The argument of the dissertation involves the meanings of virginity and the representations of Elizabeth I during her reign and in the century after her death. Elizabeth has long been associated with the term "Virgin Queen, " and her virginity has been the subject of discussion in recent novels and film. The current definition of virginity refers only to sexual abstinence and the Queen-as-virgin images focus on deprivation and childlessness. The pattern established during the Restoration lost the original meanings of virginity and its association with strength, sanctity, ability, and worth. Chapter One discusses the images of the Queen as a virtuous, marriageable woman and covers the years 1558--1581, when marriage negotiations were part of her foreign policy. Chapter Two analyzes important changes in imagery and representation during the period of 1582--1590, when Elizabeth's last courtship ended and it became obvious that she would never marry. Chapter Three discusses representations of Elizabeth I during the most problematic period of her reign---1590--1603, when the Queen's policies were criticized, Essex rebelled and was executed, and many people looked forward to a male successor. Simultaneously, the most well-known literary representations of her were being created, namely Spenser's The Faerie Queene, a combination of Greco-Roman mythologies, English legends and history, and Elizabethan political propaganda. Chapter Four discusses the elegies and the revival of her images, the perpetuation of which has lasted throughout the twentieth century.