Fife and Scotland - the offbeat perspective

A Different Historical Perspective

If the entire history of Planet Earth could be measured on the face of a twenty-four hour clock then the whole of human history would represent a modest fraction of the last second of the last minute on that clock! Indeed, far more has occurred and changed on a global scale in the last few centuries than in the previous ten thousand years! What follows then is a series of selective and condensed histories starting from the Ice Age and moving progressively towards the present time. It's a deliberately different and radical perspective on major events which describe some of the successes and the failures of different periods. Although brief mention is made to some parts of Scottish history, more detail is offered in a separate section of this web site.

Nation States and Empires

The age of dinosaurs preceding the reign of mankind, and lasting sixty five million years remains far longer than mankind has lived on this planet. During the last Ice Age, mankind came close to extinction and where the entire human might have been less than ten thousand souls. We know this because modern DNA testing results are measured in hundreds of thousands rather than the millions of theoretical options that might otherwise exist. What it means in practice is that, irrespective of current skin colour, race or creed, we are more alike than different and share common ancestry with the small number of people who survived that period of time.

The best evidence we have discovered of these ancient times lie deep inside caves and where paintings and drawings depict men hunting animals with crude spears and swords. From this, we can ascertain their ability to make crude boats and catch fish too. Many of these paintings have been discovered in places far removed from sunlight and indicative that our ancestors had learned how to generate light by means of fire. Remains of some crude tools have been discovered in caves too.

In common with modern times, our ancestors recognised the three key elements of survival namely, food, water and shelter. Initially, this took the form of a nomadic existence, a trait that remained with North American Indians, typically following the huge herds of bison and where hunting these beasts represented food, clothing and shelter from one source. Indigenous Americans thanked god and gave praise to the animal who had surrendered its soul so that they might live. It's a much closer understanding to nature that seems to have been lost elsewhere in the World and ultimately destroyed when the 'New World' was ulimately discovered by Europeans.

It's impossible to known when a growing number of the population elected to settle in one spot but it's likely to have been a slow and difficult progression. Domestication and husbandry of animals provided skins and wool for clothing, fuel for lamps, meat and milk. The tribal societies learned how to plant and cultivate crops and thus become more static. Certain locations were deemed more favourable than others and were thus likely to invoke envy, enmity and conflict with others and it was natural that some of our ancestors should join with others in common defence of these lands and where a form of structured leadership came into being. In time, smaller states either merged with or were conquered leading to large city states or countries.

Some of the oldest countries in the World included Mesopotamia (meaning the land between the rivers: Rivers Tigress and Euphrates) and Egypt; the latter of which was led by a Pharaoh since Ramesis I and employing a well-organised state mechanism with sufficient income from taxation to afford a well trained and equipped army to defend the nation. In the course of national expansion, Eygpt acquired many slaves of different ethnic backgrounds and grew sufficiently wealthy so as to undertake many national projects of great undertaking and size unlike anything seen elsewhere in the ancient world.

According to Herodotus, the pyramid of Gizza represented one of the seven wonders of the ancient World and remains as the only survivor of this list. The Egyptian lighthouse on the tiny island of Pharos, variously estimated to be about four hundred feet high was another on the list and almost certainly the tallest structure in the World at that time. Built about 280BC, it was decommissioned in 1303AD and after nearly 1600 years of service.

The pyramids illustrate an incredible amount of knowledge in that some have corners approximating the main points of a compass and where the choice of this shape still offers minimal wear during sandstorms. These are structures that were designed and built to last forever and, given their track record so far, the builders did a pretty good job!

In the thousand years preceding the birth of Christ, several nation states grew rapidly were able to exert both political and military power far beyond their borders. Persia, in particular, grew rapidly into a large and powerful state and whose presence threatened to engulf the warring city states of Greece. On recognising such a threat, King Philip od Macedon worked hard to unite former enemies like Athens, Sparta and more in order to create a common defence and army. Upon his death in 336BC, his son, Alexander, inherited the throne of Macedon and was ready to lead a united Greek army against the Persian empire and establish an empire of his own.

Tutored by Aristotle, the young Alexander skillfully led his smaller army against that of Darius III of Persia and emerged victorious. It was the first of many victories and in his short life, Alexander the Great became ruler over vast parts of the World stretching from Greece to India and including Egypt for a short time. Despite thism Alexander died while still a young man and the Alexandrian empire did not last long after his death. It did, however, extend Greek cultural influences for centuries afterwards.

It's a fact that no one singular part of the World has ever been blessed with everything one could want and although there is little remaining to tell us about these times, one of the oldest surviving texts is a Mesopotamian wine merchant's list engraved in stone and thus proving that commerce and trade were established practises at an early point in time. Traders leading camel caravans across the desert or else seafarers on ships were the explorers and news carriers of the period and where the medium of currency had come into existence. At the heart of this trading and cultural exchange was the Mediterranean Sea and where Phoencian trade ships assumed monopolies on many goods.

