating factional disputes, conducting diplomacy, and negotiating with an often contentious Parliament.” Greenblatt, S. (2012). The Norton Anthology of English Literature: The Sixteenth Century/The Early Seventeenth Century. Vol. B (9th ed.). New York: W.W. Norton, pg. 750. Elizabeth had no wish to see her country decimated by religious strife. She felt that England needed unity above all other things. “Under Elizabeth there would be no religious persecution. She discouraged religious fanaticism of any kind, and actively banned the preaching of contentious sermons.” Bingham, J., pg. 166. Tolerance would be her basic policy – as long as it did not threaten her life, her throne, or her people. Unfortunately, two other national powers would do just that: Mary, Queen of Scots, and Philip II of Spain, her former brother-in-law. Driven from her own Protestant country, Catholic Mary of Scotland would come to England to seek protection and help from her English cousin, Elizabeth. Mary came after she had been imprisoned for the death of her husband, Lord Darnley (another cousin of Mary’s and Elizabeth’s). Their infant son would became James VI of Scotland when his mother was convicted (He would also eventually be Elizabeth’s heir). Mary had been having an affair with the ambitious Bothwell, and they wished to marry so they murdered her husband in a house explosion. Convicted in Scotland for the murder, Mary escaped with help to England in 1568. She would be unable to stop herself from trying to usurp Elizabeth’s throne. There were myriad problems with having Mary as a “guest”: Mary’s arrival on English soil put Elizabeth in an awkward position. She did not want to outrage Scottish Protestant sensibilities by attempting to restore the convicted Catholic murderess to her throne. Elizabeth also did not want to turn Mary over to her subjects for execution; the death of a fellow sovereign would establish a dangerous precedent. Zophy, J. W. (1996). A Short History of Renaissance and Reformation Europe: Dances Over Fire and Water. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, pg. 237. Elizabeth had a review made of Mary’s crime so that she could decide what would be the right course of action. The answer came back “inconclusive.” Mary would remain as Elizabeth’s “guest” for nineteen years. Time and again, Mary would be involved in plots to take Elizabeth’s throne. Elizabeth would write to her in 1586: “You have planned…to take my life and ruin my kingdom…I never proceeded so harshly against you.” Elizabeth I. (n.d.). The Official Website of the British Monarchy. Retrieved September 20, 2014, from http://www.royal.gov.uk/historyofthemonarchy/kingsandqueensofengland/thetudors/elizabethi.aspx. This was right after “another Catholic conspiracy” arose around Mary. The plot was discovered by Francis Walsingham and his spies. The plot was “led by Anthony Babington,” and Mary made a huge mistake – she “agreed in writing to support the assassination of her cousin and replace her as queen of England.” Elizabeth could no longer prevaricate. Mary was tried and convicted. Mary would go to “the chopping block in February 1587.” Zophy, J. W., pg. 238. James VI of Scotland did nothing more than make a token formal protest over his mother’s execution. He and Elizabeth had signed the Treaty of Berwick in 1586 that “created a bond between England and Scotland and pledged mutual help against invasion.” Cawthorne, N. (2010). The kings & Queens of England: From the Saxon Kings to the House of Windsor. New York: Metro Books, pg. 123. James had hopes of succeeding Elizabeth so he would not act aggressively towards her over the death of the woman he perceived to be the slayer of his father. As for Elizabeth’s Catholic subjects, this plot “only served to further discredit the Church of Rome and its loyal adherents.” Zophy, J. W., pg. 233. Mary’s execution was seen as justified in England and only strengthened the people’s loyalty for their Queen and filled them with a sense of nationalism. Elizabeth’s major contender on the world stage was Philip II of Spain – her ex-brother-in-law. After Mary’s death and Elizabeth’s accession to the throne, Philip had pursued her hand in marriage. Elizabeth did what she does best: she prevaricated and then politely refused. She could not possibly marry a Catholic, and she pointed out that she could not marry her former brother-in-law. The irony in the situation echoed back to her father’s having married his deceased brother’s former wife, Catherine of Aragon. Philip wanted to bring