Patronage

GCSE · History · AQA · H4.1 — Elizabeth’s court and Parliament: the role of the monarch, the Privy Council and key advisers (Cecil, Walsingham); challenges of Parliament and patronage

Question

Explain how Elizabeth used patronage to maintain her power. (8 marks)

Mark scheme — Levels 1–4. Key points:

Distributed offices, lands, monopolies, knighthoods to gain loyalty.
Kept favourites (Leicester, Essex, Raleigh) competing — never satisfied any one fully.
Used marriage as ultimate bargaining chip — Virgin Queen image.
Cheap form of reward — Crown had limited cash but vast non-cash gifts.
Required skilled judgement — over-reward provoked rivals; under-reward provoked rebellion.
Late in reign, monopolies became unpopular and triggered Parliamentary protest.

8 marks · take your time before peeking.

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Generated by TopMyGrade AI · cross-check official sources before relying on the mark-scheme phrasing.