Roman Empire, Christianity and Science

Phoenician trade ships followed the Mediterranean coastline for centuries, stopping at many ports on their voyages, buying here and selling here, and in the secure knowledge that no area of land surrounding the Mediterranean had been entirely blessed with universal abundance. Phoenician traders grew rich as a consequence by supplying desirable goods in times of scarcity and where, in time, they established a major trading base on a site close to the modern city of Tunis in North Africa. It was called Carthage and soon became one of the major trading centres of the growing Moorish Empire extending from the Middle East, across North Africa, Southern Europe and including the Iberian peninsula (current day Portugal and Spain). In the immediate century before Jesus Christ was born, Iberia imported many goods from Carthage.

As such, the Carthaginians were less than happy when a small Italian town, named Rome, began to establish a series of trading posts in the Iberian peninsula and threatened Carthaginian monopolies and wealth. Carthaginian traders protested and began to attack these Roman trade establishments and attacked Roman ships carrying supplies to them. Rather than serving as a deterrent, Roman outposts became like small fortified outposts with a small army of one hundred soldiers led by a commanding 'Centurian' charged with orders to defend the trading outpost. In addition, Roman merchant ships carried trained soldiers to fight off the 'piracy' of Carthaginian ships. From a Cathaginian perspective. this was tantamount to declaration of war and General Hannibal was ordered to resolve the situation by leading a task force against Rome.

Hannibal's army landed in the Iberian peninsula and included many elephants, the like of which had never been seen before in Europe. His army marched northwards then across southern France, crossing the Alps, before moving south into Italy. It all took time in which Rome learned of this plan and raised an army to defend their city. On first encounter with their respective enemies, the elephants were like the modern day equivilent of a military tank and the Roman forces fled in disarray. Many Romans retreated into a marshland area where the elephants could not follow. In time, they built their own community and created the city now called Venice and where, in time, and in partnership with the city of Genoa, they would establish their own trade monopolies.

Hannibal's victory did not last long. Rome quickly recovered and rebuilt its army with a view to expanding its trading influence despite Carthaginian opposition. It was the beginning of a Roman Empire that would ultimately overthrow national armies and governments in many theatres of conflict. The City of Carthage itself was destroyed in the Third Punic War in 146BC then later rebuilt to become the third most important trading centre inside the Roman Empire.

By 57BC, Roman influence extended throughout Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. In that year, Roman soldiers briefly stepped on British soil for the first time and where, two years later, their invasion was successful but not without greater than expected resistance from the local population. The rebellion led by Queen Boudica of the Iceni tribe sacked Colchester and London before being put down. In the wake of this, Roman expansion throughout the southern part of Britain continued but slowed as Roman armies were matched by forces of increasingly wily, intelligent and fierce resistance from Pictish, Celtic and Gaelic warriors. One Roman Legion ventured north and then simply disappeared with the true state of their fate still remaining unknown even in current times. News of this event sent shockwaves throughout the Empire! A similar event in the Rhineland of Germany prompted Roman Emperors to rethink whether expansion of the Empire had reached its limit.

The life and death of Jesus Christ proved to be a major turning point for the Roman Empire and the entire World. Prophets had long predicted the arrival of a Messiah who would deliver the people from slavery and tyranny and many had perhaps imagined a military General of outstanding genius capable of pushing the Roman occupiers from their land. What they got instead was far greater than any kind of spiritual or military leader. Upon observation of a Roman coin, Jesus pronounced, 'Give back to Caesar what belongs to Caesar' and had this wisdom been fully understood at the time then Rome might have inherited a pile of worthless coins! The rejection of the trading system driven by the Romans would have meant soldiers without pay and could have split the empire more surely than a dozen powerful armies! As it was, though, it would take time for the Christian message to spread and infiltrate throughout the Empire and beyond. The miracles associated with Christ and his decision to choose deciples from common stock rather than nobility always meant challenge from those of authority and power. His final appearance after having been declared dead after crucifixion was a form of ultimate proof that he was truly the Son of God.

About fifty years after the death of Christ, in the year 73AD, Christian zealots occupied the allegedly impentetrable mountain fortress of Masada and where the Roman response was swift. After initial attacks failed, the Romans slowly built a thirty-foot ramp over many days that eventually permitted successful entry into the fort. The defenders were powerless to stop the construction and chose mass suicide rather than accept capture; such was degree of Roman opposition to christianity at that time. A few centuries later, the Edict of Milan, signed in 313AD, ended the religious persecution of Christians and within a relatively short time afterwards; christianity became became the officially recognised religion of the Empire and with its headquarters based in Rome. It became known as the Roman Catholic church as a consequence and would grow to have great influence and creating good in some cases and adversity in others.

