Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Graham Cornwell

Graham Cornwell is a historian of the Middle East and North Africa based in Lexington, Kentucky. He runs Orangerie, a Morocco travel and craft business, with his wife, Judy. You can follow him on Instagram at @our_orangerie.

An illustration of Thomas Stukeley kneeling in front of Pope Gregory XIII and Philip II of Spain, who urged him to raise a rebellion against Elizabeth I of England

The Swashbuckling Tudor Mercenary Who Was Killed in a Battle That Claimed the Lives of Three 16th-Century Kings

Englishman Thomas Stukeley offered his services to various Catholic powers. He died while fighting for the Portuguese at the Battle of Alcácer Quibir on August 4, 1578

Established 200 years ago, on May 17, 1821, the Tangier American Legation is a rambling mansion that spans two sides of the Rue d’Amerique in the southern corner of Tangier's old walled city.

Why a 200-Year-Building in Morocco Is the Only National Historic Landmark Outside the U.S.

The structure in the port city of Tangier has served as a diplomatic residence, consulate, espionage headquarters, museum and library

The arrest and the subsequent landing of U.S. troops could happen in Tangier, yet it was completely unthinkable just 12 miles away in Gibraltar or 60 miles away in Cadiz.

The Diplomatic Intrigue That Gave Morocco a Cameo Appearance in the U.S. Civil War

Confederate agents seeking European support were imprisoned by the U.S. consul, which ignited international protest