Calendar of Letters and State Papers Relating to English Affairs: Volume 4: Preserved Principally in the Archives of Simancas

Published in four volumes between 1892 and 1899, this collection contains assorted papers and correspondence between Spain and Spanish dignitaries in England from the accession of Elizabeth I in 1558 through to her death in 1603. Revealing the changing relationship between Spain and England, the documents offer detailed insights into Elizabeth’s reign from a continental and Catholic perspective. They have been carefully edited and translated into English by Martin Andrew Sharp Hume (1843-1910), a respected historian of Spain and a scrupulous archival researcher. Each volume is arranged chronologically, contains an introduction that provides helpful historical context and closes with an index that includes both letter writers and recipients. Volume 4 (1899) covers the final years of Elizabeth’s reign (1587-1603). Though lacking the completeness of the correspondence in previous volumes - due to the diplomatic breakdown between Spain and England - this volume nevertheless contains much valuable and previously untapped material.