Around seventy years after the death of Christ, an Egyptian scientist made a remarkable discovery which challenged many beliefs of the period. It began with a rumour about a well located eleven hundred miles north of Luxor in Southern Egypt and where the local people reported that on just one day of the year, people could peer down into the well and see the full expanse of the watery surface. On other days, some degree of shadow would hide some part of it. Ptolemy, an Eygptian scholar and based in Luxor, decided to perform a simple experiment based on this information.

It was at a time when some of the finest mathematical advances had Arabic sources. The Arab selection of a decimal system in place of Romanic letters brought the number zero (0) to Europe for the first time and where it probably originated in India. Algebra is an Arab word named after an Arab scholar. Arab sailors may have been some of the first mariners to employ trigonometry in navigation. In Europe, sailors kept close to shore and in the firm belief that the Earth was flat and where venturing too far from the coast might invite the prospect of sailing 'over the edge' into damnation. Ptolemy was about to challenge that belief in fine style. Not only that but introduce the notion of a spherical world in which he was also capable of calculating its size with outstanding accuracy! Based in the City of Luxor in southern Egypt, Ptolemy placed a vertical stick of wood in the soil on the appointed date and measured the shadow it created. Ptolemy correctly reasoned that the only way this could happen was if the Sun was directly over the well but not at other places more northerly or southward. In short, he introduced the notion of a spherical world and where the practical application of this knowledge was never put to the test until a Genoan trader named Christopher Columbus proposed an expedition sailing westwards towards the source of the Spice Islands and bypassing many traders in the process. Such events were far into the future though.

In the year 122, the Roman Empire had ceased to expand and was facing insurrection and rebellion within its borders. Emperor Hadrian visited the northern frontier of Britain and where any further expansion against the Celtic tribes had reached a precarious stalemate. In an effort to secure what already had been won, Hadrian ordered the construction of a fortified defensive stone wall crossing seventy-four miles from the Tyne Estuary to the Solway Firth and effectively splitting the island of Britain into two differing northern and southern territories. It was a huge undertaking and took six years to build and roughly follows a geographical line approximately of what is now the the boundaries between Scotland and England.

Twenty years later, in the year 142, the Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius adopted a more optimistic viewpoit about further expansion and ordered the construction of a new wall in Scotland crossing the sixty-three miles between the River Clyde in the West and the Firth of Forth to the East. It took twelve years to build and mostly comprised earthen ramparts and a wood fence rather than a wall of stone. The Antonine 'Fence' was far less successful than the Hadrian Wall and was abandoned just twenty years after its completion. Virtually nothing of it remains today.

The Edict of Milan of 313 finally accepted Christian belief as an accepted doctrine within the Roman Empire and ultimately led to adoption of the Christian Faith as being the official religion of the Empire. The decision to accept and promote Catholicism remains a crucial one in European history and where the consequences of this still echo down to the centuries into the present.

In the third century and in the midst of insurrection and rebellion within the empire, the Emperor Diocletian chose to split the empire into several autonomous factions and where elected officials were virtual emperors in their own right. Diocletian remains virtually the only Roman emperor who abdicated his throne and retired peacefully on the grounds of ill health.

In the year 476, Romulus Augustus, leader of the Western Empire, was forced to abdicate and the European part of the empire collapsed in the wake of this event. Roman interest in Britain ceased quite abruptly and led to the start of a 'Dark Age" where the sudden absence of written records has left a 'historical blind spot' lasting for several centuries. What exactly happened during the immediate post empire period in Europe remains largely fogged over with only occassonal ecclesiastic rays of sunshine to provide clues about that period of time in Europe.

In sharp contrast, documentation concerning the Byzantine or eastern part of the Roman Empire shows that some parts of the Roman Empire remained largely stable and continued to have trade links throughout Europe. Some shipwrecks found near Cornwall suggest that trade with the Byzantine Empire and Britain continued for some time after the European part of the old Roman Empire had withered away with Cornish tin being a favoured cargo. The Byzantine Empire survived for a further thousand years until the City of Constantople was sacked by the Ottoman Turks in 1453.

The Islamic Revolution

Somewhere around six hundred years after the life of Christ, Muhammed Ibn Abdullah, later misinterpreted as Mohamed visited the areas close to the Sea of Galilea and where he heard about the teachings of Christ. On returning to his home city of Mecca, he found life uncomfortable and retired to caves near the city to conduct quiet meditation. According to legend, it's where God spoke to him and prompted him to speak out to the citizens of Mecca. The citizens rejected the philosophy and threw him out of the city; forcing him to retire to the coastal town of Medina and towards a more receptive audience.

