Elizabethan England Topic Summaries

Elizabeth I’s background

GCSE > History > Edexcel > GCSE History: Elizabethan England (1558-1603) > Elizabeth’s accession > Elizabeth I’s background
Previous Module
Next Module

Key terms
  • Elizabeth was born in 1533 to Henry VIII and his second wife Anne Boleyn.
  • Her birth followed Henry’s break with the Roman Catholic Church in order to annul his first marriage to Catherine of Aragon.
  • Henry had expected a male heir, so Elizabeth’s birth was a disappointment and weakened Anne Boleyn’s position at court.
  • Anne Boleyn was executed in 1536 on charges of adultery, incest, and treason (though modern historians believe these were falsified by Henry VIII).
  • As a result, Elizabeth was declared illegitimate and removed from the line of succession. Henry VIII later restored her place in the succession in 1544, though her legitimacy remained politically controversial.
  • Elizabeth had two half-siblings:
    • Edward VI:
      • Son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, who ruled from 1547 to 1553 as a Protestant king.
      • He was ahead of his other half-siblings despite being the youngest because of the primogeniture rules that favoured male heirs, and because Henry VIII declared his two daughters illegitimate at various points.
      • Under Edward VI, England became firmly Protestant, shaping Elizabeth’s religious outlook.
      • Edward VI died at age 15, so Elizabeth’s older sister Mary I took the throne.
    • Mary I:
      • Daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, who ruled from 1553 to 1558 as a Catholic queen.
      • Under Mary I, Catholicism was restored, and Elizabeth became a political threat due to her Protestant associations.
      • In 1554, Mary had Elizabeth imprisoned, suspecting her of plotting to overthrow her. However, Mary had no heirs so reluctantly declared Elizabeth her successor before dying in 1558.
  • Elizabeth became Queen in November 1558 after the death of her half-sister Mary I due to illness.

Unlock Elizabeth I’s background

Subscribe to SnapRevise+ to get immediate access to the rest of this resource.

Premium accounts get immediate access to this resource.

Previous Module
Next Module