During the reign of Elizabeth I in the 16th century there was a literary flowering in England. During the 1590s, some of the great names of English literature entered their maturity, including William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe and the English theater would reach its peak. The notion of a great Elizabethan era depends largely on the builders, dramatists, poets, and musicians who were active during Elizabeth's reign. Though Elizabeth followed a largely defensive foreign policy, her reign raised England's status abroad. "She is only a woman, only mistress of half an island," marvelled Pope Sixtus V, "and yet she makes herself feared by Spain, by France, by the Empire, by all". Under Elizabeth, the nation gained a new self-confidence and sense of sovereignty, as Christendom fragmented. Elizabeth was the first Tudor to recognize that a monarch ruled by popular consent. She therefore always worked with parliament and advisers she could trust to tell her the truth. Priding herself on being "mere English", Elizabeth trusted in her religion, honest advice, and the love of her subjects for the success of her rule.