There’s a certain amount of cleaning up that has gone into the recording of history. When you start lifting up the rug and running your finger over the mantelpiece, you realise there’s a lot more dirt here than first appeared to be the case. So it goes with the Tudors under Queen Elizabeth’s reign. Figures such as Sir Walter Raleigh and Sir Francis Drake have echoed through time as powerful and influential heroic figures. But, when you delve further what you begin to see is a history of criminality, thievery and bloodshed done in the name of patriotism, but going some way to enrich its perpetrators as well.
This is what has drawn us to examine the story of English maritime activities this issue. These privateers working under the blessing of the queen would ransack and terrorise Spanish ships across the Atlantic, leading to some fascinating stories that are worth exploring further. We welcome back Mathew Lyons to be our navigator for this voyage.
We also celebrate singer and activist Miriam Makeba, uncover the lost histories of queer women, learn about India’s last warrior king, investigate the murder of Tupac Shakur, and learn some forgotten history about the famous Thermopylae.
A wide selection of stories to launch us into 2024. I hope you enjoy the issue.
Jonathan
Gordon
Editor

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• BBC Countryfile Magazine – February 2024
• All About Space – Issue 152, 2024