7th Parliament of Queen Elizabeth I law. 7th Parliament of Queen Elizabeth I The 7th Parliament of Queen Elizabeth I was summoned by Queen Elizabeth I of England on 18 September 1588 and assembled on 4 February 1589. Originally summoned in response to the defeat of the Spanish Armada in August 1588, the opening was delayed by Elizabeth as long as possible to avoid the inevitable debates on religious reform and foreign policy which she considered her own private prerogative. At the opening of Parliament on February 4 Sir Christopher Hatton, the Lord Chancellor, ordered the assembled Houses of Lords and Commons on behalf of the
Plimpton Sieve Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I the royal coat of arms on the right. The sieve represents her self-identification as the "Virgin Queen" by association with Tuccia, the Roman Vestal Virgin who proved her virginity by carrying water in a sieve. The painting has three areas of text in yellow uppercase letters: There are at least two other versions of Gower's "Sieve Portrait". One is known only through an 18th-century description by George Vertue. The other measures 34 x 24 inches and is now in a private collection in Florida. Plimpton Sieve Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I The Plimpton "Sieve Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I" is