Elizabeth I & Succession

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Problems of Marriage and Succession for Elizabeth I

The succession crisis dominated politics for decades. Elizabeth I remained unmarried and did not produce her heir.

Marriage and virginity

Over the decades, it became apparent that Elizabeth I would not marry.
She began to develop a reputation for being the 'Virgin Queen'.
It was commonly said that her impregnable body represented an impregnable country.

Bond of Association

In 1583, Cecil established the Bond of Association.
This was in response to the Throckmorton Plot (a plot to assassinate the Queen).
The Bond of Association was written in case the Queen was murdered and had not chosen a successor.
- It gave its signatories the power to execute the Queen's killer.
- It gave the signatories power to choose the new monarch.
This had huge consequences because it meant the succession could be the prerogative of Parliament.

The Duke of Anjou

Elizabeth's last suitor was the Duke of Anjou, who courted the Queen in 1579.
The Duke of Anjou was a French Catholic.
- It is unknown if Elizabeth I wanted to marry the Duke.
- She did appear to like him.
- He gave her extravagant presents.
- She endearingly called him her 'little frog'.

Opposition to the Duke of Anjou

The Protestant faction in Elizabeth's Court did not want her to marry the Duke because he was a Catholic.
Cecil spread rumours about the Duke to make him fall out of favour with the Queen.
The Protestant faction applied considerable pressure on Elizabeth I, emphasising her as the Virgin Queen.
- An example of this pressure is seen in the 'Sieve Portraits'. The sieve symbolises virginity.

Not Naming a Successor

Elizabeth's decision to not name a successor was deliberate. It was a tool to keep her in power.

Royal prerogative

Over the years, Parliament repeatedly pressured Elizabeth I to name a successor.
But Elizabeth believed that they did not have the right to tell her what to do.
She used her royal prerogative (privilege) and forbade them from discussing the matter.

Not naming a successor

Elizabeth I's decision not to name a successor was strategic.
With no clear successor, England could fall into civil war.
- This quote from Cecil shows the paranoia that the succession crisis caused:
- 'If God should take her Majestie, the succession being not established, I know not what shall become of my self, my wife, my children, landes, goodes, friendes, or cuntrie, for in truth noe man doth know what'.

Naming a successor

Elizabeth I faced many plots to assassinate her.
If Elizabeth I did name a successor, people could be encouraged to overthrow her in favour of her named successor.
So the lack of a named successor ensured Elizabeth I's survival as the monarch.

Bond of Association

Cecil set up a plan just in case Elizabeth I was assassinated. This was important because it rested on England being a republic (being without a monarch).

The Throckmorton Plot

The Throckmorton Plot in 1583 was a plot to assassinate Elizabeth I accompanied by the invasion of England by the Duke of Guise.
This plot terrified Elizabeth I's closest ministers and they wanted to have a backup plan in case she was killed.

The Bond of Association

In 1583, Cecil established the Bond of Association.
The Bond of Association was written in case the Queen was murdered and had not chosen a successor.
- It gave its signatories the power to execute the Queen's killer.
- It gave the signatories the power to choose the new monarch.

Implications of the Bond of Association

Historians such as Lake have emphasised the far-reaching implications of the Bond of Association.
Cecil essentially planned a situation where there would be no monarch: a republic.
Cecil wanted to give a select group of politicians the authority to choose the future monarch. This was unprecedented as usually, the ability to choose the line of succession was a royal prerogative.

Historical assessment

Historian Patrick Collinson (2011) argues that: 'The overwhelming imperative [message] in the documents appears to be to substitute [replace] a rational process for the blind arbitrament of the sword [random violence], it being all but assumed that civil war will otherwise follow the queen’s death.'
- Collinson (2011) shows how terrified contemporaries were of civil war. One imagined it would be “hell it selfe, every man by force defendinge his owen, all kynd of owtragious Ryott and villanye”

1Consolidation of the Tudor Dynasty 1485-1547

1.1Henry VII 1485-1509

1.1.1Henry VII's Consolidation of Power

1.1.2Henry VII & Succession

1.1.3Henry VII's Councils & Parliament

1.1.4End of Topic Test - Henry VII Part 1

1.1.5Henry VII & Justice, Finance & Policies

1.1.6Henry VII's Relationship with Foreign Powers

1.1.7Henry VII & Society

1.1.8End of Topic Test - Henry VII Part 2

1.1.9Henry VII & Regional Issues

1.1.10Henry VII & Economic Development

1.1.11Henry VII & Cultural Development

1.1.12End of Topic Test - Henry VII Part 3

1.2Henry VIII 1509-1547

1.2.1Henry VIII's Consolidation of Power

1.2.2Henry VIII & His Government

1.2.3Henry VIII & His Government 2

1.2.4End of Topic Test - Henry VIII Part 1

1.2.5Henry VIII & Succession

1.2.6Henry VIII's Relationship with Foreign Powers

1.2.7Henry VIII & Society

1.2.8End of Topic Test -Henry VIII Part 2

1.2.9Henry VIII & Society 2

1.2.10Henry VIII & Economic Development

1.2.11Henry VIII & Religion

1.2.12End of Topic Test - Henry VIII Part 3

2England: Turmoil & Triumph 1547-1603

2.1Instability & Consolidation 1547-1563

2.1.1Edward VI, Somerset & Northumberland

2.1.2Edward VI & Authority

2.1.3Edward VI & Relations with Foreign Powers

2.1.4End of Topic Test - Edward VI Part 1

2.1.5Edward VI & Rebellions

2.1.6Social Impact of Religious & Economic Changes

2.1.7Edward VI & Cultural Developments

2.1.8End of Topic Test - Edward VI Part 2

2.1.9Mary I & Her Rule

2.1.10Mary I & Relations with Foreign Powers

2.1.11The Social Impact of Religious & Economic Change

2.1.12End of Topic Test - Mary Part 1

2.1.13Elizabeth I & Her Rule

2.1.14Elizabeth I & Relations With Foreign Powers

2.1.15Impact of Economic, Social & Religious Change

2.1.16End of Topic Test - Elizabeth I Part 1

2.2The Triumph of Elizabeth 1563-1603

2.2.1Elizabeth I & Court

2.2.2Elizabeth & Government

2.2.3Elizabeth I & Succession

2.2.4End of Topic Test - Elizabeth I Part 2

2.2.5Mary Queen of Scots

2.2.6Relations with Spain

2.2.7End of Topic Test - Elizabeth I Part 3

2.2.8Elizabeth I & Society

2.2.9Elizabeth I & Rebellion

2.2.10Elizabeth & Economic Development

2.2.11End of Topic Test - Elizabeth I Part 4

2.2.12Elizabeth I & Religious Developments

2.2.13The English Renaissance

2.2.14Elizabeth's Last Years

2.2.15End of Topic Test - Elizabeth I Part 5

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