The Hidden Meanings in the Portraits of Queen Elizabeth I

No better proof of her success than people still discussing her 420 years later. 🤷🏻‍♀️

The attention to detail of the opulant clothing & jewels contrasts so strikingly with how little detail was applied to her face & hands in many of these portraits (with the exception of Holbein's) She was quite stunning in a stark way with her porcelein skin, aqualine nose & sharper bone structure. I wonder if the depiction of smoothe, white face & hands was chosen due to the smallpox leaving its mark on her? Losing her teeth would have also affected the appearance of the lower facial structure, particularly the jaw & mouth. She certainly wasn't the first monarch to use a stylized or idealized image of herself as propaganda. She was a sharp cookie & must have been a tremendously strong willed person to endure as long as she did as a single ruling female head of state. True, she didn't produce any heirs but she didn't take the chance of dying in childbirth either. A King can always remarry & get another queen or legitimize any bastard children he may have had. A Queen regnant did not have that option.

I don't blame her for not getting married to a man she didn't love and who would take away her power and agency. And I don't blame her for not having any children in a time when this was playing russian roulette - 30-50% women died in childbirth back then. And if you watch House of the Dragon, where a queen gave birth at an inconvenient moment and the men around her immediately seized power from her - this definitely would have been a weak time for a woman who had to remain strong all the time. As far as I know, she tried to raise sucessors, but they betrayed her, so she probably just gave up.

Im glad I found this doc because my daughter and I have read many books about this time period and Elizabeth I. My daughter remembers everything 😄 Shes ever read about Elizabeth and her father and all his wives. Im definitely going to send this doc to her. She will love it. TY so much for this documentary. I've enjoyed it

This takes me back to being in Year 5 (age 9) and learning about the different portraits of Elizabeth I and the symbolism within them. A lot of nostalgia here! Love this video ❤

She is my favourite monarch. I've often wondered why she chose to remain single and I have a feeling that it was because of her father who demonstrated that men own you if you marry. You lose any self worth and become a possession of the man and subject to his will If he is a cruel husband, you'll have a life of misery and be powerless. Frankly, she did the right thing by not marrying.

Tudor line ended with her. It's a good revenge to her father. Queen Elizabeth clearly hated her father by killing her mother Anne Boleyn. Imagine the pain young Elizabeth felt that her father execute her mother that's so traumatic. By not having an heir and ended the tudor line is her revenge.

I love this docu...it has invoked so much enquiry in my heart. Upnor Castle is very close to my heart....The Tudor Rose public house, was once a favoured pub of my family! Thank you for your channel!

I love, LOVE ❤️ this channel. Well done, guys. Much appreciation from Cleveland, Ohio, 🇺🇸.

Thank you for an incisive video on the portraits of Elizabeth I. One wee suggestion: in future videos, perhaps you might dispense with background music. I had to turn the volume way up to hear the voices, as the music drowned them out. Nevertheless, this was a fascinating exploration of Renaissance 'propaganda.'

Fascinating video, and interesting analysis of the amazing Queen. Even though she did not do what monarch’s do and “ensure the lineage”, I think this woman had real balls to do things her way, break with tradition, refuse to marry or name an heir. She was her own woman, despite having so much pressure to do what kings do… well…. She was Queen.. she did things her way… and it did not mean England lost its royals…they’re still there…. the world survived even if she didn’t have heirs. I admire her. She certainly knew how to convey an image and she made her own decisions… that’s powerful!

Thank you for this informative video.

This was incredibly enjoyable to watch! Thank you all who worked on this!

This was an excellent show! I loved it thank you so much. ❤

I have always been fascinated by the Tudors and especially Elizabeth and I have read loads of books on the period as well as watching documentaries. It is obvious to me why Elizabeth avoided marriage, even though she dangled the prospect of marriage in front of the royal families of Europe as long as she could get away with it. Imagine yourself as the three year old hearing that your mother has been beheaded for adultery. Her father had her mother executed, and as she grew up she watched how other women were treated by him, including the beheading of Katherine Howard, and her beloved Katherine Parr came close to the same end but luckily for her Henry died before that could come about. Then there was the scandal of her teenage years when she had to defend herself from accusations of hanky panky between her and the Lord High Admiral of the time who was engaged to Katherine Parr before she caught the eye of the King. After Henry's death I think they, Katherine and Thomas, did finally marry, but I am not certain, my memory fails me on that point. No wonder Elizabeth could never give herself up into the power of a man and she was uniquely placed to hold onto her independence. Other women of the time were not so fortunate. I am surprised that nobody that I have come across has looked at this from a psychological perspective. Yes, as a monarch her duty was to provide an heir, but the necessary actions to bring that about were psychologically beyond her, so she shut her eyes to it and projected the idea of being young forever. I think she is to be pitied and I personally admire her courage in living her life as she did.

Found this very interesting, thank you.

Useful general introduction. Great photography of the portraits mentioned in the video, well known historians commenting. However, as a specialist of Elizabeth's portraiture and of 16th century symbolism, I regret a complete lack of even short allusions to very important symbols (the 'imperial' crown, the armillary sphere, the meaning of the left/right positions in symbolic images, the fact that some symbols also appear connected to Anne Boleyn). I also regret the repetition of incorrect old tropes ('the weather' as the only reason for the victory over the Armada - please do check out what specialists of Philip II say about the fatal mistakes he insisted on making in his plan...and his refusal to listen to experienced military chiefs such as his nephew Parma. Another trope is 'Elizabeth was negligent'. No she wasn't. She maintained the independence of her kingdom and kept her own power when any marriage would have taken both away. It is well known that she was very clear from even her childhood days, about her personal aversion to marriage. She said many things which would today be understood as evidence of asexuality. Following one's nature is not 'negligence'. It is the only thing one can do. historians should not pay lip service to prejudice. As for the idea that she died 'without naming a successor'...Robert Cecil, who was at her death bed, would have contradicted this statement. A closer look at potential other successors (from the Grey sisters to Arabella Stuart) suggest that Elizabeth looked into their claims as well as into James's. Historian John Guy believes that Arabella could well have been an initially preferred choice, but her own actions were disappointing and ruled her out. Katherine Grey also disappointed Elizabeth, who had initially shown her favour by giving her a good position among her ladies.

This was interesting but the sound was terribly uneven. DA

Thank you, that was fascinating and informative.

I really enjoyed this video Thank you 😊x