Britain - Historical Biography - Rulers & Royal Families, Political & Legal Figures - Women's Biography, Historical Figures - Women's Biography, 1485-1603 - Tudor Dynasty - British History, Britain - Historical Biography - 1485-1603 (Tudor Dynasty)

Elizabeth I of England

Name: Elizabeth I of England
Author: Kerrily Sapet
ISBN: 9781931798709

by Kerrily Sapet

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Synopsis

Discusses the life of Queen Elizabeth I, from her birth to Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn in 1533, her imprisonment by her half-sister, through her reign as one of England's more respected monarchs, to her death in 1603. The birth of Elizabeth Tudor, the future queen of England, was a bitter disappointment to her parents. Her father, Henry VIII, had all but moved heaven and earth to marry her mother after his first wife failed to produce a male heir. Henry had Elizabeth's mother executed when she failed to bear more children and eventually married four more times. He finally got a son, but Edward was sickly and died soon after becoming king. After surviving the bloody reign of her older half sister, who tried and failed to lead England back into the Catholic fold, Elizabeth became queen at age twenty-five. Elizabeth drew on the survival skills she learned as a child to guide her beloved country during dangerous times. When she came to power in 1558, England was nearly broke, religious conflict divided her people, and powerful Spain threatened invasion. She man- aged to restore the treasury and to keep the country from sinking into religious violence. She held off the Spanish by using wily diplomacy, including the pro- mise of a marriage to King Philip II. In 1588, the English navy sent the supposedly invincible Spanish Armada to a crushing defeat. At home, Elizabeth was often the focus of intrigue from those wanting to seize the throne. She was a brilliant and riveting ruler who imprinted her personality on an age of develop- ment in art and culture and rapid political and economic change. Elizabeth I of England brings this fascinating queen and her exciting reign to life.

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Editorials

Children's Literature

A well-written biography of Queen Elizabeth I, filled with historical facts, pictures, a timeline, and source list, this title is an excellent survey of England in the 1500s. It is easy to read and never boring. Elizabeth I and her contemporaries were an interesting group, with plenty of deaths by unusual methods, scandals, and war to keep the reader turning the pages. There are enough tidbits and odd facts about the life of the royals, and Elizabeth I to provide the reader with a good historical grounding in this period. Descriptions of London in the late 1500s—the clothing worn, the inability to preserve food, and what it was like to travel—all add up to a picture of an England that is very different from the one we know today. That Elizabeth I traveled with six hundred wagons and 2,400 packhorses when she went forth from London during the summer to see the rest of the country is so startling that the reader will be able to make a clear comparison between Queen Elizabeth I and Queen Elizabeth II. There is an abundance of reproductions of historical portraits and paintings showing the city of London and its people during this time. These pictures show not only the faces of the people at court, but also the clothing they wore and the furniture they used. There is a picture of the beheading of Mary Queen of Scots and one of Elizabeth I on her deathbed. 2005, Morgan Reynolds Publishing, Ages 10 to 16.
—Naomi Williamson

School Library Journal

Gr 8 Up-The complex life of Queen Elizabeth I is given a somewhat uneven treatment in this book. Her reign was full of religious strife, wars, negotiations and alliances, and treasonous plots to overthrow her. While the author does present introductory material, the discussions of background history, alliances, and European rulers are involved, and at times difficult to follow. A few black-and-white reproductions along with many color reproductions of period maps and paintings (including many portraits), appear throughout the volume.-Kristen Oravec, Cuyahoga County Public Library, Strongsville, OH Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.