- Elizabeth I became Queen of England in 1558 after the death of her half-sister Mary I. She was the daughter of King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, who was beheaded when Elizabeth was young. - Key events of Elizabeth's reign included establishing the Anglican Church in 1563, imprisoning her cousin Mary, Queen of Scots in 1568, and signing the warrant for Mary's execution in 1587. - Elizabeth led England to defeat the Spanish Armada in 1588, demonstrating her abilities as a ruler and making England a world power during her reign, which ended with her death in 1603.