Through a range of cultural, economic, and political changes, the old trading relationships that English merchants had enjoyed for centuries fully broke down during Elizabeth's reign. In their place, new opportunities for wealth emerged; new countries to trade with, new products to buy and sell, and a thinly-guarded colonial empire full to the brim with slave markets and gold mines. Opportunities aplenty for those with the naval expertise to seize them.

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For this episode, I found the following publications particularly useful:

- Clay C. G. A., 1940-. (1984). Economic expansion and social change : England 1500-1700

- Benjamin Thomas, 1952-. (2009). The Atlantic world : European, Africans, Indians and their shared history, 1400-1900

- John C. Appleby, 'War, Politics, and Colonization, 1558-1625', in The Oxford History of the British Empire: Volume I: The Origins of Empire

For a full bibliography, see the website.

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