Queen Elizabeth's Mistakes

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Elizabeth's relationship with Mary allowed her to be in a position where she could observe the manner and method of Mary's behavior as monarch and pinpoint her mistakes. In doing so, Elizabeth learned to take an approach to conducting herself as monarch that was much different from her sister's and, thus, more successful. One of Mary's mistakes that Elizabeth had taken note of was her unnecessary tie with foreign countries like Spain. Though Mary's connection with the Spanish was for ''religious, political, and reproductive'' purposes (27)1, her attempts were futile especially with regard to marriage and pregnancy. Since marriage was expected of a woman, it wasn't the act of marrying, itself, that caused controversy among the English but rather…show more content…
Other's reaction to the news of marriage did not bode well for Mary who was already in an unpopular position as a female ruler. They viewed her decision as unfavorable and potentially detrimental as she was basically handing over the autonomy of England. Her allegiance to her own country was further questioned when she did not wear an English wedding…show more content…
Thus, she never married, and the Tudor line ended with her. While she was aware that a marriage outside England was out of the question, she had no desire to marry within the land either. Because of wars, many of the suitors of nobility and high status were wiped out. However, it may be that the decision was not entirely based on what she saw Mary go through. In fact, when she was 8, Elizabeth witnessed the execution of her stepmother on account of adultery. She then reportedly told her friend, Robert Dudley, that she would never marry. Though an unconventional opinion, she revealed that she would prefer being a ''beggar-woman and single, far rather than queen and married.''4 On the other hand, she may not have wanted to hand over her power to her husband since men were the desired authority figures and it was expected of women to be dependent on their male counterparts. The Spanish ambassador in London, Count of Feria, also mentioned that ''She is determined to be governed by no one.'' It is also possible that she feared not being able to produce any children at all and be ridiculed for it like Mary had been by the Venetian ambassador. Though her final decision to remain unmarried caused a stir, it proved to be a wise

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