Introduction to Colonization, Piracy, and Trade in Early Modern Europe: The Roles of Powerful Women and Queens

Abstract

This collection brings together essays examining the international influence of queens, other female rulers, and their representatives from 1450 through 1700, an era of expanding colonial activity and sea trade. As Europe rose in prominence geopolitically, a number of important women--such as Queen Elizabeth I of England, Catherine de Medici, Caterina Cornaro of Cyprus, and Isabel Clara Eugenia of Austria--exerted influence over foreign affairs. Traditionally male-dominated spheres such as trade, colonization, warfare, and espionage were, sometimes for the first time, under the control of powerful women. This interdisciplinary volume examines how they navigated these activities, and how they are represented in literature. By highlighting the links between female power and foreign affairs, Colonization, Piracy, and Trade in Early Modern Europe contributes to a fuller understanding of early modern queenship. Mary I, Mary of Guise and the strong hand of the Scots : Marian policy in Ulster and Anglo-Scottish diplomacy, 1553-1558 / Jonathan Woods -- Catherine de Medici and Huguenot colonization, 1560-1567 / Nate Probasco -- Isabel Clara Eugenia, Governor of the Spanish Netherlands : trade, politics, and warfare, ruling like a king, 1621-1633 / Estelle Paranque -- Caterina Cornaro and the colonization of Cyprus / Lisa Hopkins -- Trade and piracy : the role of a potential queen consort in the 1620s / Valentina Caldari -- "The princesses' representative" or renegade entrepreneur? : Marie Petit, the silk trade, and Franco-Persian Diplomacy / Junko Thérèse Takeda -- "I would not have given it for a wilderness of monkeys" : turquoise, queenship‚ and the exotic / Carole Levin and Cassandra Auble -- A vision on Queen Elizabeth's role in colonizing America : Stephen Parmenius's De navigatione (1582) / Erzsébet Stróbl -- Captains, kings, queens : politics, piracy, and the sea in Middleton's The phoenix (c.1603-04) / Claire Jowitt. Acknowledgements; Contents; Editors and Contributors; List of Figures; Chapter 1 Introduction to Colonization, Piracy, and Trade in Early Modern Europe: The Roles of Powerful Women and Queens ; Bibliography; Part I Demonstration of Power; Chapter 2 Mary I, Mary of Guise and the Strong Hand of the Scots: Marian Policy in Ulster and Anglo-Scottish Diplomacy, 1553-1558 ; The Families of Ulster and Early Marian Policy Toward the Scots in Ulster; Mary of Guise, the Earl of Argyll and Anglo-Scottish Diplomacy; Anti-Scottish Policy Under Sussex; Conclusion; Bibliography Chapter 3 Catherine de Medici and Huguenot Colonization, 1560-1567 Catherine's Religious Policy During Her Regency (1560-1563); Huguenot Colonization in La Florida (1562-1565); Catherine's Overture to the Ottomans (1566); Conclusion (1567, 1572); Bibliography; Chapter 4 Isabel Clara Eugenia, Governor of the Spanish Netherlands: Trade, Politics, and Warfare, Ruling like a King 1621-1633 ; Isabel's Involvement in Trade; Isabel & European Politics: Representative of Spain, Counsel, and Involvement; Isabel & Warfare I: Finance & Strategy Isabel & Warfare II: Responsibility, Authority, and Martial IdentityConclusion; Bibliography; Part II Diplomatic Strategies; Chapter 5 Caterina Cornaro and the Colonization of Cyprus ; Bibliography; Chapter 6 Trade and Piracy: The Role of a Potential Queen Consort in the 1620s ; Abbreviations; James I's Dynastic Policies in England and Spain; The Treaty of London; Mary I and Philip of Spain; Turks and Pirates; Conclusion; Bibliography; Chapter 7 "The Princesses' Representative" or Renegade Entrepreneur? Marie Petit, the Silk Trade, and Franco-Persian Diplomacy ; Prologue Petit, Silk Merchants, and Missionaries in PersiaPetit, Vakhtang VI and the Politics of Identity at the Edge of Empire; Conclusion; Bibliography; Part III Exotic Encounters; Chapter 8 "I would not have given it for a wilderness of monkeys": Turquoise, Queenship‚ and the Exotic ; Shylock's Ring; The Value of Turquoise; The Suggestive and Curative Powers of Turquoise; Turquoise as Exotic; Queens and Turquoise; Bibliography; Chapter 9 A Vision on Queen Elizabeth's Role in Colonizing America: Stephen Parmenius's De Navigatione (1582) ; Stephen Parmenius of Buda Elizabethan Views on Explorations and ColonizationThe Vision of a Golden Age; Conclusion; Bibliography; Chapter 10 Captains, Kings, Queens: Politics, Piracy, and the Sea in Middleton's The Phoenix (c.1603-04) ; Understanding Early Modern Sea Captains; Sex, Captains, and the Politics of Isolation; Bibliography; Index