Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I chartered the East India Company (1600), sponsored Drake's circumnavigation and privateering raids, defeated the Spanish Armada (1588), and supported the first English attempts at American colonisation. Her reign defined Protestant English national identity in opposition to Catholic Spain and laid the foundation for English colonial expansion.
- Lived: 1533 CE – 1603 CE
- Nationality: english
- Roles: queen, head_of_state
