Episode 068: Black Tudors

It's Black History Month in North America, and in honor of that, I
am going out of the planned narrative of war with France, and doing
this episode on the black Tudor experience. There have been black
people in England since Roman times, and records show them in
England throughout the middle ages. During the Age of Exploration,
though, the population in London and England grew, so much so that
Elizabeth I thought she might have to do something about it. She
was unsuccessful, though. Interestingly, the slave trade didn't
really take off in England until the mid 17th century, and under
English law it was impossible to be a slave in Tudor England, so
the experience of black Tudors is unique compared to those in Spain
and Portugal during this time. In fact, the story is largely how
similar to white Tudors their experience was. By that, I mean that
their experience ran the spectrum from being poor servants to
having important roles at court, and everything in the middle.
You'd never know it based on the pop culture interpretations of
Tudor England, though. So join me in this episode to learn about
several black Tudors including a black soldier who was made a
knight after defeating the Scots. If you like this show, please
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to help shows succeed. Show notes and more information at
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