Elizabeth I of England is one of the most famous monarchs England has ever had, for good reason. During her forty-four year reign, often called the Golden Age, her kingdom developed greatly and went from being a poor, second-rate country to a major world power, largely thanks to her. Under his rule, the arts flourished and playwrights such as William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe were able to create writings that are still relevant today. The word "renaissance" means rebirth, and Queen Elizabeth brought just this to her country, which is why she is the true person of the Renaissance. Elizabeth I was born in Greenwich Palace, London, England, on 7 September 1533 to King Henry VIII of England and his new wife, Anne Boleyn. She was Henry's second legitimate daughter and his parents' first. There was a lot of religious unrest going on at the time as the king had just divorced Catherine of Aragon, his wife of twenty-four years and mother of his daughter Mary, to marry Anne Boleyn. To divorce his queen, which the Pope would not allow, Henry had to break with the Roman Catholic Church and make England a Protestant country, a decision that many Englishmen disagreed with. In 1536, when Elizabeth was only two years old, King Henry had her mother, Anne, beheaded. He accused her of treason, adultery and even incest because she, like Catherine before her, had failed to produce a male heir. After her mother's execution, Elizabeth was declared illegitimate, just as her older sister Mary had been, meaning she could not inherit the throne. Only eleven days after Anne's death, the king remarried Jane Seymour, who in 1537 gave birth to a son, Edward VI, who became the heir apparent...... middle of paper...... Age or Elizabethan Age of England. He encouraged the arts so that poetry, music, literature and theater blossomed and developed. Playwrights like William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe wrote things that are still celebrated today. Elizabeth also encouraged exploration abroad, Sir Francis Drake circumnavigated the earth, Sir Walter Raleigh explored and colonized the New World, and Martin Frobisher ventured into the Arctic. His long reign brought stability and helped England develop as a nation and a world power. Elizabeth's work to advance her country led to England becoming one of the most powerful nations in the world for centuries to come. He also founded the church that still exists in England today. By supporting the arts and other symbols of that time, Elizabeth became a kind of patron of the Renaissance and helped it flourish in England.