Sir Francis Drake (born July 13, 1540 - died January 28, 1596) - English navigator, pirate, vice admiral (1588). First Englishman to circumnavigate the world (1577-1580). An active participant in the defeat of the Spanish fleet (Invincible Armada) (1588)
The life story of Francis Drake abounded in the most incredible adventures. It was he who was the first Englishman to travel around the world. This happened in 1577-1580, when his "Golden Hind" crossed three oceans and returned to England with full holds of gold and jewelry, Drake fought against Spanish squadrons and stormed coastal forts, crossed the Strait of Magellan, was engaged in looting in South and North America … For his exploits, he, who was essentially a real pirate, was awarded the knighthood. Queen Elizabeth laid the sword on him right on the deck of the ship. Along with this, Drake's name became known in Spain, where he was cursed by everyone, young and old.
Pirate Francis Drake
Francis Drake - the strait at the southern tip of South America is even named after this pirate traveler.
The 16th century was marked by the glorious voyages of a whole galaxy of famous English captains. Frobisher and Hawkins, Rayleigh and Davis, Drake and many other brilliant sailors sailed the waves of the North Atlantic and the Caribbean, the Indian Ocean and Polynesia. Alas, this period of time was at the same time the heyday of the pirate trade. Therefore, all of the above captains became famous primarily as "gentlemen of fortune".
The most famous Englishman of the 16th century, without a doubt, was Sir Francis Drake - a pirate and slave trader, seafarer around the world and a talented naval commander, who played a decisive role in the defeat of the Spanish "Invincible Armada".
A close relative of the famous pirate and trader in "live goods" John Hawkins, from the age of 23, Francis went on his ships to the shores of West Africa, returning from there with holds full of slaves.
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Pirate and Queen Elizabeth
Then Drake decided to take up the pirate craft on his own. He began to attack the Spanish ships carrying treasures. So, in the predatory labors and worries, 12 years have passed. During this time, Captain Drake has accumulated considerable seafaring experience and some capital, which allowed him to offer the Queen and her entourage a daring project of a pirate expedition to the Spanish colonies on the Pacific coast of America. Here, no one expected an attack from the British, and the spoils could be largely greater than in the order of the pirate-plucked ports of the Caribbean.
The Queen of England reacted favorably to Drake's plans and even deigned to contribute to the financial support of the expedition in the amount of 1000 crowns. More significant contributions were made by high-ranking royal officials: the Earl of Essex, Walsingham and Burleigh. However, the venerable lords did not intend to remain at a loss and in fact did not miscalculate. On the return of Drake, they received their share of the booty, and their profit was. 5000% on the invested capital. But all this will happen later. And we want to tell you about the circumnavigation of the pirate captain …
Drake's World Tour (1577-1580)
December 1577 - 5 ships of Drake's flotilla left the port of Plymouth and headed south. Drake himself commanded the flagship Pelican, which he later renamed the Golden Hind. The crew of the entire flotilla consisted of only 160 people. Having first plundered off the African coast, Drake captured and robbed more than a dozen Spanish and Portuguese ships with a rich cargo. In addition, another prey fell into his hands - a Portuguese pilot who had gone to South America before.
Francis Drake's Ship The Golden Hind
1578 June - Drake's flotilla approached San Julian Bay, located relatively close to the Strait of Magellan. This bay, notorious for the riot that occurred during the stay here of the Magellan's expedition, and this time justified its notoriety. A mutiny broke out on one of the ships, spreading to the crew. It all ended with Drake executing one of the captains - Doughty, accusing him of inciting mutiny and betrayal. Leaving two heavily damaged ships in the bay, the thinning flotilla moved on.
However, at the entrance to the Strait of Magellan, a severe storm hit the ships and drove them south for 50 days. The result was Drake's discovery that Tierra del Fuego is an island, and not a protrusion of the South American continent, as was previously thought. The wide strait separating this island from Antarctica is now named Drake.
The storm caused serious damage to the flotilla: one ship sank, and the other was forced to return to England due to damage. But Drake was not used to backing down. On the one remaining ship, the Golden Doe, he headed north towards the Chilean coast. Then Drake's streak of active and successful pirate adventures begins.
1578, December 5 - The British attacked the port of Valparaiso, as a result of which they seized a ship with a valuable cargo and rob the coast. 1579, February 5 - a raid on the port of Arica and new trophies. Then - an attack on the Peruvian city of Callao. A galleon with a load of gold and silver left from under Drake's nose. A furious pursuit ensued, and on March 1, the galleon was captured after cannon fire. Precious ingots migrate to the hold of the Golden Doe.