Over a period of eight years, Mohammed united the local tribes and led the first successful 'jihad' against the 'unbelievers' in the City of Mecca with an army of about ten thousand soldiers. By the time, he died of illness in 632, most Arab countries had converted to what was intially regarded as 'Mohamedan' faith in the West but is more recently referred to as Islam. Despite many other religious faiths, Muhammed Ibn Abdullah, remains as one of the most influential people who ever existed in the history of mankind.

Elsewhere in the World, many other faiths came to be accepted with many followers but for the sake of brevity in this history, it is not possible to detail them all and where most others had lesser influence in terms of Global History.

The 'Dark Ages'

As Roman military influence departed from British shores, any form of a unified government fell apart with many regions reverting to former boundaries or attempting to establish new kingdoms. Literature became the preserve of the surviving Catholic Church and where political power also lay within the Church. It's a period when the Church held sway over royalty and where royalty often needed the support of the Church to remain in power.

The period between the fifth and tenth century is one in which relatively few publications have survived and where almost all were written painstakingly by hand on calf vellum over many years. For this reason, historians often refer to the period as the 'Dark Ages' and where there is often gaps in historical knowledge about this period. The most informative of what few books there were is arguably the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles.

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicles began around 890 during the reign of Alfred the Great and officially concluded in 1124 under the rule of King Stephen although further editions continued until the year 1154. It was widely distributed to many churches but only nine copies have survived with seven of these in the care of the British Library.

From this, we know of the deep concerns presented by Viking raids on mainland Britain at that time and where efforts to defeat the Norsemen were failing. Alfred is said to the founder of the Royal Navy and where taxation income was divided three ways with defence assuming a sizeable portion while education and the Church received the remainder. Since the Church also played a major role in education, the Church grew to be a wealthy and politically active institution from about this period.

Following the Battle of Ethandun in 878 in which Alfred defeated the Viking army of Guthrum, he concluded that it was best to make peace with the enemy and both sides agreed to a treaty in which the boundary of Alfred's kingdom would become known as Mercia and encompass all lands in the English Midlands, Wales and South England. What is now called East Anglia and Northumbria would be Danelaw under autonomous Viking settlement. The key to this agreement was they should live in harmony. The agreement worked for a time and the City of Jorvik, now called York, became a highly successful commercial interest that soon attracted by a fresh wave of Viking invasions in the wake of Alfred's death in 899 and when Edward the Elder became King.

Years of conflict had taken a great toll on the Danelaw states and had reached a point where they were incapable of adequate defence. In desperation, they sought help from their nearest neighbour and Edward the Elder agreed but on terms whereby the Danelaw states renounced former sovereignty with Denmark and where Danelaw would become a formal part of England under Edward's rule.

Naturally, the deal was not universally accepted within the Danelaw states, but in 924, Edward's son, also called Edward, and Athelstan, grandson of Alfred the Great, led an army into the former Danelaw states and defeated the opposition once and for all time and ensuring Athelstan a special place in history as the first true King of all England. Athelstan then turned his attention to Scotland. His invasion of Strathclyde ruled by Owen I in 934 was universally condemned by both Celts and Vikings and which led to an alliance where former foes unified and collectively faced Athelstan's Anglo-Saxon army at Brunanburgh. Although this remains as one of the most crucial battles in British history; the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles are strangely silent about the event.

From different sources, the battle was one of great ferocity, butchery and bloodshed on a scale previously unknown. Many prominent lords and nobles died in the clash but even more were executed soon afterwards. Five Kings of Celtic tribes and seven Nordic Earls are alleged to have met their fate on that day and where the firm belief of a superior English army was to remain for centuries.

From that point in history, the Celts and Vikings retreated north and west into the relative security of Cyrmu, (Wales), Hibernia (Ireland) or Alba (Scotland) and where differing histories would always contain chapters related to English aspirations of conquest and expansion.

The Norman Conquest

In the year 1066, King Harold Godwinson of England found himself in a difficult situation concerning Viking incursions in the North and rumours about possible invasion from Normandy in the South. After due consideration, he chose to deal with the Viking situation first and where his army sped north and inflicted a major defeat on the Vikings at Stamford Bridge. Shortly afterward came news of a massive Norman invasion in the South and with haste, Harold led his army rapidly south to meet this new threat.

Close to Hastings, the invasion fleet headed by Duke William of Normandy quickly disembarked. His army included many knights from other countries who had been promised much in the wake of a successful invasion and where failure was never considered as an option. As soon as the ships were unloaded, many were ordered away from the coast and back to the continent. Some were even deliberately destroyed and troubadours were said to have played the 'Song Of Roland' to the invaders on the eve of battle.

