Elizabeth I is arguably one of the greatest monarchs and women of English history. Against an uncertain political and religious backdrop of post-reformation Europe she ruled at the conception of social modernisation, living in the shadow of the infamy of her parents reputations and striving to prove herself an equal to the monarchs who had gone before her. This book seeks to explore some of the key events of her life both before and after she ascended to the English throne in late 1558. By looking at the history of these selected events, as well as investigating the influence of various people in her life, this book sets out to explain Elizabeth’s decisions, both as a queen and as a woman. Amongst the events examined are the death of her mother, the role and fates of her subsequent step-mothers, the fate of Lady Jane Grey and the subsequent behaviour and reign of her half sister Mary Tudor, along with the death of Amy Dudley, the return of Mary Queen of Scots to Scotland, the Papal Bull and the Spanish Amanda. AUTHOR: Born in London, Laura Brennan initially trained to become a journalist at Bournemouth University before gaining a BA Hons. degree in History (2:1) from London Metropolitan University in 2005. While working at BBC Outside Broadcasts, she studied part time to gain her MA in History at Queen Mary University of London 2007 to 2009. It was whilst writing her Masters dissertation that she fell in love with the Duke of Monmouth. Her first publication for Pen and Sword, The Duke of Monmouth: Life and Rebellion , was released in 2018. 30 b/w illustrations