Pirate Drake has completed his assigned tasks. Its production was enormous. However, returning home the same way became impossible. Rumors of impudent attacks and robberies reached the Spanish authorities, and Spanish warships kept watch over the Golden Hind to get even with the pirate for all his atrocities.
Then Drake went north, attacked the Mexican port of Guatulco, plundered it, at the same time replenished the supply of provisions. Then he sent the Golden Doe further north, hoping to find a strait connecting the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic. Drake's ship has reached latitude 49th! No seafarer has ever climbed this far north along the Pacific coast! But no sign of the strait was found, and the English pirate was forced to turn south. And then luck smiled at him: off the coast of Nicaragua, the British captured a ship on which they found maps of the Pacific Ocean and the Philippine Islands. This gave the pirate the idea to return to Europe through the Pacific and Indian oceans.
1579, July - The Golden Doe headed west. Having made only 4 stops along the way (in the Philippines, the Moluccan archipelago, the island of Java and in Sierra Leone), Drake in 1580 returned to England in triumph. So, 60 years after Magellan's journey, another ship managed to go around the world. At the same time, Francis Drake became the first captain who, from start to finish, commanded a ship on a voyage around the world.
Knight's title for a pirate
But this was not the main thing for the dignitaries who met the "Golden Hind" in Plymouth. Drake's ship had gold and jewelry worth equal to two years of royalties! The Queen ordered her captain to come personally to London with the most spectacular jewels and honored him with a six-hour conversation. Soon, Elizabeth granted Francis Drake the title of knight.
Francis Drake's World Tour - route
After becoming a nobleman, the robber and robber became a respected member of society. He bought himself an estate and married a wealthy heiress. Drake was elected Mayor of Plymouth and Member of Parliament. But the calm life was clearly not to the sailor's liking. He organized two more pirate expeditions to the Caribbean Sea, and in the interval between them he managed to take part in the war with Spain. Also, more than once he went to the shores of America to plunder the Golden Fleet of the Spaniards. Then he daringly plundered in Europe, right under the nose of the King of Spain Philip II. As Drake himself said - "he singed his beard."
Vice Admiral of the British Navy (1588)
Sir Francis Drake, appointed vice admiral of the British Navy, is credited with the main merit in the triumphant battle with the "Invincible Armada", sent by Philip II against the British. Despite the double superiority in the number of ships and guns, the Spaniards lost 60 ships out of 130 and were forced to retreat.
Death of Sir Francis Drake
Going to the shores of Panama in 1596, Sir Francis Drake contracted yellow fever, or simply dysentery, and died on board his ship. As befits the sailors, his body, in accordance with the will of Drake himself, was placed in a lead coffin and lowered into the Caribbean Sea, which witnessed the first exploits of the famous English "gentleman of fortune".
The Golden Doe also died at sea. But not from a storm or enemy cannonballs. Its wooden case turned into dust a tiny worm - a toredo.
After death
But relatively recently, the reputation of the legendary English pirate received an unexpected blow. The British Department of Defense did not finance the operation to remove his coffin from the bottom of the Caribbean Sea. And the British Royal Mail refused to issue a series of postage stamps dedicated to the 400th anniversary of his death.
How did the authorities motivate their unwillingness to honor their fellow countryman? The mailers explained their refusal by the fact that in 1973 stamps with the Sir Francis profile were already issued. The military referred to the high cost of the forthcoming operation to extract the coffin. But most likely, the British do not want to offend the feelings of the Spaniards, whose ancestors suffered at the hands of Drake, as well as the Americans: after all, it was from Drake that slavery began on the North American continent, where he regularly supplied "black gold".
Or perhaps the British remembered how the Latin American countries opposed the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus, with whose name many people associate the beginning of the brutal extermination of South American peoples.
Francis Drake Selling Soul
According to Spanish legend, Sir Francis Drake sold his soul to the devil in exchange for good luck on the seas. Surprisingly, this legend was immediately adopted by the compatriots who adored Drake, while talking about Drake's deal with undisguised enthusiasm, being in their overwhelming majority true believers. It was said that Drake was able to bring the most severe storms to the Spanish "Armada" with the support of the Divon witches, with whom he was allegedly friends from early childhood and who always helped him.
Even today, more than four centuries later, the British firmly believe that those old "Drake" witches who guard the passage to Devonport can still be seen on a rainy, dark night at Cape Devil's. There is a belief that the devil was so pleased with Drake's exploits that, as a reward for everything he did, in just three days, he built his favorite house in Buckland Ebi. Drake's house stands to this day, and everyone who is curious can, having personally examined the apartments of the legendary pirate admiral, imbued with the charm of his personality.