Mary’s reign
Mary was Queen of England from 1553-1558.Her reign has divided historians-some say her reign was a complete disaster, whilst others say she succeeded as Queen. She did many terrible things, but also did some good. Anna Whitelock says that ‘In many ways Mary…triumphed as queen. She achieved much of what she set out to do. She won her rightful throne, married her Spanish prince, and restored Roman Catholicism. She defeated rebels. She was a woman who lived by her conscience and was prepared to die for her faith. And she expected the same of others. As the first Queen regnant of England, Mary was the Tudor trailblazer’.

Many of Anna Whitelock’s claims can be supported, as Mary triumphed as Queen in many ways. She achieved many things that she set out to do.

Firstly, ‘Mary’s reconstruction of Catholicism was a success. The evidence from the parishes is of considerable and continuing support for traditional services and celebrations’ (Christopher Haigh). Mary managed to restore Catholicism within the short 5 years of her being Queen. This was popular amongst many people as Edward Vl and her father, Henry Vlll had made England Protestant during his reign. Mary restored the Catholic Mass and banned Holy Communion. All priests had to be Catholic; the basic furniture in the Protestant churches was replaced with the colourful furniture and paintings of the Catholic Church. Services were held in Latin and Cranmer’s English prayer book was banned. Mary also made the pope head of the church again.

Secondly, Mary was the first female ruler and she won her rightful throne. Although people say that she was a cruel person, Mary had to work a lot harder than the male rulers. As she was a woman, Mary wasn't accepted as queen. Women in that time were considered weak and indecisive and so Mary had to work a lot harder to prove people wrong. The bar was set a lot