The interest of Queen
Elizabeth to the historian is mainly biographical; but it has also the interest
of a myth. The interest is mainly biographical because she was of very little
effect upon the history of her time. We do not find any great political events
produced by her will or her intelligence and there is nothing important in the
Europe of her time or the England of her time of which we can say, "This
was done by Elizabeth." But the woman herself is so interesting, not only
as a pathological case but as an example of suffering and intelligence
combined, of a warped temperament and all that goes with it, that,
biographically, she is a first-rate subject and one which, it may be added, has
never been properly dealt with. There is no one well-known book which gives an
even approximately true picture of Elizabeth; at least, none in the English
language. The reason of this is due to the presence of that other interest in
her character, the myth. What may be called "The Elizabethan Myth" is
only now beginning to break down, and it was during the nineteenth century an
article of faith in England (and, through England, elsewhere). It is one of the
most perfect modern examples of its kind in all the range of history. It is a
sort of creative and vital falsehood, radiating its effects upon all the
details of the time, and putting in the wrong light pretty well everything that
happened. The Elizabethan myth may be stated thus:
"In the second half of
the sixteenth century England had the good fortune to be governed by a woman of
strong will, powerful intelligence and excellent judgment, whose power was
supreme. Her people adored her, and she produced in her long time and largely
under her influence the greatest figures in every sphere: Literature,
Architecture, Foreign Politics and the rest. She chose her ministers with
admirable skill and they served her with corresponding faithfulness. In consequence
of all this the Great Queen led the nation through paths of increasing
prosperity; it grew wealthier and wealthier as her reign proceeded, more and
more powerful abroad, founding colonies and establishing that command of the
sea which England has never since lost. In religion she wisely represented the
strong Protestantism of her people in hatred of which a few venomous
rebels—shamefully allied with foreigners—attacked her reign and even her life.
However, she easily triumphed over them all and died full of glory, leaving her
name as that of the greatest of the English sovereigns."
There in brief is the
"Elizabethan Myth," and a more monstrous scaffolding of poisonous
nonsense has never been foisted on posterity. I use the word
"poisonous" not at random, not as a mere epithet of abuse, but with a
full sense of its accuracy; for this huge falsehood which might be merely
absurd in another connection has had, applied to English history, all the
effect that a poison has upon a living body. It has interfered with the proper
scale of history, it has twisted, altered and denied the most obvious
historical truths and has given Englishmen and even the world at large a false
view of our past.
...
The truth about Elizabeth is this. She was the puppet or figurehead of the group of new millionaires established upon the loot of religion begun in her father's time. They had at their head the unique genius of William Cecil, who, in spite of dangerous opposition, accomplished what might have seemed the impossible task of digging up the Catholic Faith by the roots from English soil, stamping out the Mass, and shepherding the younger generation of a reluctant people into a new religious mood. Throughout her life Elizabeth was thwarted in each political effort she made; she felt the check of her masters and especially Cecil as a horse feels the bridle. She never had her will in matters of State.
- Characters of the Reformation, Hilaire Belloc.
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