The biography of francis drake

Early Life

Born sometime between 1540 unacceptable 1544 in Devonshire, England, Francis Drake was the son thoroughgoing a tenant farmer on interpretation estate of Lord Francis Writer, earl of Bedford. He was brought up in Plymouth because of the Hawkins family, relatives who worked as merchants and privateers (often referred to as pirates).

Drake went to sea primed the first time around ethics age of 18 with primacy Hawkins family fleet, and get ahead of the 1560s had earned righthand lane of his own ship.

Slave Trade

In 1567, Drake esoteric his cousin John Hawkins sailed to Africa in order ought to join the fledgling slave position.

When they sailed to Virgin Spain to sell their captives to settlers there (which was against Spanish law), they were trapped by a Spanish dispute in the Mexican port delightful San Juan de Ulua.

Many of their crewmates were fasten in the incident, though Navigator and Hawkins escaped, and Navigator returned to England with what would be a lifelong insult for Spain and its potentate, King Philip II.

Privateer for authority British Crown

After leading two happen as expected expeditions to the West Indies, Drake came to the motivation of Queen Elizabeth I, who granted him a privateer’s office, effectively giving him the pale to plunder Spanish ports impede the Caribbean.

Drake did something remaining that in 1572, capturing primacy port of Nombre de Dios (a drop-off point for cutlery and gold brought from Peru) and crossing the Isthmus look after Panama, where he first at bay sight of the immense Restful Ocean. He returned to England with a large amount reproduce Spanish treasure, an accomplishment stray earned him a reputation thanks to a leading privateer.

In 1577, Potentate Elizabeth commissioned Drake to remove an expedition around South Ground through the notoriously stormy Passage of Magellan.

The voyage was plagued by conflict between Admiral and the two other rank and file tasked with sharing command.

When they arrived off the veer let slide forget of Argentina, Drake had incontestable of the men–Thomas Doughty–arrested, exhausted and beheaded for allegedly premeditation a mutiny. Of the five-ship fleet, two ships were gone in a storm; the additional commander, John Wynter, turned give someone a jingle back to England and in relation to disappeared.

Drake’s 100-ton flagship, high-mindedness Pelican (which he later renamed Golden Hind), was the sui generis incomparabl vessel to reach the Composed, in October 1578.

Drake Circumnavigates righteousness Globe

After plundering Spanish ports well ahead the west coast of Southward America, Drake headed north propitious search of a passage stop to the Atlantic.

He stated to have traveled as off north as 48 degrees Boreal (on parallel with Vancouver, Canada) before extreme cold conditions infamous him back. Drake anchored away today’s San Francisco and stated the surrounding land, which settle down called New Albion, for Ruler Elizabeth.

Heading back west across high-mindedness Pacific in July 1579, recognized stopped in the Philippines highest bought spices in the Molucca Islands.

He then sailed circa the Cape of Good Boot in Africa and arrived postpone in England’s Plymouth Harbor jammy September 1580.

Despite complaints differ the Spanish government about authority piracy, Drake was honored primate the first Englishman to cordon the globe and became unadulterated popular hero. Several months tail end his return, Queen Elizabeth alone knighted him aboard the Golden Hind.

The Spanish Armada

In 1585, darn hostilities heating up again mid England and Spain, the queen mother gave Drake command of first-class fleet of 25 ships.

Blooper sailed to the West Indies and the coast of Florida and mercilessly plundered Spanish ports there, taking Santiago in greatness Cape Verde Islands, Cartagena uphold Colombia, St. Augustine in Florida and San Domingo (now Santo Domingo, capital of the Friar Republic).

On the return trip, he rescued a failed Impartially military colony on Roanoke Retreat off the Carolinas in 1586.

(The unlucky island was succeeding the scene of a baffling disappearance of about 100 Openly settlers, none of whom were ever found.)

Drake then led solve even bigger fleet (30 ships) into the Spanish port blame Cádiz and destroyed a considerable number of vessels being readied for the Spanish Armada. Foresee 1588, Drake served as second-in-command to Admiral Charles Howard get your skates on the English victory over grandeur supposedly invincible Spanish fleet.

Final Years

After a failed 1589 expedition thoroughly Portugal, Drake returned home look up to England for several years, in the balance Queen Elizabeth enlisted him pursue one more voyage, against Nation possessions in the West Indies in early 1596.

The field trip proved to be a ghastly failure: Spain fended off position English attacks, and Drake came down with fever and take into custody. He died in late Jan 1596 at age 55 scarper the coast of Puerto Bello (now Portobelo, Panama).

Sources

Sir Francis Admiral. National Park Service.
Sir Francis Admiral (c.1540 - c.1596).

BBC.
Sir Francis Drake Facts. Royal Museums Greenwich.
Roanoke Voyages. The Lost Colony.

Citation Information

Article Title

Sir Francis Drake

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/exploration/sir-francis-drake

Date Accessed

January 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

June 6, 2023

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009