What were the social classes in england during the reign of Queen elizabeth? (must have source please)?

Question

I need it for an assignment so if i could just have a hyperlink that would be great

Answer 1

1.Court(Nobles,Servants,Royals)

2.Church(Bishop,Monks)

3.Wealthy People(Bankers,Merchants,Knights)

4.Middle Class Peasnts(Butchers,farmers,Writers,Poets,A...

5.Peasants(most people were peasants)

Answer 2

1. Nobility

2. The Gentry (knights, squires, gentlemen, and gentlewomen "who did not work with their hands for a living.")

3. Yeomen (a middle class of sorts)

4. The poor

Answer 3

Here are some sources.  Re the first one, it explains the Chain of Being, which was important in those days.  

http://www.channel4.com/history/microsit...

http://www.historyonthenet.com/Tudors/so...

http://www.localhistories.org/tudor.html

http://elizabethan.org/compendium/index.... (large site with many links)

Answer 4

Elizabethan social class (lowest to highest):

Peasants were the agricultural laborers and their families. they usually lived their entire lives in one small village, working the land owned by the nobleman of the area. They had little leisure time and almost no cash. Their clothing was limited and designed for practicality.

Middle class people were the artisans, craftsmen, servants, and small merchants. Their clothing was still practical but also reflected that they had a bit more leisure time and a bit of money to spend on clothing. Servants of this class were likely to wear livery uniforms provided by their employers.

The wealthy middle class were the prosperous merchants, the highly skilled artisans, and the servants of nobles. They had money to spend on clothing, and they were the one social class with overriding ambition to climb the social ladder, so their clothing was often very fashionable. There were legal restrictions on what they could wear, called "Sumptuary laws". Sumptuary laws set fines for people who wore clothing above their station. They were usually ineffective because they added the additional status of having been able to afford to pay the sumptuary tax on the garment in question!

Nobles were the high status knights, earls, countesses, etc, who comprised "high society". Since they were often in attendance on the Queen, their clothing reflected their wealth and their respect for her position. Clothing at that time held approximately the same value that cars do today for reflecting social and financial status. Some noblemen's suits were literally covered with jewels, and might have a value equivalent to hundreds of thousands of dollars today.