Queen Elizabeth I

            Elizabeth I was born on September 7, 1533 at Greenwich Palace near London.
             Her father was England's King Henry VIII; her mother was the king's second wife, .
             Anne Boleyn. Elizabeth had an older half-sister, Mary, who was the daughter of the .
             King's first wife, Catherine of Aragon. As Henry VIII's second eldest child, pushed back to third in line for the throne by the complex politics of the period, Elizabeth was a master of political science. According to "Elizabeth I (1558-1603AD)" from Britannia Online, she had a very practical education in political intrigue - and the fine art of political survival. She came in 1558 to the royal throne and inherited her father's supremacist view of the monarchy, but showed great wisdom by refusing to directly provoke Parliament. Elizabeth acquired undying devotion from her advisement council, who were constantly puzzled by her habit of waiting till the last minute to make decisions. She proceeded to give England 45 years of strong government, moderate religious policies, and unexplained prosperity ("Elizabeth I (1558-1603)"). Elizabeth was glorified by poets and artists as Gloriana, the Virgin Queen. With the help of fine clothes, jewels and cosmetics, the vain queen maintained a glamorous image despite her advancing age.
             There are surprisingly not many descriptions of Queen Elizabeth I. There was however, in 1557, a description given by Giovanni Michiel in his report to the Venetian Doge and the Senate on Queen Elizabeth's features when she was Princess at the age of twenty-three. He stated that, "her face is comely rather than handsome, but she is tall and well formed, with good skin, although swarthy; she has fine eyes" (Strong, pg.19). It was not until 1596, forty years later, when an Italian visitor, Francesco Gardening, described her as "short, and ruddy in complexion; very strong built" (Strong, pg. 19). An agent of Henry IV's, referred to her in 1597 as looking old, her face being long and thin, her teeth yellow and decayed, but her figure being fair, tall and graceful in whatever she does.