I was watching the movie Elizabeth: The Golden Age and I was pleased to see that the English court magician Dr. John Dee was featured in the film. In real life, the man was remarkable. He was a scientist, an astrologer, occultist, navigator and even a spy (his codename was 007 thus making him a prototype for James Bond) for Queen Elizabeth I back in the Renaissance Age. He was the founder of Enochian Magic. He was a man who was ahead of his time.
Well, that is until religious bigotry stepped in and ruined his life. When Queen Elizabeth I died, troubles started piling up for poor John. His library and laboratory was ransacked by vandals and thieves. He was made Warden of Christ's College in Manchester but there he was hated and even cheated. When he returned to London, Elizabeth I died and the new ruler James I refused to help Dee due to his supernatural reputation. Dee spent the rest of his life in poverty.
Despite his unfortunate tale, John Dee's legacy lives on among the modern magicians. If the real world has a Merlin, Dr. Dee was the closest.
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