Glorious Facts About Queen Elizabeth I, The Virgin Queen
Schemer. Seducer. Tyrant? Queen Elizabeth I is one of the most famous—and notorious—monarchs of England, but few people know her dark history.
As the daughter of the equally infamous King Henry VIII and his executed queen Anne Boleyn, let’s just say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
Queen Elizabeth I Facts
Born Into Infamy
In 1533, Elizabeth was born into the biggest scandal of her time. Her mother, Anne Boleyn, had seduced her way into King Henry VIII’s bedroom and triggered his monumental divorce to Catherine of Aragon—you know, it was the scandal that started the English Reformation. But that was really just the beginning.
Game of Thrones
Not very many people can say that their own father executed their mother, but that’s exactly what happened to poor Elizabeth.
Anne Boleyn fell out of King Henry’s favor, and he beheaded his queen on May 19, 1536, when Elizabeth was just over two years old. If this sounds like a recipe for disaster…well, it kind of was.
The Virgin Queen
Today, Elizabeth is famous as “The Virgin Queen” because she refused to marry. Of course, as we’ll see, this didn’t mean she didn’t get into plenty of bedroom dalliances.
