Elizabeth: The View from the Throne

While the succession has been discussed in various ways in the modern histography, Elizabeth herself appears as a strangely shadowy figure. This chapter seeks to return Elizabeth to the centre of the debate, one which she refused to relinquish control of for her entire reign, by analysing her poems, correspondence with James VI of Scotland and her speeches. The consideration of Elizabeth’s writing reveals her views on her role as England’s monarch and can be read as her treatise of kingship, rather than queenship which is more common in modern scholarship. While her views on kingship were not necessarily unique for the time, her views on her role as expressed in her writings have not previously been compiled. This analysis outlines how Elizabeth understood the role and responsibilities of monarchy, the struggles she had with the nature of kingship, and her unease with the demands for an established succession.