Endearing nickname for Queen
Elizabeth.
When Queen Mary I of
England died in 1558, she left her
country a poor and divided nation. Her religious persecutions and those of her brother, Edward VI, had split the country and disrupted
trade.
Mary's successor was her younger sister, Elizabeth. Over the forty years of her reign, Elizabeth was to make England a rich and united nation. One of her first actions was to reach a compromise over
religion which satisfied most of her subjects. Shen then encouraged trade with foreign countries.
At home Elizabeth presided over the growth of a healthy
economy and a thriving
culture which encouraged
artists and
writers of high calibre. The startling success of her reign was in such contrast with her predecessors that Elizabeth gained the name of "Gloriana" from her subjects.