1618-2018: Some things never change
Grapple with the character of Sir Walter Raleigh and you’ll find him difficult to pin down. He displays so many facets, and inspired so many myths in later centuries. Some of the changes came with age of course: you go from disgust at the monstrous cruelty he seems to have displayed as a young officer in Ireland to admiration for the coolness he famously exhibited when facing death on the s caffold. Raleigh's cell at the Tower of London Image credit: www.sickchickchic.com For part of his life he was the ambitious scheming courtier; towards the end he was the scholar and scientist, dispensing medicines from his laboratory in the Tower of London. It’s difficult to reconcile the contradictions in his character, but easy to spot the similarities between his age and ours. King James I and President Trump: they share more than just their Scots heritage Image credit: Wikipedia Nations today can st...