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Also known as Gloriana, Good Queen Bess and The Virgin Queen, Elizabeth was shrewd, bold and irrepressible. Her birth to the indomitable King Henry VIII and his second wife, Anne Boleyn, was a disappointment, for both sought a son; but their daughter Elizabeth would prove to be a fine monarch, arguably the best of the Tudor line.
Queen Elizabeth kept England together through one of its most turbulent periods in history, allowing it not only to survive but to flourish as a major European power. She commanded the loyalty and admiration of her subjects throughout her reign, and remained a beloved figure long after her death.
Elizabeth's long reign was so remarkable that it is often marked as a distinct period of English history: Elizabethan England, or the Elizabethan Age. This era saw the height of the English Renaissance of Letters and is sometimes (though not always!) considered the end of the Middle Ages in Britain.
Important Dates
Born: Sept. 7, 1533
Succeeded her sister as queen: Nov. 17, 1558
Crowned: Jan. 15, 1559
Excommunicated: Feb. 25, 1570
Died: March 24, 1603
Dynastic Table
Medieval & Renaissance Monarchs of England
Use this table to see the progression of Kings and Queens from Egbert of Wessex in the ninth century to Elizabeth I in the sixteenth. Hyperlinks lead to entries in Who's Who.
From Your Guide
The Liz Quiz
Test your knowledge of this fascinating queen in this quick 10-question quiz.
Image
Queen Elizabeth I
This public-domain graphic from the 1906 publication Makers of History is free for your use. Part of the Medieval and Renaissance History Portrait Gallery here at this site.
At About
Women's Voices: Elizabeth I of England
Quotations from the queen, presented by Women's History Guide Jone Johnson Lewis.
On the Web
In Print
- Biographies
- Primary Sources
- Elizabethan England
- Courtship, Matrimony, and Men
- Politics, Government, and International Relations
- Portraits, Representation, and Image
- Religious Matters
- Topics of Interest
- For Younger Readers
- Fiction
On Video
Related Resources
Medieval Britain
A multilevel index of sites that focus on general British medieval history, people, places, events, documents, and more.Women and Gender Issues
A multilevel index to online biographies, general introductions and in-depth analyses of women in all walks of life.
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