Elizabeth I, revered by many as the greatest of the Tudor monarchs, was an unlikely queen. With the benefits (or myopia) of hindsight we know that Elizabeth reigned longer than any other Tudor monarch but her journey to the crown of England was long, dangerous and by no means certain. During the reigns of her half-siblings she found her position, and indeed her life, threatened through implication in two dangerous plots.
Elizabeth spent much of the first 25 years of her life at Hatfield House, including periods under house arrest during the 'Thomas Seymour scandal' in the reign of her brother Edward VI and again on the orders of her sister, Mary I, following the 'Wyatt Rebellion' during which she also spent time in the Tower of London.
She had survived implication in one persons rebellious plot but another would follow during the following reign, that of her half-sister Mary I. Elizabeth, as a daughter of Henry VIII and as a protestant, was an obvious figurehead for any rebellion against the catholic Mary and her unpopular Spanish husband, Philip II of Spain. Her threat was too real to be ignored and Mary took action to keep a very close eye on Elizabeth. Elizabeth was arrested in 1554 after being implicated in a plot to overthrow her sister Queen Mary in protest to her Spanish marriage, known as the Wyatt rebellion. Elizabeth was brought to the Tower. Lady Jane Grey had recently been executed for fear that she was providing a figurehead for such uprisings. Elizabeth arrived by river boat and ascended the slippery steps from 'Traitor's Gate''. As she stood at the top of the stairs she pronounced:
Her words had great effect on the Yeoman warders present who fell to their knees and swore "God preserve Your Grace!". Elizabeth may have presented herself eloquently but she was a woman fearing for her life. She spent eight terrifying weeks in the Bell Tower not knowing her sister's plans for her and fearing execution. Her father, Henry VIII, had sent her mother to the executioners block on Tower Green, not far from where Elizabeth was being kept. She was interrogated but she was clever and despite the best efforts of her interrogators they could not get her to admit to anything incriminating. Without evidence of any involvement in the plot, Mary could not have her executed.
Her experiences as a prisoner in the Tower had a lasting impact on Elizabeth, even after becoming Queen she would refer back to her time in the Tower.
Elizabeth's journey to the crown of England had been long and dangerous but it was no less dangerous once she became Queen. She was a protestant queen in a catholic Europe and many still wished for a return to catholicism in England. But that's a blog for another day…
Join me and Claire Ridgway from The Tudor Society on an unforgettable tour walking in the footsteps of Elizabeth I.
24th - 29th July 2021
Elizabeth I, arguably the most successful Tudor monarch, was the leader of a Golden Age in England.
Visiting key places, with top historians, we will tell the story of the life & times of Elizabeth. Covering her relationship with Robert Dudley the man she called her “eyes”, her patronage of the arts all the way from her birth in 1533, her accession to the throne in 1558 through to her death in 1603 and the end of the Tudor dynasty.
If you are an Elizabeth I admirer then this is the tour you've been waiting for!
