Life in Elizabethan England
Elizabeth’s reign is known as the Elizabethan era, famous for the flourishing of English drama, led by playwrights such as William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe. They portray Elizabeth as a short-tempered, sometimes uncertain ruler, who enjoyed more than her share of luck. Towards the end of her reign, a series of economic and military problems weakened her popularity. Elizabeth is acknowledged as a charismatic performer and a determined survivor, in an age when government was falling to pieces and limited and when monarchs in neighbouring countries faced internal problems that jeopardized their thrones. Such was the case with Elizabeth’s rival, Mary, Queen of Scots, who she imprisoned in 1568 and eventually had executed in 1587. After the short reigns of Elizabeth’s half-siblings, her 44 years on the throne provided welcome stability for the kingdom and helped form a sense of national identity.
Queen Elizabeth I
Elizabeth was born in Greenwich on 7 September 1533, the only daughter of Henry VIII and his second wife, Anne Boleyn. When Elizabeth was two, Anne was beheaded for adultery on the orders of Henry, and Elizabeth was exiled from court. Her childhood was difficult, although she received a thorough Protestant education.
In 1553, Elizabeth’s older half-sister Mary became queen. Mary was determined to re-establish Catholicism in England and viewed the Protestant Elizabeth as a direct threat, briefly imprisoning her in the Tower of London. When Elizabeth succeeded to the throne in 1558 one of her priorities was to return England to the Protestant faith and one of her greatest legacies was to establish and secure an English form of Protestantism. Elizabeth’s reign also saw England significantly expand its trade overseas while at home, Shakespeare, Spenser and Marlowe were at the forefront of a renaissance in poetry and drama.
Tudor food
The Tudors are famous for their rich food, over eating and for their three hour meals, although it was only the rich nobility that could afford such luxury. Their food was often highly spiced and seasoned, both to show wealth, and to disguise the fact that the meat was often of very poor quality. Most people ate a great deal of meat, which was preserved by salting, smoking or drying. It was quite an unhealthy diet especially for the rich people as vegetables were not popular; the rich people thought that vegetables were suitable only for the poor people to eat. A lot of salt was used in preserving the huge amount of meat that they ate. Many Tudors lacked vitamin A, found in green vegetables, milk, butter and eggs, which often led to problems in later life. Rich people despised these foods because the lower classes ate them.
Theaters
Watching plays became very popular during the Tudor times. This popularity was helped by the rise of great playwrights such as William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe as well as the building of the Globe theater in London. By 1595, 15,000 people a week were watching plays in London. It was during Elizabeth’s reign that the first real theaters were built in England. Before theaters were built actors traveled from town to town and performed in the streets or outside inns. The Globe Theater was built on the River Thames. It was circular and had seats around the walls which cost two pence or three pence if you had a cushion. The seats around the wall enabled people to watch the play and kept them out of the worst of the weather. Most theaters had no roof. The cheapest places were in the so-called pit. This was the area in front of the stage. People would pay about a penny to see the play and they stood for the duration of the play.
React!