On Senlac Hill, about six miles from Hastings, Harld Godwinson wisely assembled his exhausted army on the high ground from where they fought bravely against the invaders but at crucial moment during the battle, Harold Godwinson was shot in the eye by an arrow and died in great agony - an event depicted by the famous Bayeux Tapestry created some time afterwards.

William of Normandy's invasion of England proved to be the last successful invasion of Britain and he was naturally keen to discover what his new realm had in terms of wealth and taxation. In 1068, William ordered the creation of a hand-written record describing the land he had conquered in great detail and where families, circumstances and livestock were meticulously written down and recorded. Today, we know this written assessment as the Domesday Book and where copies have survived to show many features about England at that time.

On the basis of this information, William was keen to enforce a stricter form of government. New castles, with new lords and nobles, in charge were created to ensure the King's will and laws would be enforced. It is alleged that he replaced all Saxon noblemen with those of Norman birth within four years. King William the Conquerer, as he became known, died after falling from a horse in 1087.

During the Norman succession, one name stands out - Richard Courer De Lion, 'the lion heart' - Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Lord of Ireland, Lord of Cyprus, Count of Anjou, Count of Nantes and Overlord of Brittany and most famous as a Commander and Knight during the Third Crusade in the Holy Land.

At age 16, Richard had already his own army, putting down rebellions in Poitou against his father, King Henry II. During the Third Crusade, his army scored considerable success against his Muslim counterpart, Saladin. While he spoke very little English and spent very little time in Britain, he preferred to use it as a source of revenue to support his armies, he was seen as a pious hero by his subjects. Despite great effort to secure the Papal mission of securing the 'Holy Land', the European armies barely suceeded in a short term aberration after which time the region returned to former traditions. Richard remains one of the very few Kings of England remembered by his epithet rather than a number.

While Richard was away, his brother, operating in his absence, sought to usurp him and King John created mischeif and problems. It's in this period when tales about 'Robin Hood' appear but there is no real evidence to suggest that Robin Hood ever existed.

The Golden Age Of Exploration

Starting around 790, Moors were progressively driven out of the Iberian peninsula in what was called the Reconquista (reconquer) and which lasted approximately 750 years. The Portuguese Reconquista was completed in 1247 under the reign of Alfonso III. The last Arab leader of Grenada surrendered to Ferdinand and Isabella in 1492 although Navarre remained separate until 1512. It was in this way, and through the Crusades of the Middle East, that Europeans encountered books, maps and teachings of the Arab people. In this way, Europeans learned that Arab sailors were regular visitors to India and to Far Eastern destinations and from where traders bought spices and other goods back for sale to people in Europe. In an age before refrigeration, spices helped to preserve meat while adding to its flavour and were highly prized and expensive goods. The trading cities of Genoa and Venice had monopolised the spice trade by making deals with Arab traders and both cities had grown rich on the back of the spice trade.

It was a desire to break this trade monopoly that prompted King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Castille (Spain) to support a notion that the World was spherical and presented to them by a man named Christopher Columbus. The Columbus proposal was that a ship might sail westward and encounter the 'Spice Islands' and where trade could be conducted directly with the source and bypassing the many merchant middle-men in the process. Three ships were prepared for the voyage and in 1492, they anchored close to the island of San Salvador yet still ignorant of the huge continents lying further west. Columbus didn't actually reach the American mainland until his later expedition of 1498. He never did find the 'Spice Islands' but the discovery of these 'new lands' often resulted in plunder stolen from the indigenous people and where ships were soon headed for Spanish ports laden with gold, silver and valuable gems in great quantity. The 'new wealth' prompted further explorations and in 1522, a badly battered and severely damaged ship with only seventeen men aboard limped into the harbour of Sanlucar de Barrameda in Southern Spain. The ship was called Victoria and was the last remnant of the Magellan expedition that had left Spain three years beforehand. It was the first ship to circumnavigate the World!

Virgin Queen, Mary Queen of Scots and Armada

Wealth and plunder from the 'New World' came at an exceptionally fortunate time for Spain and whose economy was in a dire state when King Philip II ascended the throne. Despite this, Philip felt compelled to champion the cause of Catholicism at a time when the Catholic Church was being increasingly challenged. In 1554, Philip married Mary I of England. This gave him the titles of King Consort of England and Ireland but "Bloody Mary" as she came to be known in English Protestant lore, died in 1558 without bearing children and before any union could revitalise the Catholic Church in England. The English Crown passed to Elizabeth Tudor, daughter of Anne Boleyn and King Henry VIII, and the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty. During her life, Elizabeth I never married and had few suitors leading to the nickname name of the 'Virgin Queen' in some quarters. In sharp contrast to Mary, Elizabeth actively supported the establishment of a Protestant Church in England during her reign and upon coronation, Elizabeth inherited a series of difficult issues not least concerned with Scotland, France and Spain. She deeply resented the 'Auld Alliance' between Scotland and France and feared the possibility of invasion from the north.

