The complexity of having so many organisations involved, and the deep integration required, has undoubtedly tested the interpersonal skills of project leaders who have had little face-to-face contact.

Cold, hunger, prisons, ills without a cure.

But was it responsible governance to pass the Longitude Act without other efforts to protect British seamen? Or might it have been subterfuge—a disingenuous attempt to shift attention away from the realities of their life at sea.

What if the death of Britannia heightened awareness of the non-political culture that spans the entire archipelago – the islandic world?