The Life of Elizabeth I (Part 1) | A Dangerous Childhood

From History Calling

TRAGEDY, LOVE AND SCANDAL. The life of Elizabeth I during her early years had it all. In this History Calling video (the 10th in my Tudor monarchs’ series and my first Elizabeth I documentary), we’ll take an in-depth look at the brief time Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I had together, before Anne’s fall in 1536 led to her daughter going from the Princess of England, to being declared illegitimate. We’ll learn about the father-daughter relationship between Henry and Elizabeth Tudor and the marriage between her final step-mother, Catherine Parr and Thomas Seymour (who was uncle to her brother, Edward VI) which took place just weeks after Henry VIII’s death. This led to a dangerous childhood experience for the teenaged Elizabeth after she went to live with them and caught her new step-father’s eye and the scandal of Elizabeth I’s relationship with Seymour shocked contemporaries. I’ll talk you through what she and her servants had to say about the matter while under interrogation and how she responded to the rumours that she was pregnant with Seymour’s child. We’ll also look at Elizabeth’s education, her childhood homes (including Hatfield House), and at how King Edward VI and his sister got along. Finally, you’ll hear too about the beginnings of the difficult relationship between Mary and Elizabeth Tudor which would give the latter so many problems during her sister’s reign. Above all, this Tudors’ documentary will demonstrate that the story of Elizabeth I was extraordinary right from the beginning.