England back to Catholicism and used his past marriage to Mary I to justify his right to Elizabeth’s throne. With the death of the Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots, Philip decided that time had come to act. He would launch his “Armada” in 1588 against England. It was “the largest fleet the world had ever seen.” Cunningham, L., & Reich, J. J., pg. 345. Elizabeth would ride to Tilbury to meet her troops and rally them with her presence and fortitude. The speech was given on August 9, 1958, and Elizabeth would tell her beloved soldiers: “…being resolved in the midst and heat of the battle to live and die amongst you all, to lay down for my God and my kingdom and for my people mine honor and my blood even in the dust…I know I have the body but of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and king of England too” Greenblatt, S., pg. 762-763. Before the Armada could leave port, Sir Francis Drake had sailed “into Cadiz harbor” and set “fire to some of the Spanish galleons anchored there.” This would be called as the “singeing of the King of Spain’s beard.” The rest “of the Armada reached the English Channel, where” they were “destroyed, partly by superior English tactics and partly by a huge storm promptly dubbed (by the victor’s, at least) the ‘Protestant Wind.’” Cunningham, L., & Reich, J. J., pg. 345. The defeat of the Spanish Armada would be Elizabeth I’s most glorious military triumph. When King Henry III of France heard of the victory, he said that Elizabeth’s “victory ‘would compare with the greatest feats of the most illustrious men of past times,’ and Pope Sixtus’ response was even admiring, “claiming that ‘she certainly is a great queen, and were she only a Catholic she would be our dearly beloved daughter! She is only a woman, only mistress of half an island, and she makes herself feared by Spain, by France, by the Empire, by all!’” Bingham, J., pg. 188. Elizabeth had earned the admiration of her peers despite being a single, unmarried woman. The defeat of the Armada would be a pivotal moment for Elizabeth I and England. It would safeguard her “religious settlement,” boost “the reputation of the English fleet,” and consolidate “the growing self-confidence of the English. The victory also marked a shift in power from Catholic southern Europe to Protestant northern countries.” Phillips, C., & Haywood, D. J. pg. 123. Gloriana had insured her place in history as a major Renaissance and Reformation leader in politics and religion. She had proven herself a formidable foe and protected her beloved England. During what is now called the Elizabethan period there was “a great flourishing of the arts, actively encouraged by the queen and her courtiers.” Bingham, J., pg. 195. Elizabeth’s excellent Renaissance education by Grendal and Ascham had prepared her to be a lover of the current culture. It has been said that “by the end of the sixteenth century, under the influence of humanism, a brilliant cultural life had developed in Elizabethan England” which was named “after the queen who ruled her country for almost a century from 1558 to 1603.” Cunningham, L., & Reich, J. J., pg. 323-324. England was undoubtedly “one of the greatest centers of cultural achievement in Northern Renaissance times.” Ibid, pg. 323. Her reign would see great English participators in astronomy and the sciences, music, painting, and literature – including poetry and drama. Astronomy was a basic part of the life of a sovereign, and “Elizabeth consulted Dr. John Dee on the most auspicious date” for her coronation. “Drawing on his extensive knowledge of astrology, he settled on Sunday 15 January.” He would be Elizabeth’s and her court’s astrologist and scientific advisor as well as helping “her captains to plan their voyages of discovery, and [he] was a passionate advocate for the establishment of English colonies in the New World.” As he aged, he would face “personal ruin and sought support from Elizabeth, who made him Warden of Christ’s College in Manchester.” Ibid, pg. 158. Elizabeth depended on the science of her day for planning all her great events, and would remain Dee’s faithful friend for the rest of his life. Also in England William Gilbert would find “that the earth was a large magnet” and the earth’s pole “points approximately north.” He would be the founder of the idea of “magnetism.” The logarithm would also be developed by an Englishman, John Napier. This “practical mathematical tool” would “greatly” reduce “the time and effort needed to solve difficult equations.” Ibid, pg. 