On the death of James V of Scotland, who left no male heirs, Elizabeth exerted great influence to put Mary onto the throne of Scotland and where Mary became known as 'Queen of Scots'. The price of this political manipulation was the Treaty of Edinburgh in which the 'Auld Alliance' was formerly disolved with French troops withdrawn from Scotland to France. Despite this, there remained a real fear that under certain circumstances, Mary Queen of Scots could become Queen of Scotland, England and France.

In 1565, Mary married Lord Darnley and who quickly became unpopular in Scotland and was later suspected of murdering her Italian secretary, David Rizio. Later, Darnley was murdered and most likely by a group led by Lord Bothwell. Incredibly, Mary married Bothwell soon afterwards and which promoted rumours of association and preplanned murder. In haste, Elizabeth wrote to Mary and did not mince her words but it was already too late. Several Lords in Scotland rebelled and Mary was imprisoned at Loch Leven Castle before making an escape to England. She may have expected sympathy and support but instead found feirce resistance to any notion of returning her to the throne of Scotland and on very practical grounds. Wisely, Elizabeth had determined that putting Mary nack on the Scots throne would be deeply resented and demand long-term occupation by English troops. Instead, Mary was incarcerated for the remainder of her life and where her name came to be associated with a number of plots against the English Queen and where she was ultimately found guilty and beheaded at Fothergay Castle on 8th February 1587 at the age of forty-four. Mary's son, then just eighteen months old, was appointed King James VI of Scotland in 1567 albeit with control in the hands of regents until 1581.

Although depicted as an outstanding leader in folklore, Elizabeth was often indecisive and cautious. When it came to overseas trade agreements with the Ottoman Empire where exports of tin and lead were key components for armaments, she was doubtless aware of fears arising in Catholic European countries. In one correspondence, Murad of the Ottoman Empire, entertained the notion that Islam and Protestantism had 'much more in common than either did with Roman Catholicism, as both rejected the worship of idols', and further argued for an alliance between England and the Ottoman Empire. A papal notice issued on February 25, 1570, by Pope Pius V declared, "Elizabeth, the pretended Queen of England and the servant of crime" to be a heretic and releasing all her subjects from any allegiance to her and excommunicating any that obeyed her orders. It went further and announced, "She has removed the Royal Council, composed of the nobility of England, and has filled it with obscure men, being heretics." Such strong condemnation prompted King Philip II of Spain to adopt the role of 'defender of the faith' and to address issues concerning the perceived challenges to the Catholic faith.

At the time, Spain was a loose confederation of territories in which the King's Law was filtered down or even rejected by some feudal states. Gathering taxation was a difficult process and Spain became bankrupt several times during his reign and despite the great flow of plundered wealth from the 'New World'. Prices rose a staggering five times during his reign and on the day he died, nearly forty percent of the Spanish Gross Domestic Product (GNP) was needed to meet debts and obligations. Most food had to be imported rather than grown locally. Despite this, Philip offered lavish rewards to assassins who might murder those who opposed him. Twenty thousand ducats (about five million pounds sterling using present day equivilent) was offered for the death of Sir Francis Drake whom Philip regarded as little more than a common thief and pirate. The reward was never collected and Drake died of dysentry in 1596 but not before people had witnessed one of the greatest battles in naval history and in which Drake was placed second-in-command of the English navy.

King Philip's zeal to protect the Catholic faith extended to the Great Inquisition where those sustaining remnant Moorish tradition and religion in the Iberian peninsula were typically put to the sword. Maritime raids on the Balearic Islands and the Spanish coastline prompted him to create an alliance known as the 'Holy League' and in 1560, a unified force of two hundred ships carrying thirty thousand soldiers attacked, invaded and occupied the strategically placed island of Djerba. The Ottoman Empire, led by Suleiman the Magnificent, responded by sending a force of one hundred and twenty ships. The resulting conflict was a disaster for the 'Holy League' who lost thirty galleons and thirty other vessels with casualties of around twenty thousand. Five years later, the Ottoman's invaded Malta and enjoyed early success only to be driven from the island soon afterward.

In 1571, the Holy League assembled once again to combat the threat from the Middle East with a fleet of two hundred and met the Ottoman naval forces of two hundred and twenty two ships offshore near Lipanto in Greece. It was to be the last naval engagement in which warships required men to work oars in order to steer and power the ships and resulted was davastating defeat for the Ottoman Empire from which they never fully recovered. It was the moment where failures of numerous crusades in previous centuries was redressed and where Western Europe finally overcame the powerful influences exerted by Middle Eastern military and trading power. Above all, the Catholic Papal Seat in Rome could thence be regarded as safe.

