The Sultan and the Queen
The Untold Story of Elizabeth and Islam

Through the long reign of Elizabeth I, Protestant England was isolated in Europe and needed economic and military help to survive the powerful enmity of Catholic Europe - especially the Spain of Philip II. To achieve some balance of power, Elizabeth took advantage of an evolving trade with Islamic p......more

This book was basically a recount of all of Elizabeth’s attempts to create a trading relation with the Islamic powers of her age (the ottomans, the Moroccans and the Persians) , after finding herself shut out of Continental Europe because of her Protestantism , all along the books we’ll find some qu......more

I wish I could escape the irony of reviewing this book on such a day, but I can't. It wouldn't be honest. Today weighs heavy on me: a day on which it became clear that a slight majority of the British people voted for isolation / independence from Europe. This Orient Isle is about a time when Protes......more

This was really interesting, if a bit dense—the author used a large number (and wide variety) of primary source materials and wading through the 16th-century verbiage took a little time. But worth it, I think, for a very vivid and far-reaching picture of all the political vicissitudes of the time. L......more

the past is another country, the old saying goes, they do things differently there. that saying should best be modified to acknowledge how often we think we know, but are truly ignorant of, other countries. despite having earned a degree from yale that focused on elizabethan theater and having writt......more