module 11 Unit From the Golden Age to Victorianism BEFORE READING In your opinion, why, in an age dominated by men, do we remember in particular these two queens? Elizabeth I and the Golden Age I may not be a lion, but I am a lion s cub, and I have a lion s heart One after the other Henry VIII s three children ascended the English throne. Edward VI was only nine when he was crowned king. Unlike his father he believed in Luther s doctrines. His reign lasted only six years and when he died, his half-sister, Mary, became queen. Being Catherine of Aragon s daughter she was brought up as a Catholic, she married Philip II of Spain and she was determined to re-establish Catholicism. She was hated for her persecution of the Protestants and she was nicknamed Bloody Mary. Elizabeth, the Protestant daughter of Anne Boleyn, acceded to the throne on Mary s death in 1558, but before this happened her life was at risk for some time. In fact when Mary, her halfsister, became queen, Elizabeth was viewed as a direct threat and she was briefly imprisoned in the Tower of London. Elizabeth s reign from 1558 to 1603 is considered by many to be a Golden Age. After she was crowned, her first task was to unify the country under a common faith. She refused obedience to the Pope, but on the whole she was tolerant and willing to compromise in order to unite as many people as possible. Thus, after a decade of violent change, the country was brought back to a moderate Protestantism. She wanted peace and established the English form of Protestantism by the Act of Uniformity and the Thirty-Nine Articles of Faith, acceptable to everyone, except the most zealous Catholics and the extreme Protestants, but it was not until the 1580s that the Reformation gained general acceptance. Elizabeth never married, but used this as a diplomatic tool. She used to say the Queen was married to her people and so, when the idea was accepted, the cult of the Virgin Queen began. She ruled wisely with the help of a Privy Council; she travelled around the country on royal journeys, so that she could be seen by a great deal of her people. She protected artists who were eager to entertain her. She had a glittering court, thanks to the presence of poets, musicians and actors (Spenser and Shakespeare among them), and inspired a Golden Age of Renaissance culture. There was an extraordinary flowering of poetry (in the form of the sonnet) and drama and the first permanent theatres were built in this period. Elizabeth also encouraged sea voyages, sent out ships to trade with other parts of the world and to found colonies (the first English colony in North America was called Virginia, after the Virgin Queen). English adventurers, such as Francis Drake and John Hawkins captured and sank many Spanish treasure ships with the Queen s unofficial approval. During her long reign, Elizabeth, sometimes referred to as Virgin Queen, Gloriana, Astrea or Good Queen Bess, established a good degree of internal stability thanks to her skilful diplomacy, allowing the growth of a spirit of patriotism and self confidence. When she died in 1603, England was ready to become the supreme naval power that it was in the 1600s and 1700s. www.luminarium.org/renlit/eliza.htm www.elizabethi.org/uk ACTIVITIES 1 Say if the following statements about Text 1 are true or false and correct the false ones. T F a. Elizabeth ascended the throne immediately after her father s death. b. She wanted a peaceful country. c. She got married because she wanted to set up a profitable alliance. d. Her court was a typical Renaissance court where poets and artists were welcomed. e. When she died England lost all the supremacy on the sea.