King Philip II of Spain was never a keen traveller and preferred others to oversee daily management of more distant lands. As King of the Seventeen Provinces of the Netherlands, he had deep concerns about the sudden rise of the Protestant religion in that area. He appointed people to supress the religion, quell any revolt or rebellion but to no avail. Rebels in these areas received patchy support from the English crown and while Queen Elizabeth dithered about full commitment and potential conflict with Spain. In 1581, the majority of states in the Netherlands voted to reject Philip as their lawful King and in 1585, Elizabeth Tudor signed the Treaty of Nonsuch whereby supplies and support for the rebels was guaranteed and allegedly in response to the Treaty of Joinville whereby Spain and France might join forces against England. In response, Philip decreed this act of brinkmanship as an act of war and the Anglo-Spanish conflict to start with immediate effect.

It began with ships commanded by privateer Captains, sometimes former pirates who had accepted the Queen of England's pardon in exchange for service to the nation and dedicated to attacking Spanish 'treasure ships' sailing from the 'New World'. Such treasures, already stolen from the New World represented a substantial income to the English exchequer and at a time when Sir Francis Drake became the first English sailor to circumnavigate the World and occasionally raiding Spanish territories in South America in the process.

With Papal blessing, Philip II of Spain began the task of a 'Great Armada' of ships and with the intention of shipping thirty-thousand troops from the Netherlands onto the southern shores of England and where huge numbers of Catholic sympathisers would swell the invasion force in considerable number. Right from the start, however, the project seemed doomed to failure.

Intermittent money supply prompted purchase of cannons and guns from different makers with none adopting any common or single standard and where ammunition was procured to meet these various standards and in differing quantities. It is even alleged that in at least one case, the ship sailed with more priests and missionararies on board than gunners familiar with the technologies they were expected to deploy. Commanders of the Armada fleet were ordered to avoid contact with English warships if possible but the planning and build up of this force was virtually impossible to conceal and where word was certain to reach England well in advance of sailing.

In England, a chain of beacons were installed so that news of the Armada's approach might be relayed to London within hours. Even when the call to action took place, Francis Drake is alleged to have finished a game of bowls before putting to sea and recognising how the wind and weather would affect the future outcome of the battle.

With expert knowledge of local tides and hazards, experienced seafarers like John Hawkins and Sir Francis Drake participated in a series of battles starting about 8th August 1588 and where the Armada ships were often larger. At close quarter, much of the damage sustained by English ships pertained to their rigging. By contrast, Spanish ships sustained major damage to their hulls and where it mattered most. Most Spanish ships escaped the initial confrontation when the English fleet was compelled to withdraw having expended their supply of ammunition.

The Armada headed into port and was ready to embark soldiers for invasion but then the sudden introduction of unmanned fireships, launched against them by the English and packed with explosives and flamitory accelerants caused makor panic among captains of the Spanish fleet. Most ships of the Armada left port in a hurry to avoid the threat and were compelled to obey the wind carrying them into the North Sea and where Spanish Navigators had wisely advised against any attempt to return home via the narrow straight of the English Channel and where they could have been at the mercy of the English Navy.

For Spanish captains, the invasion plan was already lost and most accepted this advice, preferring the perceived safer route north and across the northern tip of Scotland rather than face the English Navy again. Many were wrecked on Scottish and Irish coastlines and only sixty seven of the one hundred and thirty ships of the Armada returned to safe havens in Spain.

Undeterred, three more Armadas were assembled; two were sent to England in 1596 and 1597, but both also failed; the third in 1599 was diverted to the Azores and Canary Islands to fend off raids. The Anglo-Spanish War (1585-1604) was fought to a grinding end, but not until both Philip II (d. 1598) and Elizabeth I (d. 1603) were both dead.

In 1603, James the Sixth of Scotland and First Of England assumed Kingship of a Unified Britain and despite bitter resentment from the Catholic community. On November 5th 1605, a Catholic plot to murder the King was uncovered and showed how conspirators had planned to detonate a massive charge of explosives beneath the Houses of Parliament. Guy Fawkes, a Dutchman, and other Catholic sympathisers, were caught or killed in subsequent days. Today, the 'Gunpowder Plot' is still remembered by firework displays and bonfires across the land on November 5th.

James was proclaimed King within hours following the death of Elizabeth and was well received by the people who had feared great difficulty in the wake of her death. This was largely on account of advance planning by the Queen's privy staff and James wisely elected to retain the same Elizabethan structure and personnel during the early years of his reign.

