Elizabeth I of England

Elizabeth I (7 September, 1533 – 24 March, 1603 ) was Queen of England and Queen of Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes referred to as The Virgin Queen (since she never married), Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth I was the fifth and final monarch of the Tudor dynasty, having succeeded her half-sister, Mary I. She reigned during a period of turmoil in English history.

Legacy

Elizabeth proved to be one of the most popular monarchs in English or British history. She placed seventh in the 100 Greatest Britons poll, which was conducted by the British Broadcasting Corporation in 2002, outranking all other British monarchs. In 2005, in the History Channel documentary Britain's Greatest Monarch, a group of historians and commentators analysed twelve British monarchshttp://www.thehistorychannel.co.uk/site/tv_guide/full_details/British_history/programme_2652.php and gave them overall marks out of 60 for greatness (they were marked out of 10 in six categories, such as military prowess and legacy). Elizabeth I was the winner, with 48 points.

Related Topics:
100 Greatest Britons - British Broadcasting Corporation - 2002 - 2005 - History Channel - Britain's Greatest Monarch

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Many historians, however, have downplayed Elizabeth's reign. Though England achieved military victories, Elizabeth was far less pivotal than other monarchs, such as Henry V. Elizabeth has also been criticised for supporting the English slave trade, and her problems in Ireland also serve to blemish her record.

Related Topics:
Henry V - Slave trade

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But Elizabeth was a genuinely successful monarch, helping steady the nation even after inheriting an enormous national debt from her sister Mary. Under her, England managed to avoid a crippling Spanish invasion. Elizabeth was also able to prevent the outbreak of a religious civil war on English soil despite inheriting probably the greatest potential for such a war in the country's history. In addition, all that she did was often done in the face of an all-male council and parliament which was often openly hostile to the idea of a female monarch.

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Her achievements, however, were greatly magnified after her death. She was depicted in later years as a great defender of Protestantism in Europe. In reality, however, she often wavered before coming to the aid of her Protestant allies. As Sir Walter said in relation to her foreign policy, "Her Majesty did all by halves."

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Many artists glorified Elizabeth I and masked her age in their portraits. Elizabeth was often painted in rich and stylised gowns. Elizabeth is often shown holding a sieve, a symbol of virginity.

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Benjamin Britten wrote an opera, Gloriana, about the relationship between Elizabeth and Lord Essex, composed for the coronation of Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.

Related Topics:
Benjamin Britten - Gloriana - Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom

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Notable portrayals of Queen Elizabeth in film and television have been plentiful; in fact, she is the most filmed British monarch. Those who have made an impression in the role of Elizabeth in the last 100 years, have included:

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• French actress Sarah Bernhardt in Les Amours de la reine Élisabeth (1912), * * Florence Eldridge in Mary of Scotland (1936),
• Flora Robson in Fire Over England (1937) and The Lion Has Wings (1939),
• Bette Davis in The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939) and The Virgin Queen (1955) and
• Jean Simmons in Young Bess (1953).

In recent years, the story of Elizabeth has been filmed more than ever.

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• In 1998 Australian actress Cate Blanchett made her big break and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for her critically acclaimed performance in Elizabeth.
• Also in 1998 British actress Judi Dench won an Academy Award for her supporting performance as the Virgin Queen in the popular Shakespeare in Love, a performance of only eleven minutes.
• In television, the actresses Glenda Jackson (in the BBC drama series Elizabeth R in 1971, and the 1972 historical film Mary Queen of Scots), and
• Miranda Richardson (in the 1986 classic BBC sitcom Blackadder — a comic interpretation of Elizabeth known fondly as Queenie) both played the role with consummate talent, creating memorable (if wildly contrasting) portraits of Elizabeth I.
• Helen Mirren gave a critically acclaimed performance in a Channel 4/HBO co-production in 2005.

There have been many novels written about Elizabeth. They include: I, Elizabeth by Rosalind Miles, The Virgin's Lover and The Queen's Fool by Philippa Gregory, Queen of This Realm by Jean Plaidy, and Virgin: Prelude to the Throne by Robin Maxwell. Elizabeth's story is spliced with her mother's in Maxwell's book The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn. Maxwell also writes of a fictional child Elizabeth and Dudley had in The Queen's Bastard. Decades ago, Margaret Irwin produced a trilogy based on Elizabeth's youth: Young Bess, Elizabeth, Captive Princess and Elizabeth and the Prince of Spain. Lytton Strachey's "Elizabeth and Essex", is a reliable romantic reconstruction of the Queen's last political amour. Most fictional accounts of the reign "share too much" of the authors' private enthusiasms.

Related Topics:
Rosalind Miles - Philippa Gregory - Jean Plaidy - Robin Maxwell - Margaret Irwin

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In children's and young adults' fiction, Elizabeth's story is told in Elizabeth I, Red Rose of the House of Tudor, a book in the Royal Diaries series published by Scholastic, and also in Beware, Princess Elizabeth by Carolyn Meyer.

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