The First Victim

She was supposed to die by the executioner’s axe or the assassin’s poison—but she didn’t die… She could have been happy. She could have become a wife and a mother. However, she chose a different fate… She became the first of the great queens of the world. She led armies and wove international intrigues. She was the best. The wisest. The strongest. For there is no power stronger than the one granted by suffering. She is Elizabeth I of England. Elizabeth the Great. How did she ascend the throne? How did she gain the power of rule? What did she sacrifice in the struggle—and what did she gain? What did she strive for? What did she fight for—sometimes honestly and proudly, sometimes brutally and basely? Here is the story of Elaiza. Elizabeth. Elisabeth. Poets sang her name. People feared her. They adored her. They even worshiped her…