Why Didn’t Elizabeth I Marry?
One of the most serious criticisms of Elizabeth I’s reign of England was her failure both to marry and produce, or indeed name, an heir. Her father had been so adamant to produce an heir (and preferably a male one) that he had established the Church of England, at least in part, to stand a better chance at getting one. Yet as time passed and Elizabeth’s years progressed beyond those at which she could realistically hope to produce an heir, the problem of succession undoubtedly began to occupy an uncomfortable position in the back of even the most optimistic courtier’s mind.
Marriage was important for a variety of reasons, ranging from foreign alliances to religious policy, but by far the most significant was the production of an heir and the guarantee of a clear line of succession. Had Elizabeth produced offspring with a husband, even if a controversial one, there would be little chance of a strong challenge to the Tudor line of succession. The failure of the 1553 ‘Devise for the Succession’ had demonstrated as much by failing to establish Lady Jane Grey as Queen of England, her reign famously lasting for a measly nine days.
