Queen Elizabeth I

Elizabeth was the daugther of Henry VIII, and the second female monarch in English history. She lived from 1533 to 1603, and reigned as Queen for 45 years. Emerging from a difficult childhood, which included the death and beheading of her mother Anne Boleyn by her father, Elizabeth succeeded her sister Mary for the English throne. She chose her councilors meticulously and kept many of them with her throughout her life. Sir Robert Dudley, later the Earl of Leicester, was her undisputed favorite, and many historians speculate she may have been in love with him. However, Elizabeth maintained her image as the Virgin Queen, remaining symbolically single her entire life and claiming she was married to England. Though she never actually married, she did use her potential marriage as a political tactic to keep her enemies at bay. Catholic Europe was a constant threat, and the Queen kept England...