How well judged were the domestic and foreign policies of Mary I?

For any history essay question which requires you to present an argument, students should remain strictly analytical in their answer. It is key that they fully and clearly explain the value each piece of evidence has towards the argument they are presenting, and do not slip into narrative or purely descriptive writing. Even in an examined environment it is vital that this essay is planned fully before writing. In a question like this - where the student is asked to evaluate ‘to what extent’ a set of events can be described in a certain way - it is useful to plot out all the evidence known relating to the question, and sort it into what supports and opposes the term in question. All essays should include an introduction - this should: define the terms of the question, briefly outline some background knowledge and the historiography associated with the topic, state the student’s argument, and describe how the essay will be structured. A conclusion at the end of the essay should sum up all the evidence presented. 
For this question, the evidence suggests that Mary’s domestic administrative policies were better judged than her religious ones, whilst her foreign policies were largely well judged. Evaluating Marian administrative policy requires some mention of A.F. Pollard’s view of Mary’s reign as a ‘sterile interlude’ - that Mary appointed her chancellors purely due to their strong Catholicism. This evidence can be rebutted by the fact that the strongest Catholics in her council rarely attended meetings, and her appointment of William Paget, who was a politique. Mary’s ability to compromise on claiming monastic lands owned by noblemen further suggests well-judged administrative policies. The evidence associated with Mary’s domestic religious policies is much more damning. Her burning of other 300 Protestants created little benefit for Catholicism in England, and the decision to enforce an entirely ‘top-down’ method of Catholicism was too slow a process. On balance, Mary had no idea she would die in 1558, though it still remains a poorly judged decision. With regards to foreign policy, there is some evidence that Mary’s marriage to Philip was poorly judged - for example fears of a Spanish King’s influence in England and the potential for the country to become a ‘Spanish satellite’. However there is strong evidence against this - the privy council and parliament set up firm limitations over what Philip could order. Whilst England’s loss of Calais in Mary’s final years was disappointing for England, it cannot fully be described as ‘poorly judged’ since the responsibility lies predominantly with Philip.