The celebrated Virgin Queen was England"s first Queen Elizabeth, but she was also the last of its Tudor monarchs and the blood of her father, King Henry VIII, flowed vigorously through her veins. Whether she was heroically exhorting her troops at Tilbury to repulse the Spanish Armada, or dealing with a high-handed courtier, her manner and expression seldom failed to leave its mark. "When she smiled it was pure sunshine, that everyone did choose to bask in, if they could", commented her godson, Sir John Harrington, "but anon came a storm from a sudden gathering of clouds, and the thunder fell in wondrous manner on all alike." Drawing on anecdotes, quotations and intriguing snippets of historical fact, this book highlights the wit, wisdom, guile and statesmanship of this resourceful and fascinating queen.