James sought to expand international trade using the British East India Company and especially with Japan. He ended the Anglo-Spanish war and helped maintain a country at peace rather than at war. Taxes were low during his lifetime but issues with Parliament surfaced from time to time. The 'Magna Carta' documents of 1215, had laid out certain limitations of sovereignty but the Stuart Kings had no desire to accept such agreement and insisted upon their divine 'right to rule under God' and without restraint of any kind. As such, disputes between the King and Parliament became more frequent. In early 1625, King James' health deteriorated sharply and he suffered a stroke before dying a few weeks later. He had kept faith with the people throughout his life yet carried a certain dislike for Parliament, a trait which his successor, Charles I, had unfortunately inherited.

The English Civil War

Upon his coronation, there were many who prayed King Charles would try and restore the respect for monarchy and which had suffered much during his fathers reign with rumours of homosexual behavior and his deep disdain for Parliament. Naturally, the people hoped taxes would remain low but this quickly proved impossible when Charles embarked on a series of humiliating and costly military adventures. More than once, he demanded taxes should be raised but Parliament opposed and blocked him. In a series of political moves, he tried to manipulate Parliament to vote in his favour but many now feared he was trying to replace Parliament and return to a position of absolute power for himself. Forced into a desperate situation, Charles was compelled to accept agreements by Parliament whereby his power to dissolve it was removed and where he agreed to many concessions. In November 1641, the House of Commons passed the Grand Remonstrance, a long list of grievances against actions by Charles' ministers that were asserted to be abuses of his royal power. When rumours reached Charles that Parliament intended to impeach his Catholic Queen, Henrietta Maria, he sought to arrest those who were perceived to be troublesome on charges of High Treason.

Charles intended to carry out the arrests personally but news of the warrant reached Parliament ahead of him and the wanted men; John Pym, John Hampden, Denzil Holles, William Strode and Sir Arthur Haselrig had already slipped away by the time he arrived. Charles entered the House of Commons with an armed force on 4th January 1642 but found that his opponents had already escaped. Having displaced the Speaker, William Lenthall spoke from his chair. The King asked him where the MPs had fled and Lenthall famously replied, "May it please your Majesty, I have neither eyes to see nor tongue to speak in this place but as the House is pleased to direct me, whose servant I am here."

This incident, by itself, impuned monarchy but it could have been repaired with words rather than war. Charles fled from London to the north and began to recruit an army while his wife tried to raise funds in Europe. Charles raised his royal standard in Nottingham in 1642 before setting up his own court in Oxford. The prospect of Civil War between King and Parliament was now unavoidable. The maps below show the state of the war from 1642-1645.

The Battle of Edgehill, fought in 1642, resulted in an inconclusive outcome as did many following battles but there was one crucial exception. In 1642, Prince Rupert led a powerful Royalist force to relieve the besieged town of Newcastle. Upon completion of this task, his massive army withdrew and encamped at Marston Moor late in the afternoon and where Rupert expected troops of the Duke of Newcastle to join him. Rumours of a powerful Parliamentary force headed by Oliver Cromwell heading towards Marston Moor were rife but the Royalists fully expected battle on the morrow rather than on that evening. They had begun to cook their evening meal when the Parliamentarian forces were spotted nearby.

On arrival, Oliver Cromwell observed that "an English summer evening is as long as a winter's day" and ordered his troops directly into battle. The resultant conflict was a disaster for the Royalist cause in northern England. Cromwell's insistence upon better trained armies often referred to as the 'New Model Army' helped switch the war in favour of the Parliamentry forces culminating in the Battle of Naseby of 1645 and where the capture of King Charles should have brought the war to an end.

In fairness to Cromwell and despite everything that had happened, Cromwell did his best to restore Charles to the role of King but Charles refused to accept the rights and limits of Parliament to determine future policies of the country. Worse still, he sent letters to Scotland and elsewhere in an attempt to restart the war. Scots invaded England but were defeated at Preston. For Cromwell and the Parliamentarians, this was a step too far and King Charles was tried for treason against the people and sentenced to execution. The beheading of King Charles in 1649 sent shockwaves throughout Europe and prompted Charles II to fight on in hope of winning back the crown by his hopes were dashed at the Battle of Worcester in 1651 when the last Royalist army of 16,000 troops faced the Parliamentary 'New Model Army' of 28,000 troops. Charles II fled to Europe and remained in exile for seven years while Oliver Cromwell served as Lord Protector of the nation. When Cromwell died in 1658, Charles II was invited to restore the monarchy and his arrival back in Britain was well received by the public. Dated documents relating to the rule of Oliver Cromwell was altered in such a way as to suggest Charles II had inherited his fathers throne in 1651. Never again would a Monarch of Britain be granted absolute power without the backing of Parliament!

Credits:
Great Pyramid picture by Nina Alden Thume. Hadrian's Wall Picture by Alandon. Maps from Internet Open Source.
Text by Alandon.