The ‘Irish Problem’ through the Lens of Elizabethan Media

Abstract

This article seeks to explore the 16th century Anglo-Irish problem through the lens of multiple Elizabethan media. It attempts to show that, despite the invention of printing and her Protestant religion, Elizabeth continued to rely on oral and visual media. The sermon and the image seem to have been more directly suitable for bringing her Irish agenda home to the people than printed works whose authors tended to become independent of royal patronage. In addition, the Queen’s gender and her ‘womanly’ feelings were perceived as an impediment to a successful military solution advocated by male authors like Spenser.

Keywords

• Tudor Ireland
• Elizabethan media
• Elizabeth I
• Spenser
• Shakespeare
• Earl of Essex