Soon after Elizabeth became queen of England, Protestants gained full control of Parliament. It now became very important to Parliament that Elizabeth should marry and produce a Protestant heir to the throne. Parliament was worried that if Elizabeth died childless, Mary Stuart, a Catholic, would probably become queen of England. They feared that if that happened, all Protestants who held power under Elizabeth would be persecuted.

Elizabeth had many favourites in her own court. At various times rumours circulated that Elizabeth would marry men such as Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, Sir Charles Hatton, and Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk.

In October 1562 Elizabeth caught smallpox. For a while, doctors thought that Elizabeth would die. This illness made Parliament realise how dangerous the situation was. Therefore, after she recovered, they asked her once again to consider marriage. Elizabeth replied that she would think about it but she refused to make a decision.

In 1566 members of Parliament tried to force Elizabeth into action by discussing the subject in the House of Lords and the House of Commons. Elizabeth was furious with Parliament for doing this. She ordered thirty members from each House to attend a meeting at Whitehall Palace. Elizabeth read out a long speech where she pointed out that whether she got married or not was something that she would decide. She added that for Parliament to decide this question was like "the feet directing the head".

The members of Parliament at the meeting agreed not to mention the issue again. However, some members were unwilling to remain quiet on the subject. One politician, Peter Wentworth, claimed that members of Parliament had the right to discuss any subject they wanted. Elizabeth responded by ordering him to be sent to the Tower of London.

In 1579 Elizabeth began having talks about the possibility of marrying the Duke of Anjou from France. John Stubbs wrote a pamphlet criticizing the proposed marriage. Stubbs objected to the fact that the Duke of Anjou was a Catholic. He also argued that, at forty-six, Elizabeth was too old to have children and so had no need to get married.

Elizabeth was furious and ordered that Stubbs and the publisher of the pamphlet should be arrested. At first Elizabeth wanted the men to be hanged, but eventually she decided that the men should have their right hands cut off. Elizabeth did not marry the Duke of Anjou. Nor did she marry anyone else. When Elizabeth died at the age of sixty-nine the Tudor dynasty came to an end.