“Promise me you’ll rule according to my rules.” “In all good conscience, I can’t promise you that.” Queen Elizabeth I was told this by her sister – Queen “Bloody” Mary – and she lived on to be one the most memorable queens in England’s history. During her forty-five year rule, she restored law and order, appointed trusted leaders, expanded trade, and gained the trust and admiration of her people. She stayed true to her word and reestablished the Church of England, as well as finding common ground for all religion. Her adoration for the arts ushered in the new energy toward thinking, creating, and living – a period of enlightenment and an era her sister was unable to institute. She constantly brought up her peoples’ morale, and the speech at Tilbury is one of these instances. Before the battle against the Spanish armada, Queen Elizabeth I reassured her people that they can have faith in her strength and wisdom, as she in them. …show more content…
She refers back to her citizens as other positive adjectives – such as “faithful,” “loyal,” and “good-will” – proving that she believes in them and their actions. The queen has no doubt their loyalty to her will be proven in victory. She then admits that “I have the body but of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king.” This abstract diction adds strong connotations to her literal and metaphorical strength. The heart is the center of all emotions; and, in this case, that emotion is passion and love. In addition, the stomach symbolizes inner physical strength. In short, she wants to prove that she can stomach the brutal war just as well as a soldier can – in spirit and in