8-1AfterQueenElizabeth

According to John A. Wagner, author of the book __Historical Dictionary of the Elizabethan World; Britain, Ireland, Europe, and America__, James VI was born in Edinburgh Castle on June 19, 1566. He was the only son of Lord Darney and Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots. When James was only thirteen months old his mother was forced to abdicate the throne and little James was crowned King of Scotland. The young king was put into protective custody and did not assume control of the government until he was thirteen years old. Out of eagerness to be named the successor to Queen Elizabeth, he only minimally protested his mother’s execution in 1587 and declared support of England during the Spanish armada crisis. In 1589 he married the Protestant princess Anne of Denmark and the royal couple produced three living heirs. After Queen Elizabeth passed away in 1603 King James VI of Scotland and Ireland took power. He then became known as King James I of England. During his role as the King of England James I aimed to have peace abroad and religious tolerance at home. As stated in __Encyclopedia Americana__ Volume 15, King James I managed to settle England’s war with Spain and gave hope to Roman Catholics that he would modify the penal laws against them. In the late 1590s James published two of his books, //The True Law of Free Monarchies// and //Basikon Doron.// These book explained James’s great belief in the theory of “divine right” which he advocated for throughout his reign of England. According to this theory the king was more powerful and greater than every living being in his kingdom, and was answerable only to God. His theory also stated that the king could not be removed from his throne by the people. This theory of royal absolutism along with an increasingly assertive Parliament eventually lead to a rebellion by the Parliament against King James’ son and successor Charles I in 1649. Most historians agree that the greatest legacy of King James I was his commissioning of the Bible to be translated into English in 1604. According to Antonia Fraser, author of the book __King James: VI of Scotland, I of England__, King James came to during the Reformation, a period of religious upheaval in Europe. As conflicts between the Catholics and Protestants escalated, England struggled to remain neutral. At the Hampton Court Conference in 1604 King James met with both Catholics and Protestants and commissioned the new translation of the Bible. The King appointed 54 scholars to translate the original Greek and Hebrew text into English. The translation was to be reviewed by the bishops and other learned churchmen then presented for final ratification by the royal authority of King James himself. The king had several motives for this commissioning, one of which was to ease the tensions between the Catholics and the Protestants. As Frazer states, he also hoped to make the Bible the “ornament of the English language” and easier for the common man to understand. Lastly King James wanted a translation of the Bible which did not include notes in the margins that undermined the King’s authority. In other words he wanted a Bible translation that would confirm the divine right of kings to rule. The commissioned Bible translation was completed and published in 1611 and has been known since as the “Authorized Version” or the “King James Version.”
 * 23. Who succeeded the throne after Queen Elizabeth died? What is his legacy? **
 * // Answer prepared by Peter Ruvalcaba //**