I am not sure
that the above answer is completely accurate. There was, of course, a woman ruler at the time of
Elizabeth's reign, but this was Mary Queen of Scots who was not trusted in England or Scotland;
in fact Mary was forced to flee Scotland ahead of a charge of involvement in the murder of her
married lover's wife. While in England, Elizabeth kept Mary under house arrest until Mary was
involved in a plot to overthrow Elizabeth, and was executed for it.
Furthermore, England had itself been ruled for five years by a previous Queen, Mary I,
who was Elizabeth's half sister. So the idea of a female ruler was not entirely new to the
people of England. Since Mary had no male heirs, it was commonly accepted and expected that
Elizabeth would succeed her.
Additionally, Elizabeth proved to be
exceptionally skillful at earning the respect and trust of the English people. While she
accepted Parliament's declaration that she was
supreme
governor of this realm in all things ecclesiastical and temporal
she would not accept the title of head of the church as her father, Henry VIII had
done. She rather tactfully stated that this right belonged to God alone. She made herself
visible to the common people quite often, and wore stunning attire when she did so. The one
exception was when the Spanish Armada threatened, at which point she appeared before her troops
dressed in full battle armor. The quote in the above post was actually made when she addressed
her troops in preparation for battle. Elizabeth also was a gifted speaker and made a number of
speeches to Parliament which were considered brilliant.
She wisely avoided
religious conflict by adopting a hybrid religious doctrine that allowed Catholics and Anglicans
to worship with some degree of comfiture. Her diplomacy and skill allowed her to rule for forty
five years. As she grew older, she once commented to her people
Though God has raised me high, yet this I count the glory of my
crown, that I have reigned with Your love€¦.Your prosperity has been my chief concern€¦.My heart
was never set on worldly goods, but only for my subjects good.
Her subjects took her at her word. It is no small wonder that she was often referred to
by the English people as "Gloriana."
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