Elizabeth I - Poor relief - RG1 Flashcards
Give three causes of poverty in Elizabethan England?
Population growth
A fall in real wages for the labouring poor
Harvest failures created food shortages in the mid 1550’s and 1590’s.
Who suffered the most from the economic issues that were experienced in Elizabethan England.
The elderly and the infirm
Did private benefactors continue to leave money in their will for the establishment of almshouses for the poor?
Yes, however it was no longer enough to tackle poverty
Which member of Elizabeth’s privy council was particularly concerned about the large number of homeless people and why was he concerned?
William Cecil
He was concerned that the large number of homeless and unemployed people could present a serious thereat to law and order.
How were the poor grouped?
Poor people were grouped into ‘deserving’ and ‘undeserving’
The deserving poor were deemed entitled to receive some form of limited assistance whereas the undeserving poor were entitled to be punished.
