Seals were used on most documents in the past, to close them and to prove that the document really was from the person who sent it. Most seals had a picture of the owner and a motto or legend around the edge. It would usually show the type of job the owner did and contain information about their family.

However, a Great Seal was special - it belonged to the monarch and all important business that the monarch did had a Great Seal attached. If a document had this seal on it, it had the monarch’s ‘seal of approval’; it contained the monarch’s wishes or commands.

The Great Seal can reveal important clues about the way a monarch wished to be seen by their subjects and the responsibilities that they had. Elizabeth I, when she became Queen in 1558, wanted to create an image of herself that would impress her subjects. Are you impressed?

1. Can you find:

• mysterious hands holding up Elizabeth’s cape?
• a coat of arms?
• a Tudor Rose?
• the motto -'Elizabetha Dei Gracia Anglie Francie Et Hibernie Regina Fidei Defensor'?
• the orb and sceptre?
• a fleur de lys?
• a harp?
• a ruff?
• rays of light shining down on Elizabeth?

2. Which of the following words do you think Elizabeth would want people to associate with her:

• majestic?
• foolish?
• powerful?
• warrior?
• fair?
• cruel?
• unfeminine?
• weak?

3. The Tudor Rose was the emblem of the Tudor monarchs. Why do you think it is on Elizabeth’s seal?

4. A fleur-de-lys stands for France, and a Tudor Rose stands for England. Which country does the harp stand for?

5. What do you think the rays of light shining down on Elizabeth are meant to show us?

6. Elizabeth was head of the Church of England. Which part of the seal tells us this?

7. What things make Elizabeth look important?

8. How can you tell that this seal belongs to a monarch?

9. Fill in the table below to show what you found out about Tudor monarchs from this seal.

 10. Make your own seal for a person of your choice.

• The seal must tell us something about the person who it belongs to. What is their job? Where do they live? Are they important?
• Try to use emblems or symbols. If the seal belongs to a film star or an important scientist, how would you show this?
• You must also think of a motto to put on the seal.
• Remember to make a back and a front.
• Write about your seal, explaining what you have drawn - and why.

The Royal Seal of Approval

Elizabeth I

Born 1533

Reigned 1558 to 1603

Died 1603

Buried Westminster Abbey

Elizabeth became Queen in 1558. She was the youngest daughter of Henry VIII and his second wife, Anne Boleyn, and she was a Protestant. Some people thought that she was not the lawful queen because Henry VIII's marriage to her mother was not legal. Throughout Elizabeth’s reign there were plots to have her killed. She had to win the loyalty of her people and convince them that she was the right person to be ruler of England. This was not going to be easy.

Catholic vs Protestant

At the start of her reign there was a lot of unrest over religion. Most English people disliked the new Protestant services which her young brother Edward VI had forced on them. They were horrified when her half-sister Mary I burnt Protestants at the stake. How would Elizabeth change the religion of the country?

Elizabeth decided that the Protestant religion should be more moderate. She kept some of the old traditions and there was to be no persecution of Catholics. If Catholics refused to go to a Protestant church they had to pay a fine.

Marriage

Elizabeth was queen at a time when the job of ruling was traditionally done by men. Elizabeth had to convince her people that a woman could govern the country by herself. Everyone expected her to marry but she never did. She knew that if she chose an Englishman this would have caused jealousy among other English noblemen. On the other hand, if she married a foreigner he would have taken over as king and this would have caused even more trouble.

War

At the start of Elizabeth’s reign England was poor and weak, but by 1603 English ships had defeated the Spanish Armada and English merchants traded all over the world. The country was more peaceful and united than ever before. Elizabeth was one of the most popular and powerful monarchs. When she died in 1603 she left no children. Her cousin James VI of Scotland then took over.

For more Snapshots on the Tudors try:

What Happened at Kirk-O-Fields in 1567?

To find out more on the Tudors, you could go to your library and ask for:

• Andrew Langley The Tudors 1485-1603

Why not pay a visit to your library and ask for:

• Terry Deary The Prince of Rags and Patches
• Terry Deary The King of Blood Red and Gold

You can also visit some Tudor sites or museums. Your local Tourist Office will be able to tell you about other places in your area:

• Hampton Court near London
• Little Moreton Hall, Cheshire
• National Portrait Gallery, London
• Tudor Merchant’s House, Quay Hill, Tenby, Wales
• Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire

Elizabeth I: how successfully did she tackle the problems of her reign?