Good. Interesting to read about how Elizabeth I allied with the Islamic world and how we worked together to promote trade. This is a good book to show that even though there were differences in religion and race that was put aside to create unity as that was Elizabeth's ultimate goal. Shows that it is possible for unity to happen which in this time is a good book to read.

3.5 stars. An interesting overview of the relationship between Tudor England and the Islamic world. Some of the stories of men who acted as Elizabeth's "ambassadors" were incredible. Brotton also discusses the depiction of Muslims in the works of Marlowe and Shakespeare; while informative, these literary sections didn't always seem to connect to the political sections. A lot of material, at times dense, but well-researched.

Elizabeth I was always a women to be reckoned with. She would done very well in the present times, ruthlessly deciding what was best for her country and her country alone. At the time, she was fiercely loyal to her country and decided that any decision she took was vital for the development of England alone.

Having been excommunicated from the Catholic Church, she was now in a predicament how to maintain her trade links and more than maintain, how to further develop them with the Sultan's Empire. She knew vast amounts of money could be made through trade which would in turn help England immensely.

Establishing trade missions with Morocco, Iran and the Sultan established English supremacy in the trade world for years to come. She had to do a delicate balancing act with these missions and make sure the alliances went from strength to strength. Everything Eastern become fashionable and in demand and this was what established England as a trading power right into the twentieth century.

For readers of history, this was another fascinating read of a powerful Monarch who balanced being a woman and a ruler in medieval times very well. It showed it could be done.

Goodreads and Amazon review up on 22/6/2017. Review on my blog mid October.

A nice little popular history of a particular encounter between Elizabeth's England and what they called "the Orient", mostly through countries like Morocco and to a lesser extent the vast and impressive Ottoman Empire. The real fun of this read is to again and again be reminded how puny and backwards little England was in comparison to the great cultures and empires of the East, and how eagerly all the influences of Islamic cultures were embraced by the little island wannabe-empire, mostly through trade. Yes, as other reviewers have remarked, Brotton does dwell on Shakespeare and Marlowe's plays a little too much as "evidence" which is always a dicey proposition; as a result the prose drags in places - Brotton is no literary critic, that's for sure, and his interpretive readings of the plays are pretty basic - but all in all it was a pleasant read, and a useful reminder of the ways empires rise and fall.