ELIZABETH I ECONOMY/TRADE

Question 1

WHICH was more prominent during Elizabeth’s reign: internal or foreign trade?

Answer 1

The value of internal trade considerably exceeded that of foreign trade

Question 2

WHAT is an example of increased internal trade under Elizabeth?

Answer 2

Growth in shipping coal from the Tyne to the Thames (the north to London)

Question 3

WHAT is an example of trade showing prosperity in Elizabethan England?

Answer 3

A wider range of foreign luxuries were being imported as more people could afford them.

Question 4

HOW did trade with the Netherlands change under Elizabeth?

Answer 4

• The cloth trade with the Netherlands decreased
• Move from Antwerp to Amsterdam as the main port (as Amsterdam was not under Spanish control)

Question 5

WHAT are some English trading companies set up under Elizabeth?

Answer 5

• Eastland Company (1579): trade with the Baltics
• Levant Company (1581): trade with the Ottoman Empire

Question 6

WHAT English trading company was set up under Mary I?

Answer 6

The Muscovy Company (1555): trade with Russia and Northern Europe

Question 7

HOW successful were the English trading companies established under Elizabeth?

Answer 7

• Trade with new overseas markets remained economically marginal, as the companies stayed small in size
• Many struggled to compete with Dutch trade
• Created a model of organisation key for capitalist development
• Trade with the Ottoman Empire was more successful

Question 8

WHAT was the Levant Company?

Answer 8

An English trading company set up in 1581 which relatively successfully traded with the Ottoman Empire.

Question 9

WHEN was the Levant Company set up?

Answer 9

1581

Question 10

WHAT type of trade began under Elizabeth I?

Answer 10

The slave trade between Africa and South America. Figures like Hawkins had royal support for this.

Question 11

WHAT aspects of exploration and colonisation were successful under Elizabeth?

Answer 11

• Raleigh received support from councillors (e.g. Walsingham) and a patent from the queen to colonise North America
• The colony would become Virginia

Question 12

WHY were some aspects of exploration and colonisation under Elizabeth unsuccessful?

Answer 12

• Poor organisation
• Bad luck
• Elizabeth did not prioritise expanding trade over war with Spain

Question 13

HOW successful was the establishment of a colony in North America under Elizabeth?

Answer 13

• Raleigh received support from both councillors and the queen
• However, a permanent colony in Virginia was not established until James I’s reign

Question 14

In general, HOW did Elizabeth’s government approach economic policy?

Answer 14

• Ministers tended to act in an ‘ad hoc’ (reactive) manner to the situation at a particular time
• They mainly prioritised maintaining public order rather than fixing economic issues

Question 15

WHICH societal groups became closer during Elizabeth’s reign?

Answer 15

The landed elites (and the Crown) became closer to the commercial elites in London, laying groundwork for future commercial expansion

Question 16

HOW did landowners prosper under Elizabeth?

Answer 16

• Landed incomes rose
• They benefitted from new material possessions
• They benefitted from the dissolution of the monasteries
• Farmers benefitted from increasing agricultural prices

Question 17

WHAT are the different perspectives on the relationship between trade and the Elizabethan economy?

Answer 17

• Some say trade was key for the improvement of the economy
• Others interpret increased trade as a desperate search for new markets to offset the long-term decline in cloth trade

Question 18

HOW did English financial institutions compare to their European counterparts?

Answer 18

They were less sophisticated

Question 19

WHICH towns economically prospered under Elizabeth?

Answer 19

• New urban settlements like Manchester and Plymouth benefitted from the broadening manufacturing industry
• London grew as a port and industrial centre
• Some places (e.g. Newcastle) benefitted from supplying London

Question 20

WHICH towns declined economically under Elizabeth?

Answer 20

• Some old-established towns like Winchester declined
• There was urban decay in some corporate boroughs as the cloth trade moved to more rural areas
• The growth of London had detrimental effects on some towns/cities

Question 21

WHAT percentage of harvests were poor during Elizabeth’s reign?

Answer 21

Roughly 20%, according to Palliser

Question 22

HOW did real wages change under Elizabeth I?

Answer 22

They generally fell. By 1596, real wages were half of what they were 9 years earlier

Question 23

WHAT area of England was most affected by economic failures under Elizabeth?

Answer 23

The north (e.g. Newcastle was particularly destitute). Starvation increased in the north.

Question 24

WHICH area of England were the wealthiest under Elizabeth?

Answer 24

The South east, Norfolk, Suffolk, and the inner West Country

Question 25

WHAT economic gaps were there under Elizabeth?

Answer 25

There was a large gap between rich and poor, as well as between the richer and poorer counties (generally north/south gap)

Question 26

WHO prospered economically under Elizabeth I overall?

Answer 26

Generall, those who were already rich:
* Landowners
* Nobles
* South-eastern counties
* Some new urban settlements
* London

Question 27

WHO did not prosper economically under Elizabeth I overall?

Answer 27

Generally, those who were already poor:
* Farmers (during bad harvests)
* Corporate boroughs that had previously relied on the cloth trade
* The North
* Many labourers