I discovered that on this date in 1558 Elizabeth I came to power in England, beginning the Elizabethan Era. We dove all into this back in Episode 1!
The origins of the supremacy of the English/British Navy really begin with the idea that Elizabeth was the ideal Protestant monarch and had to be defended against those evil Catholics. Not only that, but the world had to be explored and claimed in her name as a way to help defeat those old rascally Catholics from places like Spain and France. We tend to think of militaries as a function strictly of national political interest, but in 1558 it was hard to tell where the religious ended and the political began, as they were hugely intertwined.
Just click on the Spotify embed below, or if you prefer you can listen on PODBEAN HERE. Be forgiving, it was our first episode!
