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Queen Elizabeth I

Queen Elizabeth I

Elizabeth I (September 7, 1533–March 24, 1603) was Queen of England and Queen of Ireland from November 17, 1558 until her death. Sometimes referred to as The Virgin Queen or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth I was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty, having succeeded her half-sister, Mary I. She reigned during a period of great religious turmoil in English history.

Elizabeth's reign is referred to as the Elizabethan era or the Golden Age and was marked by many changes in English culture. William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, and Ben Jonson all flourished during this era. In addition, Francis Drake became the first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe; Francis Bacon laid out his philosophical and political views; and English colonisation of North America took place under Sir Walter Raleigh and Sir Humphrey Gilbert. Elizabeth was a short-tempered and sometimes indecisive ruler. This last quality, viewed with impatience by her counsellors, often saved her from political and marital misalliances. Like her father Henry VIII, she was a writer and poet. She granted Royal Charters to several famous organizations, including Trinity College, Dublin (1592) and the British East India Company (1600).

The reign was marked by prudence in the granting of honours and dignities. Only eight peerage dignities—one earldom and seven baronies in the Peerage of England, and one barony in the Peerage of Ireland—were created during Elizabeth's reign. Elizabeth also reduced the number of Privy Counsellors from thirty-nine to nineteen, and later to fourteen.

Virginia, an English colony in North America and afterwards a member of the United States, was named after Elizabeth I, the "Virgin Queen".

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