How did the Elizabethan government address the issue of poverty?

The Elizabethan government addressed poverty through the Poor Law, codified in 1597-98. This legislation aimed to provide relief by establishing parish overseers responsible for aiding the aged and sick, and for organizing work for the able-bodied in workhouses. This system acknowledged that poverty had become too widespread for the church to manage alone, with the state taking responsibility for levying taxes for poor relief, offering employment, and punishing idleness. The goal was to ensure a minimum standard of living within a structured society, though it also aimed to restrict social mobility and economic freedom.12