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    Sep 30, 2021 5 minutes

    30 NOVEMBER 1601

    Elizabeth I delivers her “golden speech”

    The troubled and ailing queen poignantly proclaims her love for her subjects

    During her last years, Elizabeth I cut an ageing, weary and often gloomy figure, beset by troubles personal and political. Foreign visitors noted that she wore a wig and remarked on her rotten teeth, a consequence of her enthusiasm for sugar.

    When, on 30 November 1601, the queen rose to address more than 140 members of the House of Commons, most expected her to address the country’s mounting economic problems. To their surprise, she instead gave a kind of farewell address, reflecting on her reign and looking forward to the judgment of the Almighty. Of the different versions of her speech, the most complete comes from the MP and diarist Hayward

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