The Pirate Queen: Queen Elizabeth I, Her Pirate Adventurers, and the Dawn of Empire

“A highly colorful, swashbuckling read, one that will give you new respect for Britain’s first Elizabeth.” —Seattle Times

An illuminating revisionist biography about Queen Elizabeth I and her merchant-adventurers who terrorized the seas, extended the Empire, and amassed great wealth for the throne.

Extravagant, whimsical, and hot-tempered, Elizabeth was the epitome of power, both feared and admired by her enemies. Dubbed the "pirate queen" by the Vatican and Spain's Philip II, she employed a network of daring merchants, brazen adventurers, astronomer philosophers, and her stalwart Privy Council to anchor her throne—and in doing so, planted the seedlings of an empire that would ultimately cover two-fifths of the world.

In The Pirate Queen, historian Susan Ronald offers a fresh look at Elizabeth I, relying on a wealth of historical sources and thousands of the queen's personal letters to tell the thrilling story of a visionary monarch and the swashbuckling mariners who terrorized the seas to amass great wealth for themselves and the Crown.

This gripping narrative history reveals the cunning statecraft behind the legend:

• A Cunning Businesswoman: Discover how Elizabeth, a brilliant and often ruthless strategist, used her network of adventurers and merchants to secure her throne and fill her coffers.
• State-Sponsored Piracy: A detailed account of the swashbuckling mariners who, with the queen’s blessing, terrorized the seas and challenged the might of Spain's Philip II.
• The Dawn of Empire: Explore how Elizabeth’s policies, born of a desperate need for security, inadvertently planted the seedlings of a vast British Empire.
• Tudor Statecraft: Go beyond the myth with this fresh look at Elizabeth I, meticulously constructed from thousands of the queen’s personal letters and forgotten historical documents.

Extravagant, whimsical, and hot-tempered, Elizabeth was the epitome of power, both feared and admired by her enemies. Dubbed the "pirate queen" by the Vatican and Spain's Philip II, she employed a network of daring merchants, brazen adventurers, astronomer philosophers, and her stalwart Privy Council to anchor her throne—and in doing so, planted the seedlings of an empire that would ultimately cover two-fifths of the world.

In The Pirate Queen, historian Susan Ronald offers a fresh look at Elizabeth I, relying on a wealth of historical sources and thousands of the queen's personal letters to tell the thrilling story of a visionary monarch and the swashbuckling mariners who terrorized the seas to amass great wealth for themselves and the Crown.

“Authoritative, assiduously researched and with a knack for making the intricacies of sea skirmishes accessible and absorbing, this is a surprisingly fresh perspective on one of the most popular subjects of royal biography.” - Publishers Weekly

“Ms Ronald has succeeded in two of the main tasks of a historian: to tell a good tale, and to encourage debate.” - The Independent