334. England contributed important ideas to the Renaissance in science during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Elizabeth would also reward “the musical genius of the great sacred composers Thomas Tallis…and William Byrd…by granting them, a monopoly license to print and sell music in England in 1575.” Phillips, C., & Haywood, D. J., pg. 129. Tallis “spent more than forty years of his life as an organist of the Chapel Royal at the English court.” While he officially composed “works for formal Protestant occasions, he also wrote Latin motifs and Catholic masses.” Cunningham, L., & Reich, J. J., pg. 348. One of his pupils was William Byrd who is hailed as the “foremost English composer of the Elizabethan age.” Byrd “wrote music for the virginal, several secular instrumental and voice pieces…as well as music for the Catholic and Protestant church, including three Latin masses.” Ibid, pg. 605. His most famous composition is “a particularly beautiful elegy for voice and strings, Ye Sacred Muses, inspired by the death of Tallis.” Ibid, pg. 348. One of the most popular composers for the common people was Thomas Morley. They were madrigals which “are lighthearted in tone and fast moving, using refrains such as ‘Fa-la-la’…written for amateur singers who chose to make music for their own pleasure, it demanded little technical skills.” His music is considered “the perfect illustration of one of the chief aspects of Renaissance music especially that aimed at domestic consumption.” Ibid, pg. 349. All courts had musicians for entertainment, and Elizabeth was notorious for loving music and dancing. She felt that a light diet and dancing kept her youthful. Nicholas Hilliard would be considered “the pre-eminent portrait artist of” his era. “He worked mainly in miniature – an art known to Elizabethans as ‘limning’ – and was also a jeweler and goldsmith. In 1572 he was appointed the queen’s official limner.” Among his accomplishments would be designing her “second great seal” in 1584. Phillips, C., & Haywood, D. J., pg. 129. He would paint the famous portrait Ermine Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I in 1585. In the painting there is “an ermine on the queen’s sleeve” which symbolizes “virginity.” The whole painting is “a symbol of her majesty, not intended to show her actual appearance.” Cunningham, L., & Reich, J. J., pg. 345. Halliard is considered by some to be “the only English painter of note during the sixteenth century,” and the opinion is given that “when Hilliard turned to larger works, specifically to portraits of Queen Elizabeth, he was inevitably inhibited by his monarch’s demand for a painting that would look regal and imposing rather than realistic.” Ibid, pg. 346. In Elizabeth’s defense, however, that is the look that she spent a lifetime creating; it was as much political as it was vain. She had created an image for her subjects and for the entire international community of the Virgin Queen in which she was capable and undefeated. An additional painting of Hilliard’s which does not have Elizabeth as the subject is a miniature named A Young Man, ca. 1600. It is a “tiny painting from a playing card approximately two inches square,” and it “represents the ‘other side’ of Elizabethan love poetry: passion replaces languor. The image of the lover tormented by the ‘fire’ of his mistress’s eyes or the hellish inner torment of desire was common.” Around the young man’s neck is a “locket” which he holds and “presumably contains another miniature: a portrait of his beloved.” Greenblatt, S., pg. C6. There certainly were other talented English painters. In the Stapleton Collection at the Bridgeman Art Library is Robert Peake’s Elizabeth I in Procession, ca. 1600. The description of the painting is informative about Elizabeth: Carried on a litter like an image of the virgin in the religious processions of previous centuries, the gorgeously arrayed Queen Elizabeth is shown…as a time-defying icon of purity and power. When the painting was executed, the queen was sixty-seven years old. Until the end of her life she continued her custom of going on ‘Progresses’ through the realm: surrounded by her courtiers and ladies in waiting, she would venture forth to show herself to her people… Ibid, pg. C6. In this one, as in Halliard’s, the Queen is depicted as “larger than life.” The persona that Elizabeth created helped to keep her subjects happy and her country safe. Gloriana would use whatever means were at her disposal to accomplish those goals – and, if it made her look “regal and majestic” that was a bonus. Not all paintings in England were about Elizabeth, of course. John White’s watercolor named The Wife and Daughter of a Chief, ca. 1585 accompanied “Thomas Hariot’s Brief and True Report of the New-found Land of Virginia” which chronicles the “Algonkian life as seen by the English voyagers.” Ibid, pg. C3. The painting depicts a natively dressed American Indian woman and child. The child is holding an Elizabethan doll decked out in high necked, belled dress. Gifts such as this were often given to the natives as tokens of friendship. In Elizabethan England a Renaissance inside the Renaissance era occurred, and “William Shakespeare is usually considered to be the greatest writer using the English language, and his work was of fundamental importance in establishing English as a literary vehicle.” Elizabeth herself was a huge admirer “of dramas and pageants, and many plays had their preview at her court, including Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night in 1601.” Bingham, J., pg. 196. This was not Shakespeare’s first play, however, that the Queen would enjoy. Elizabeth liked his “History of Henry IV, with the Humorous Conceits of Sir John Falstaff in 1597” so much “that she asked for a new play showing Falstaff ‘in love.’” Shakespeare would write The Merry Wives of Windsor for her in response to her wishes. It was “first played in 1600.” Phillips, C., & Haywood, D. J. pg. 129. She would prove a champion to “the actor’s companies in their struggle against the Puritans who wished to close their playhouses down, and even founded her own acting company, known as the Queen’s Men.” Bingham, J., pg. 196. Elizabeth’s love of pageantry and keen wit would see her supporting all the literary arts, but drama indubitably had a special appeal to her. Also during Elizabeth I’s reign, there “featured such incredible literary talents as the bold dramatist Christopher Marlowe, the poet Edmund Spenser, the poet’s Sir Philip Sidney, and his sister Mary, Countess of Pembroke, among many others.” Zophy, J. W., pg. 141. Marlowe’s works are said to have had the potential to rival Shakespeare’s if he had not died early in a tavern brawl. His “works include the monumental two-part Tamburlaine, a vast tragic drama that explores the limits of human power; exuberant erotic verse like his Hero and Leander; and his greatest masterpiece, Dr. Faustus.” Cunningham, L., & Reich, J. J., pg. 350. The poet “Spenser wrote one of the best known poems of the Tudor age as an elaborate compliment to his monarch. The Faerie Queen is a verse epic in six books…At the head of the poem is Gloriana, the Faerie Queen, a poetic embodiment of Queen Elizabeth.” The poets of Elizabethan England “were always welcome at court,” and not only Spenser, but the two Sidney siblings were close to Elizabeth. Bingham, J., pg. 196. Mary Sidney was especially close to the Queen, and Mary “impressed” Elizabeth “with her fluency in languages and her skills in music and embroidery. Like the queen, Mary dispensed patronage to other poets, including several women.” Zophy, J. W., pg. 141. Elizabeth herself was a prolific writer, and we have copies of some of her “carefully crafted letters and speeches...a number of prayers; prose and verse translations, including works of Horace, Seneca, Plutarch, Boethius Calvin, and the French Protestant Queen Margaret of Navarre; and a few original poems.” Her poetry seems to be about “actual events in her life,” and they show us “an exceptionally agile, poised, and self-conscious writer, a gifted role-player fully in control of the rhetorical as well as political situation in which she found herself.” Greenblatt, S., pg. 750. Her speeches are eloquent and moving. She was obviously an accomplished writer and public speaker. Elizabeth’s appeals to Parliament, to the soldiers at Tilbury, and to other government functionaries and diplomats were most effective in getting her the results that she wanted. Queen Elizabeth I of England would die at Richmond Palace in Surrey on March 24, 1603. Phillips, C., & Haywood, D. J., pg. 114. The Golden Age came to an end. James IV of Scotland would ascend the throne of England as James I. It was an end of an era. Hailed as “the most powerful woman of her time,” she told her “Parliament in 1601 after forty-three years as queen that ‘to wear a crown is a thing more glorious to them that see it, than it is a pleasure to them that bear it.” Herman, E. (2006). Sex With the Queen: 900 Years of Vile Kings, Virile Lovers, and Passionate Politics. New