Elizabeth and her people
Local government
Central government and Elizabeth were based in London. Most of the 3 million population lived away from the capital and were governed by local officials. Poverty and crime were the big issues of local government, which was made up of these roles:
Lord Lieutenant - one for every county. A wealthy Someone of high rank with a title. who acted as a direct link to the queen and A group of senior politicians who advise the monarch.. He was expected to inform the Privy Council of any potential local unrest. The Lord Lieutenant was also responsible for providing part time soldiers to serve the queen should she need it.
Justices of the Peace (JPs) - 40 in each county. These were unpaid officials selected by the queen to oversee law and order. It was a great honour to be picked. They performed the following duties:
- enforced Poor Laws
- collected tax
- set wage levels
- arranged road repairs
- used to judge crimes at the Quarter Sessions - types of crimes, eg assault, burglary
JPs could be lazy and often ignored what they saw as ‘lesser’ offences such as failure to attend church. However it was a difficult job as they had no police force to help them and they often relied on punishments such as pillory (having their head and hands put in stocks) as a deterrent.
Constables and night-watchmen - lesser officials who helped to maintain law and order.
Propaganda
Learn more about how Elizabeth used propaganda to her advantage in this podcast.
Listen to the full series on BBC Sounds.
Elizabeth used a variety of measures to control her people:
- Summer progresses allowed Elizabeth to be seen by her subjects and also to keep an eye on her nobles in the provinces. Nobles were expected to provide lavish entertainment for the queen.
- Elizabeth also used the Church to control her people. Church was compulsory and you could be fined for not attending. There was even a prayer for the ‘Queen’s Majesty’ that was included at each service.
- Each year a service of thanksgiving was held on Ascension day. At this service people had to thank God for their wise and Christians who broke away from the Roman Catholic Church during the Reformation. They believe in the teachings of the Bible but reject the authority of the Pope. queen and they had to pray to keep her free from the threat of the The Church in Western Europe before the Reformation. The Pope was head of the Church. A member of the Roman Catholic Church..
- Elizabeth controlled printing and as there were only 60 printing presses in the country it was fairly easy for the Privy Council to censor publications.
- Elizabeth’s speeches such as the one made in 1601 were published to show how much she loved her people.
- Elizabeth and her ministers also controlled the portraits that were painted of the queen. She was made to look as beautiful and ageless as possible in keeping with the ‘Gloriana’ myth.
