Queen Elizabeth I, an Absolutist

By John Richardson

G Block

Queen Elizabeth I displayed true power and strength during her reign, making her an absolute monarch to be reckoned with. She proved that everything isn’t always as it may seem; she was at first viewed as a small and week woman with a feint heart, but that idea of her quickly changed because of her self confidence and bold decisions. An absolute monarch is one that calls all the shots with not really any, or significantly less, input from others, compared to other governments. This requires self assurance which is what Queen Elisabeth possessed. If an absolute monarch is unsure of their self and holds back, then it either 1: makes their nation vulnerable to be taken over, and/or 2: makes it easy for other people to manipulate their decisions, and if the ruler isn't really calling the shots, then that defeats the purpose of an absolute monarch. For Elizabeth, that wasn’t the case. She stuck to her guns, and as a result, she lead England to success.

Queen Elizabeth was born in 1533, and her parents were Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. She never married or had kids. When she came to power in 1558, England was not exactly at its finest. The Catholics and Protestants were fighting and the royal treasury had been spent by Mary, Queen of Scots. On top of that, France posed a threat to England. Elizabeth gained custody over Mary in 1568. Mary sided with the Catholics and secretly tried to overthrow Elizabeth because of her pro-protestant beliefs. Each time she and the Catholics tried, they failed, and when Elizabeth found out, she ordered Mary to be executed in 1587. This shows that Elizabeth did not hesitate on taking down her enemies and keeping her pro-protestant stance, even though it was controversial to some people.

All throughout the 16th century, Spain dominated Europe with their army and their wealth. King Philip II, ruler of Spain, was concerned with the protestant rebels in The Netherlands. Spain wanted to keep Catholicism in place throughout Europe and the rebels posed a threat to that. Queen Elizabeth aided the rebels to stop Catholicism and allowed private english ships to attack Spanish ships. This is where the the tension with Spain and England began to grow and Philip II ordered and Armada to set sail towards England. It consisted of 130 ships, carrying 1,100 cannons, and 30,000 men. Queen Elizabeth faced a great challenge and she took it head on.

Queen Elizabeth showed people that she is'nt afraid to not hold back and defend her nation. King Philip II of Spain proposed to her and she declined. Then, Philip sent his armada to England to take it over. He wanted to cut England off from aiding the pro-protestant rebels in The Netherlands. Queen Elizabeth had no intent of holding back, and there was most likely some personal tension between Philip II and Elizabeth after she denied his marriage proposal. “I know I have but the body of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart of a king, and of a king of England, too; and think foul scorn that Parma or Spain, or any prince of Europe, should dare to invade the borders of my realms”. This quote is one of the best examples of how Queen Elizabeth I held her own. She states that her appearance may look weak but that she is just as, if not more, powerful and strong as a king, which back then, might of seemed surprising to people. She proved this by crushing King Philip II’s army in war. She not only defended her nation, but she caused England to emerge as the world’s most powerful naval force.

Queen Elizabeth I proved herself as a powerful absolute monarch. She did not hold back when it came to battle and that took people off guard because of her elegant appearance. She took a stand against Catholicism even though that was disliked by many. When Spain came to take over England to eliminate the pro-protestant ways, Queen Elizabeth stood strong and defeated King Philip the 2nd's daunting armada. Elizabeth was bold, self confident, and strategic which made her an incredible absolute monarch.

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