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Year 8

Elizabeth I and the succession: The Virgin Queen

I can explain why Elizabeth never married.

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New
New
Year 8

Elizabeth I and the succession: The Virgin Queen

I can explain why Elizabeth never married.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Elizabeth succeeded her sister Mary I to the throne.
  2. Elizabeth had foreign suitors in marriage such as Philip II of Spain .
  3. There were rumours of Elizabeth loving the Earl of Leicester.
  4. By 1580 Elizabeth used propaganda to present herself as the 'Virgin Queen' after rejecting all suitors.
  5. Elizabeth's successor was the Scottish king James VI of Scotland and I of England.

Common misconception

Elizabeth was the first female ruler of England.

There were female rulers before Elizabeth, including her sister Mary I immediately preceeding her.

Keywords

  • Succession - the succession is the process of inheriting a title, such as becoming the king or queen

  • Suitor - a suitor is someone who pursues a relationship with a particular person in an attempt to marry them

  • Propaganda - propaganda is communication such as paintings used to influence or persuade an audience of a certain idea

Get students to consider how many of Elizabeth's problems stemmed from the issue of her gender by asking them how each problem would change or not if she was a king. You could compare her issues to issues faced by former kings.
Teacher tip

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
How many wives did Henry VIII have?
Correct Answer: Six, six, 6
Q2.
What is a 'monarch'?
a type of weapon
a type of archway
Correct answer: a ruler of a country
a religious building
Q3.
Match the key term to its definition.
Correct Answer:Catholic,a Christian who considers the Pope their religious leader

a Christian who considers the Pope their religious leader

Correct Answer:Protestant,a Christian who rejects the authority of the Pope

a Christian who rejects the authority of the Pope

Correct Answer:Pope,the leader of Catholicism and the Bishop of Rome

the leader of Catholicism and the Bishop of Rome

Q4.
Place the Tudor monarchs in the order in which they ruled.
1 - Henry VII
2 - Henry VIII
3 - Edward VI
4 - Mary I
5 - Elizabeth I
Q5.
What was the Reformation?
The time when England and Scotland joined together
The time when the royal family regained control of England
The time when England lost its land in France and France became united
Correct answer: The time when the English Church broke away from the Catholic Church
Q6.
Is a portrait a primary or secondary source?
Correct Answer: Primary, primary

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
In what year did Elizabeth I become queen?
1509
1547
1553
Correct answer: 1558
Q2.
Elizabeth followed Catholicism when Mary was queen. What did she follow when she was queen herself?
Correct Answer: Protestantism, Protestant, Church of England, Anglican
Q3.
Which of Elizabeth's suitors was previously married to her sister Mary I?
Robert Devereux
Robert Dudley
William of Orange
Correct answer: Philip II of Spain
Q4.
Why did Elizabeth not want to get married?
she tried but she kept getting rejected
Correct answer: she didn't want to give up her own power to whoever she would have married
she wasn't allowed to
Q5.
What is the term given to communications such as paintings used to influence or persuade an audience of a certain idea?
Correct Answer: Propaganda, propaganda
Q6.
Who became king of England after Elizabeth died in 1603?
Correct answer: James VI of Scotland
Eric XIV of Sweden
Philip II of Spain
Henry IV of France

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