The Last Decade of Elizabeth I

An ageing regime: Paul E.J. Hammer looks at Elizabeth I and her government in the 1590s.

When the Spanish ambassador to England reported to his master in December 1558 about Queen Elizabeth and her newly established government, he lamented that ‘the kingdom is entirely in the hands of young folks, heretics and traitors’. By the 1590s, the situation had changed radically. Although the Spanish still believed that Elizabeth’s Protestant regime comprised heretics and traitors, England was no longer in the hands of ‘young folks’. Indeed, in the eyes of men and women who were born in the 1560s and ’70s, Elizabeth’s government now felt more like a gerontocracy, run almost entirely by grey-beards and presided over by an aged queen whose continuing hold on life and power seemed both remarkable and disconcerting.

To continue reading this article you will need to purchase access to the online archive.

Buy Online Access  Buy Print & Archive Subscription

If you have already purchased access, or are a print & archive subscriber, please ensure you are logged in.

Please email digital@historytoday.com if you have any problems.