How Rulers Maintained Their Authority Considering the history of England from the rule of Queen Elizabeth I through Oliver Cromwell, there were many different methods of which rulers acquired and maintained their authority. A few of these methods were through inheritance, divine rights, and wars. The aspect of inheritance relates to the political aspect of the SPIRET model, while divine rights relates to the religious aspects, and wars relate to economic, technological, intellectual and social aspects. All in all, many different methods related to all aspects of the SPIRET model were used by the rulers between Queen Elizabeth I and Oliver Cromwell, to acquire and maintain power. Because England was governed by a hereditary monarchy, one method rulers used to acquire their authority, was to claim inheritance to it. This meant that when the ruling monarch passed away, his role would be filled by another member of the royal family, usually his/her son. In England an example of this was how King Charles I gained his power, because he was the son of James VI/I and Anne of Denmark. There were also cases where the ruling monarch passed away without leaving any heirs, such as Queen Elizabeth I, the Virgin Queen. …show more content…
Many rulers claimed that their power had come from God himself, and that He had granted them with divine rights. One very strong believer of divine rights, was King James I. This is shown quite dramatically by his speech “Kings are Justly Called Gods”, where he declares that the ruler is called god by God himself, and that the ruler acts as God’s lieutenants on Earth. Additionally, rulers could make important religious decisions. An example of this, is how King James I used his power to order a new translation for the bible, into English. This method relates to the religious aspect of the SPIRET model, because the claims of divine rights came from