The US Secret Service was
created on July 5, 1865, and has been in effect ever since, working extensively
to combat counterfeiting during the tail end of the American Civil War as well
as ensuring the safety of the President, Vice President, their families and
associated potential candidates and members of the cabinet. But few are aware that the world’s very first
secret service agency was formed around the time of Queen Elizabeth I’s succession
to the throne of England in 1558. Ran by
father-son team William and Robert Cecil, the agency sought to thwart
assassination attempts on the Queen’s life as well as intercept and dispel
messages being communicated under the radar by various opponents.
Including but not limited to
Mary Queen of Scots and fugitive Catholic priest John Gerard who attempted to
orchestrate the destruction of the parliament through a foiled terrorist
conspiracy, this new PBS/BBC coproduction series split up into three one-hour
episodes bring forward the studied opinions of many various historians in an
attempt to piece together the puzzle connecting the most mysterious governing
body England has ever known. Like many
History Channel historical documentary series, Queen Elizabeth’s Secret Agents utilizes a mixture of preexisting
paintings of the historical figures in question in addition to staging loose
reenactments in soft focus of the key figures in motion.
Intercut with a neon
red-blue lit animated infographic and aided by voiceover narration by Colin
Tierney in addition to cutting between the numerous historians’ own
contributions, we’re presented with an abbreviation of the events at hand that
are at once easy to follow and compelling in their urgency. Aided by a frequently nerve wracking and
occasionally somber score by frequent documentary film composer Duncan Glasson,
Queen Elizabeth’s Secret Agents is as
much of a historical investigation into the first iteration of the secret
service the world has ever known as it is a compelling mood piece. You don’t just witness the events being
dramatized and piece together the intricate conspiracies being unveiled, you
feel transported into the state of mind of the figures who lived through
arguably Britain’s darkest period.
Most curious of all is the
question of whether or not Queen Elizabeth I or William and Robert Cecil’s
secret agency were in fact the true power players that formed the England the
world knows today. It’s debatable just
how much influence one party had over the other and whether or not the country
would be the world power it is now had the secret service not been formed or
exercised with the ruthless authority it became infamous for. To this day we’ll never know for certain but Queen Elizabeth’s Secret Agents offers a
wealth of speculation, giving viewers a complete picture within the show’s
running time while also leaving just enough open to interpretation for history
buffs to decide for themselves who they think actually governed England at the
time.
Score:
- Andrew Kotwicki