On This Day in Elizabethan History: Elizabeth I is Born

The birth announcement of the Princess Elizabeth, 1533. Photo from Let Them Grumble on Tumblr.

On this day in Elizabethan history in 1533, Princess Elizabeth Tudor was born at Greenwich Palace to King Henry VIII and his second wife, Queen Anne Boleyn. 

In our feature-length article on the birth of Elizabeth I, written last year, you can read about:

-The time and circumstances under which Elizabeth was likely conceived.

-Anne Boleyn's preparation for the birth of her child.

-Henry VIII's reaction to Elizabeth's gender, and the hasty readjustment of the pronouns used on the pre-written birth announcement!

-Elizabeth's christening

...and more!

Happy 481st Birthday, Queen Elizabeth I!

Elizabeth Tudor found her way into my life long ago as a child, and she continues to inspire me on a daily basis, for which I am eternally grateful.

I will continue to teach others about her and the importance of her legacy 

for the rest of my life.

On This Day in Elizabethan History: The Death of Elizabeth's "Eyes"

"His Last Letter"

  

"A personage so dear unto us."

-Queen Elizabeth describing the Earl of Leicester in a letter to the Earl of Shrewsbury in 1588, the year that he died.

 

 
On this day in Elizabethan history in 1588, Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester died. Queen Elizabeth I was inconsolable at the loss of her lifelong friend, the man whom she affectionatley called her "eyes". Whether their relationship was ever physically consummated or not is irrelevant; Leicester was the love of her life.

To learn about the Earl's last months with Queen Elizabeth, his final illness, and "His Last Letter", treasured by Queen Elizabeth until her own death in 1603, please view our feature-length article.