York: W. Morrow, pg. 295. She gave everything she had – personal life, intelligence, probably even her health – to England and its people. Elizabeth “set her mark indelibly on the age that has come to bear her name. Endowed with intelligence, courage, cunning, and a talent for self-display, she managed to survive and flourish in a world that would easily have crushed a weaker person.” Greenblatt, S., pg. 749. Elizabeth had grown from infancy to young adulthood in a world full of fear and treachery. The people who should have protected her were too busy with their own lives to pay much attention to a precocious child. She knew that she had disappointed her father by being a girl, but she used her intelligence and courage to become a greater ruler than even he had been. Elizabeth’s reign was filled with religious and political peace (compared to other nations of her time), and the flowering of the Renaissance culture and arts. Her patronage of the arts made England not just a military power, but a civilized power. Elizabeth made her little island culture an international supremacy to be reckoned with, and a learned people as well who would be able to take advantage of the life she gave them. Queen Elizabeth I was the major contributor to the Renaissance: she gave the world the Reformation and showed in could be done peacefully; she gave England international supremacy; she gave her people culture and sponsored the greatest dramatist the world has ever known – and that act alone would make the English language a contending world linguistic authority. In short, For almost 45 years, she had given her country peace and stability. She had strengthened the Church of England, establishing her kingdom as a Protestant country, but one where Catholics could also be tolerated. During Elizabeth’s reign, England became an important maritime power and the seeds of international trade were sown. There was also an extraordinary flowering of literature and the arts. More than almost any other monarch, Elizabeth shaped the English identity, instilling a sense of national pride in her people and becoming a living embodiment of the English fighting spirit. Bingham, J., pg. 205. Works Cited Bingham, J. (2012). The Tudors: The Kings and Queens of England's Golden Age. New York: Metro Books. Cawthorne, N. (2010). The kings & Queens of England: From the Saxon Kings to the House of Windsor. New York: Metro Books. Cunningham, L., & Reich, J. J. (2010). Culture and Values: A Survey of the Humanities (7th ed.). Boston, MA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. Elizabeth I. (n.d.). BBC News. Retrieved September 30, 2014. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/people/elizabeth_I. Elizabeth I. (n.d.). The Official Website of the British Monarchy. Retrieved September 20, 2014, from http://www.royal.gov.uk/historyofthemonarchy/kingsandqueensofengland/thetudors/elizabethi.aspx. Elizabeth I and the Catholic Church. (n.d.). Elizabeth I and the Catholic Church. Retrieved September 22, 2014, from http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/elizabeth_catholic_church.htm. Elizabeth I Poem: Written with a Diamond on her Window at Woodstock. (2006, December 4). Elizabeth I Poem: Written with a Diamond on her Window at Woodstock. Retrieved September 25, 2014, from http://www.luminarium.org/renlit/elizawoodstock2.htm. Greenblatt, S. (2012). The Norton Anthology of English Literature: The Sixteenth Century/The Early Seventeenth Century. Vol. B (9th ed.). New York: W.W. Norton. Herman, E. (2006). Sex With the Queen: 900 Years of Vile Kings, Virile Lovers, and Passionate Politics. New York: W. Morrow. Phillips, C., & Haywood, D. J. (2013). The Complete Illustrated History of the Kings & Queens of Britain: A Magnificent and Authoritative History of the Royalty of Britain, the Rulers, Their Consorts and Families, and the Pretenders to the Throne (2013 ed.). London: Aness Publishing Ltd. The Life of Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603). (2006, August 10). The Life of Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603). Retrieved September 25, 2014, from http://www.luminarium.org/renlit/elizabio.htm. Queen Elizabeth I: Response on Religion, 1559.. (2006, December 6). Queen Elizabeth I: Response on Religion, 1559. Retrieved September 25, 2014, from http://www.luminarium.org/renlit/elizspeechreligion.htm. Zophy, J. W. (1996). A Short History of Renaissance and Reformation Europe: Dances Over Fire and Water. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall. 17