Queen Elizabeth was a woman who was truly beyond her own century. She was “not afraid of anything” (Kapur). She seemed to operate with so much more common-sense, intelligence and wisdom than her sobbing, religious sister who passed away in the beginning of the film. Despite the intangible suite of armor that kept her strong, there were some conflicts and challenges that she had to overcome in order to continue reigning for the 40 golden years that blessed her people. First, she had to deal with religious conflicts. Secondly, she had to handle political pressures against a room full of men who already laughed dubiously at her abilities. Lastly, she had to deal with her own personal struggle with regard to marriage.
Wars have been carried out for centuries in the name of religion. Muslims have fought Christians and Catholics have fought Protestants. Elizabeth asked the all-important question with her refusal to claim either side. The question was, if there is only one God, why can’t we all have just one religion? She actually asked this question to a room full of supposedly educated men and no one could give her an intelligent answer. To show how serious the issue of religion was in the days of Queen Elizabeth, the film starts off with three people being burned alive. Before long, it becomes obvious that Elizabeth’s sister ordered that gruesome death in the name of religion. Elizabeth replaced her sister with a different agenda. It was not to force religion down the throats of her people. It was for her own people to be safe and secure from enemies. While it was a conflict introduced in the beginning, they pale in comparison to more pressing issues that Elizabeth had to face. She managed to deal with them with feminine grace and quiet strength.
Most leaders (including those of current times) have advisors. They proved to be most valuable in helping Elizabeth to see her enemies up close. During the rookie years of her reign, she was so intent on ruling with her heart. While that may seem unwise, she was wise enough to recognize when it was time to switch gears and rule “like a man” (Kapur) as she so fervently spoke. The political pressures on her desk had to do with trying to secure allies. It repulsed her to know that the only options presented by her advisors were to marry a man from an enemy zone. The ruler from another country sent a filthy fruit-cake of a man for her to marry. He was so rude, he arranged for the Queen to be told that he was sick. Meanwhile, he skipped an entertaining event for the Queen just to lay around in an orgy while wearing a dress in another room. The other country didn’t even send someone who showed her proper respect as a guest in her home. Elizabeth would not surrender herself respect and her body to a man like that just to secure an ally which threatened harm against her people. This is the point where the audience must surely fall in love with Queen Elizabeth. Political strife and pressures were handled by listening to her staff, thinking clearly (even though she was in love with a man who turned out to be unfaithful), and using her natural intelligence to act firmly in the best interest of her people. As it turned out, her enemies may have been in another country, but the most dangerous of all were living right under her nose. She swiftly and quietly ordered their just punishments. She didn’t have to light public fires to hold enemies accountable. It sickened her to order the death of native foes. However, she secured the safety of herself and England. As for the question of marriage, she boldly proclaimed with a (fresh haircut and new make-up) that she was “married to England” (Kapur).
Pressure to marry was not the only issue. It was enough to break a woman with less of a backbone but it only served to strengthen the Queen. In the beginning of her reign, before she could even enjoy her first fresh made breakfast, she was advised of great danger, budget and military weakness. Other countries were coveting her position; England’s army was weak and poorly trained. It was as if she was left to clean up a big mess left behind by her sister like the President of the U.S. had to absorb problems left by his predecessor. Perhaps if her dearly departed sister had arranged for an English army to be trained instead of burning people who didn’t acknowledge Catholicism, then there would not have been a stream full of English blood flowing shortly after 3 victims were set to flames. Poor Elizabeth had no intentions for involvement in war. She trusted the opinions of men to fight in Scotland after advisors spoke to her so rudely. Elizabeth was mauled by sorrow when a neighboring Queen mercifully sent back one surviving bloody boy with a message about letting children fight. After that, she got wiser and stronger. The rest of the movie illustrates that brilliantly.
War, politics and marriage were the painful agendas on the Queens table. However, she graced the big screen (and colored the history books) as someone who would not claim a crime that she didn’t commit. Unknown to someone who has never seen the film, this turned out to be a sign that she would make an excellent leader. Even with men surrounding and screaming at her with an insane accusation prior to becoming the queen, she declared their lack of real evidence to be no justification for punishment. She was being aggravated by guards because of the slight chance that she might denounce Catholicism in her heart. Her sobbing, panic stricken sister begged Elizabeth to carry out the Catholic laws and way of life if and when she might become the queen. This is when her second stripe of bravery stood out even more brilliant than the first. Elizabeth said that she would carry out what was on her conscience. She did not denounce Catholicism and she did not claim it passionately either. Elizabeth was truly her own woman or as she said in the movie, “I am my father’s daughter” (Kapur). Though there were three major sources of conflict, she successfully overcame them with the application of one double-edged sword. It was the sword of self-respect and love for her people. Elizabeth was an inspiration and a true Queen.
Reference:
Kapur, Shekhar, dir. Elizabeth. 1998. Film. 5 Dec 2013.
<http://viooz.co/movies/3764-elizabeth-1998.html>.
