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Achievements of Queeen Elizabeth I Part1
Queen Elizabeth I was born in 1533 at the Greenwich Palace as the daughter to King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. However, within a couple of years of Elizabeth's birth her mother, Anne was executed and she was declared as an illegitimate child. After the death of Henry VIII, Edward VI succeeded him as the King of England.
Edward however died at an early age due to his illness. With the death of Edward, Mary I was made the Queen with the aid of her Catholic supporters. Elizabeth became the Queen of England in 1558, after the death of Mary I and ruled for 44 years.
Elizabeth was the last monarch belonging to the Tudor dynasty. With the death of Elizabeth I, ended the long lasting Tudor's reign who had strived for so long for the betterment of England. Elizabeth I was also known as the Virgin Queen.
Elizabeth I became the Queen of England when she was 25 years old and was crowned at Westminster Abbey. Elizabeth I began her journey as Queen with the help of trusted advisers like William Cecil, Baron Burghley. After becoming the Queen, the top priority of Elizabeth was to extend her support to an English Protestant church.
She later on became the Supreme Governor of the said church. Elizabeth was regarded as a moderate ruler as compared to her father, brother and sister. 'Video et taceo' is said to be one of her motto which means 'I see, and say nothing'.
One of the hurdles that Elizabeth was exposed to immediately after becoming the Queen was the return of her half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots. Mary had come to England to seek Elizabeth's help. Elizabeth sensed the danger that Mary brought with her, and so Mary was falsely implicated on the charges of plotting to kill Elizabeth.
The main evidence relied upon was the apparent letter sent by Mary to Bothwell which mentioned the killing. However, Mary firmly denied that she had ever written that letter. Even the court found no evidence directing that Mary was involved in it. After the trial she was sent back to the Tower. Elizabeth's Government had taken the decision of executing Mary without the knowledge of Elizabeth. On coming to know of Mary's death, Elizabeth accused the Privy Councillor William Davison of obtaining her sign by wrongly stating the facts of the grant.
One of the major achievements that can be accredited to Queen Elizabeth is the victory of the English troops over the powerful Spanish troops in the famous battle of Spanish Armada. The war between England and Spain arose after the execution of Mary I who was then prior to her death imprisoned by Elizabeth in the Tower of London.
After Mary's death, her husband, King Philip of Spain intended to marry Queen Elizabeth I to establish his power and control over England and encourage Catholic movements. However, his plan was spoilt when Elizabeth refused to marry him. He thus declared a war against England stating that he by defeating England would avenge the death of his wife.
It was in 1558 that England defeated Spain in the battle which lasted for months. It was remarkable on the part of England to defeat Spain as it had grown powerful under the control of King Philip. Another reason for the surprise victory of England was that England in comparison to Spain was a small country.
After this victory, the faith of the people in Elizabeth further deepened and she was regarded as the best ruler England had in many years. The Spanish Armada is the greatest victory in the English history. Queen Elizabeth is also famous for the successful raid of Cadiz in 1587 and 1596.
Once Elizabeth ascended the throne, it was assumed that one day she would marry and have children who would succeed her. However, Elizabeth never married and so was also known as 'The Virgin Queen'. The exact reason for her not marrying was not clear but according to some theories that evolved on this point suggest that since Elizabeth had witnessed how he father treated his wife's , it probably played a major role in her decision about marriage.
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