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Trivia: The film rolls two conspiracies against Elizabeth into one. The first was the Ridolfi plot of 1571, in which the Duke of Norfolk was executed and Arundel arrested. The second culminated in 1586 when a priest named John Ballard was sent by the Pope to coordinate an English Catholic rebellion that would clear the way for an Italian invasion. As far as we know, Sussex and Dudley were not involved in any treachery as alleged in the film. Importantly, the film makes scarce mention of Elizabeth's cousin Mary, Queen of Scots (as a Catholic it was she who the rebels wished on the English throne and she played a central role in all the conspiracies).

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Trivia: The scene where Elizabeth asks the Spanish ambassador to marry her to Dudley at a firework party did take place, but the assassination attempt that followed is fictional. (Although it is true that many attempts were made on her life.)

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Factual error: The parliamentary bill to establish the Anglican Church was forced through the first session of Parliament by Cecil (not Walsingham), using more complex means than that portrayed in the film. He effectively became the first government whip, using many techniques, the most important being a procedural device that limited debate to that which was justified by Scripture alone. The Catholic MP's walked out in protest. The two ringleaders of the protest were taken to the Tower of London.

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Factual error: Queen Mother Mary of Guise did garrison Scotland with troops, but Elizabeth sent a fleet, not an army. And this fleet was not an invasion force, but was sent to back up the Protestant landlords in their battle against the Catholic Mary.

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Factual error: The real Duke of Anjou did not become Elizabeth's suitor until 1571, long after her accession to the throne, when relations with France had improved greatly. He was not the nephew of Mary of Guise (as in the film), but the son of Catherine de Medici.

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