Interpretations B and C both focus on the treatment of Catholics in England during the reign of Elizabeth I.
How far do they differ and what might explain any differences?
Interpretation B
An extract from the tourist website of Harvington Hall, an Elizabethan manor house in Worcestershire. The house is now owned and run by the Catholic Church.
DISCOVER HARVINGTON HALL, THE HOUSE OF SECRETS
Explore the house as it was during Elizabeth I’s reign, when English Catholics lived in terror. Wealthy families like the Pakingtons, owners of Harvington, devised ways to keep their priests safe from priest hunters. The Hall boasts the country’s finest collection of priest holes. Priest holes were secret hiding spaces for Catholic priests, and there are seven at Harvington.
Priests endured cramped, cold, and dark conditions, sometimes hiding for over a week. As you explore Harvington, imagine the terrifying sounds of the priest hunters pulling up floorboards and stripping back wall panels. Imagine how the priests would have felt knowing that, when the house fell silent, the priest hunters were waiting to hear any sound. It was a real-life game of hide-and-seek, often with awful consequences.
Harvington Hall’s theatrical tours vividly depict the dangers faced by recusant families like the Pakingtons. Join us for a journey through fear, devotion, and persecution.
Interpretation C
An extract from a recent article by the historian Susan Doran in ‘BBC History Magazine’.
Under Elizabeth, the Church of England was flexible and moderate. Elizabeth would not listen to the extreme Protestants who attempted to introduce more radical religious changes.
Elizabeth also tried to prevent Catholic rebellion without following a policy of intense religious persecution. It is of course true that she signed the death warrant of Mary Queen of Scots, but she did this with great reluctance. It is also true that Jesuit priests and the people who hid them were imprisoned or executed under Elizabeth, but this was mainly because it was believed that the priests were being used by the Pope and Catholic Spain to stir up trouble against Elizabeth.
By the standards of that time, Elizabeth was a model of religious tolerance.
Jesuit priests are a type of Catholic priest.