Queen Elizabeth example essay topic

Queen Elizabeth I was said to be one of the best rulers of England. Unlike rulers before her, she was a Protestant and not a Catholic. She was not stupid though. She did go to church and did everything that Catholics did to prevent getting her head cut off under the rules of her sister Mary. Elizabeth was very young when she came to rule.

She was only 17 years old when her sister Mary died and she took over. Elizabeth's relationship with her half sister Queen Mary was mediocre. It seemed like they did not talk as much as some sisters do. They did love each other though because when Queen Mary was on the deathbed she refused to sign the paper that would have Elizabeth killed.

If she didn't really love her sister, she would have let them kill her and allow the Duke of Norfolk to take over as king. The Duke of Norfolk was Elizabeth's cousin and wished to be king more than anything else. On the other hand, Mary called her sister a bastard and other bad names. Elizabeth and her cousin Mary Queen of Scots often clashed, both personally and politically.

Eventually, they wanted one another dead. Mary Queen of Scots wanted to be the queen of England and was ready to attack them. French forces increased their numbers, without planning to attack England. However, Elizabeth was worried and decided to attack. She sent her weak army up to Scotland and was easily defeated. Mary laughed in her face and sent back one of her men wearing the French colors.

Later on Elizabeth sent an assassin to kill her and it was successful. Mary Queen of Scots was killed. Elizabeth's relationship with her elder male cousin, the Duke of Norfolk, was not good at all. The Duke of Norfolk wanted to kill Elizabeth because he wanted to become the king of England. Becoming the king of England was impossible while Elizabeth was still the queen.

When Mary was on her deathbed with cancer the Duke of Norfolk tried to get Mary to sign a paper that would allow him to kill Elizabeth and become King of England. The Duke of Norfolk would speak against Queen Elizabeth and try to turn England against her. At one meeting she had to lock him and his men up so he wouldn't cause a disturbance. They both had their differences. The Duke of Norfolk wanted to go to war with Scotland. Queen Elizabeth did not want to go to war but she was pressured into making the decision of going to war and suffered the consequences.

Her army was brutally defeated and the ruler Mary Queen of Scots embarrassed her. Queen Elizabeth's boyfriend while she became queen was Lord Robert. Elizabeth was almost 15 years younger than her companion. He showered her with attention and she absolutely loved him. Many people speculated that the two were lovers. Whatever the case, it was soon discovered that he was a married man.

When his wife suddenly died under mysterious circumstances, it basically meant that Elizabeth could not marry him. When Lord Robert was implicated in a plot to kill the Queen, she spared his life to 'remind [her] of how close [she] came to danger. ' Elizabeth set up the Church of England to help unite her people. It was formed similar to the Catholic Church, but had Protestant ideals. There were many groups of people who disagreed with the new Church and wished to stay Protestant or Catholic. These non-conformists were out-numbered, although who knows how many people supported them deep inside of their hearts, but never had the courage or bravery to speak out.

The last thing Elizabeth had to do to make the new Church a success was convince Parliament to pass the Act of Uniformity. When Elizabeth had to speak in front of Parliament for the first time, it was regarding the Act of Uniformity. In a way, this would make all the people of England have to convert to be members of the Church of England. She spoke with authority, and kept the tone in the room light, with humorous, snappy remarks. The act passed by 5 votes. The number of votes is significant because Walsingham locked up 6 Bishops that would have voted against the act.

It is unknown whether or not this is a historically accurate portrayal of the events that occurred, or if any bishops had been temporarily locked up at all. Either way, the act passed and gave Elizabeth a new sense of self-confidence. Elizabeth remained unmarried at first due to fears that Lord Robert would not be deemed acceptable or noble enough to be worthy or the Queen. All of her other suitors did not have much interest in her personality-wise, and their efforts to gain her attention were politically motivated. Also, religion caused her to have fewer men she considered right for her. Many Catholic men demanded that they celebrate Catholic mass on Royal property, and she did not approve of that.

Eventually, she seemed to give up on men. This could be due to Lord Robert's betrayal, or maybe some other unknown reason. Either way, she proclaimed that she was married to England, and that she was the 'Virgin Queen. ' She wore several inches of makeup from head to toe, and acted strangely in her last few years. Queen Elizabeth I was a woman who cannot easily be described. All of the words we would use for heroes and heroines would not be enough for Elizabeth.

She persevered through many assassination attempts and even when trusted friends became despicable enemies. She united England, and righted the wrongs of past rulers. Even Norfolk would agree that what she stood up for and who she was will never be forgotten.