Elizabeth I was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Sometimes referred to as the Virgin Queen, Elizabeth was the last of the five monarchs of the House of Tudor.
In honor of her great-grandmothers, Elizabeth of York and Lady Elizabeth Howard, she was given the middle name “Elizabeth” at her Greenwich Palace birth on September 7, 1533.
She was Henry VIII’s second live-born child born out of wedlock. Henry VIII’s second wife, Anne Boleyn, was her mother. Elizabeth was born as the heir apparent to the throne of England.
The annulment of her mother’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon by Henry VIII meant that Mary, Mary’s older half-sister, was no longer a rightful heir to the throne.
Baptized on September 10, 1533, she was godmothered by Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, Henry Courtenay, First Marquess of Exeter; Elizabeth Stafford, Duchess of Norfolk; and the Dowager Marchioness of Dorset.
Her uncle George Boleyn, Viscount Rochford; John Hussey, 1st Baron Hussey of Sleaford; Lord Thomas Howard; and William Howard, 1st Baron Howard of Effingham carried a canopy over the newborn throughout the ceremony.
A few months after Catherine of Aragon’s death from natural reasons, Elizabeth’s mother was executed on 19 May 1536. Elizabeth was stripped of her throne because she was deemed to be an illegitimate child.
What did Elizabeth I Really Look Like?
Queen Elizabeth I of England spent the better part of her 45-year reign meticulously cultivating her public image. In fact, her imperial majesty has been pictured with a lithe physique, a smooth ivory complexion, and brilliant red hair that is adorned with exquisite jewels for approximately 500 years after her ascent to power.
