Elizabeth: not a virgin?

Originally posted by Toltec Back in those days someone who married a queen did become a king and ruler. No-one in England fancied Dudley as a king, so her council did their best to stop it.

Elizabeth's sister, Queen Mary, made an unpopular marriage to Philip,King of Naples (and later of Spain). They only married on proviso that Philip was styled King of England for only as long as the marriage lasted, and his power and benefits were heavily curtailed by law so that he couldn't drain English resources for his own ends.

Phillip didn't like this, and his claims to England after Mary died led to the Spanish Armada of 1588. Perhaps if Mary had had surviving children by him, then he might well have been King of England longer, but I feel if Elizabeth had wanted to marry she could have made similar provisos to retain her power.

But perhaps her sister's experience just put her off?

What about Matilda, Lady of the English and Empress? She was very nearly crowned in 1141, so would her husband have been Geoffrey, King of England (he was Duke of Normandy due to their marriage)? Did anyone ever call him or predict him as King of England?

Edited by Sidney - 05-Sep-2012 at 13:05

Mary queen of Scots also had similar problems, she wanted to keep power after she married, but her husband wanted power for himself. With William and Mary, William held all the power strings, though this was limited by parliament. Anne's husband George was probably the first true prince consort. England was always a bit unusual as it had more of a tradition of female leaders as well as a powerful parliament that liked to limit royal power, on mainland Europe it was much harder for women. Margaret of Denmark  for example, held power through her son and later avoided marriage as the government intended to transfer all power to her husband.

Edited by Toltec - 05-Sep-2012 at 14:00

Originally posted by Sidney Originally posted by Toltec Back in those days someone who married a queen did become a king and ruler. No-one in England fancied Dudley as a king, so her council did their best to stop it. Elizabeth's sister, Queen Mary, made an unpopular marriage to Philip,King of Naples (and later of Spain). They only married on proviso that Philip was styled King of England for only as long as the marriage lasted, and his power and benefits were heavily curtailed by law so that he couldn't drain English resources for his own ends. Phillip didn't like this, and his claims to England after Mary died led to the Spanish Armada of 1588. Perhaps if Mary had had surviving children by him, then he might well have been King of England longer, but I feel if Elizabeth had wanted to marry she could have made similar provisos to retain her power. But perhaps her sister's experience just put her off? What about Matilda, Lady of the English and Empress? She was very nearly crowned in 1141, so would her husband have been Geoffrey, King of England (he was Duke of Normandy due to their marriage)? Did anyone ever call him or predict him as King of England?

I think her sisters experience was very important.

Originally posted by Kevinmeath [QUOTE=Sidney] [QUOTE=Toltec] If Mary had a son (Philips position was limited) who is he King of Spain or England?   Which is biggest and most powerful at the time? --Spain, England just becomes part of the Spanish Empire-- not popular with the English especially when you consider religion.   If Elizabeth marries had has a whole host of problems-- if she doesn't produce an heir it also creates a whole host of problems.

Didn't Philip what to marry Elzabeth? Then as younger and mre nubile at tis time she would most probably have a kid and England wuld have sucked in the Spanish Empire.
Her never marriing and not having kids actuallu worked out well, because when james of Scotland inherited her England added Scotland and retained its primacy; which wouldn't have happened if she married say, Philip.

This is a BBC series on Elizabeth which can be found on youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_n0ZP43K7DA

http://www.elizabethfiles.com/q-a/was-elizabeth-i-a-virgin/