Francis Drake: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 09:14, 11 January 2018

c. 1540-1596. English navigator, privateer, explorer and slave trader.

In 1567, he made his first slaving voyage, during which he got attacked by a Spanish squadron. At that time, he was commanded by John Hawkins, a well known British naval commander (Paige 20). Drake was also the first Englishman to navigate around the globe. In May 1578, he reached the Pacific Ocean on command of Queen Elizabeth I. On 26 September 1580, he circumnavigated the globe entirely with his flagship The Pelican.

Throughout Drake's life he got in conflict with the Spanish. In 1587, Drake attacked the Spanish fleet in Cardiz, and in 1588 he was promoted to Vice Admiral. In the same year, Drake suceeded in defeating the Spanish Armada under the command of Lord Howard of Effingham and with other experienced sailors like Martin Frobisher and Sir John Hawkins (and many nameless men who sailored away and occasionally died). On July 29 the Armada was sighted in Cornwall, ready to attack the English. However, Lord Howard and Drake intercepted the ships before they reached their optimal strategical position. The English sent deliberately torched and unmanned ships towards the Armada, which made the Armada panick and flee. This maneuver turned out to be very successful as only 67 of the 130 Spanish ships returned to the mainland. What also helped were the beneficial winds.

Throughout all of the conflict with the Spanish, Drake played a decisive strategical role and contributed significantly to the success.

In April 1581, Francis Drake was knighted for his achievements and his contribution for his country. The act of knighting Drake was carried out on command of Elizabeth I by a French nobleman on the Golden Hind, Drake's ship, which was formerly known as The Pelican (Paige 71).

Literature

“History - Sir Francis Drake.” BBC, https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/drake_francis.shtml.

Johnson, Ben. “The Life of Sir Francis Drake.” Historic UK, https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/Sir-Francis-Drake/.

Paige, Joy. Sir Francis Drake: Circumnavigator of the Globe and Privateer for Queen Elizabeth. The Rosen Publishing Group, 2003.

“The Defeat of the Spanish Armada Was a Turning Point in the Histories of Both England and Spain.” The Sun, The Sun, 5 Dec. 2016, https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/hold-ye-front-page/2333786/the-defeat-of-the-spanish-armada-was-a-turning-point-in-the-histories-of-both-england-and-spain-and-one-of-the-great-achievements-of-queen-elizabeth-i/.

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-c. 1540 - 1596. English navigator and privateer.  <br/>
+c. 1540-1596. English navigator, privateer, explorer and slave trader.
-<br/>
-One of the most prominent figures of 16th-century England, Drake is most notorious for his attacks on Spanish colonial towns and trade ships in the New World. While this made him nothing but a pirate in Spanish opinion, he became something of a legend to his English countrymen. <br/>
+In 1567, he made his first slaving voyage, during which he got attacked by a Spanish squadron. At that time, he was commanded by [[John Hawkins]], a well known British naval commander (Paige 20). Drake was also the first Englishman to navigate around the globe. In May 1578, he reached the Pacific Ocean on command of Queen [[Elizabeth I]]. On 26 September 1580, he circumnavigated the globe entirely with his flagship ''The Pelican''.
-<br/>
-Drake's actions were inofficially backed up by [[Elizabeth I]], whose treasury profited from a share of all the gold and treasuries Drake looted and whose foreign policy was supported by the blows he dealt the Spanish economy. More euphemistically, then, Drake was not a pirate but a privateer, whose exploits at sea were a service to his country. Having completed the circumnavigation of the globe (1577-1580), Drake was knighted by the Queen in 1581. <br/>
+Throughout Drake's life he got in conflict with the Spanish. In 1587, Drake attacked the Spanish fleet in Cardiz, and in 1588 he was promoted to Vice Admiral. In the same year, Drake suceeded in defeating the Spanish [[Armada]] under the command of Lord Howard of Effingham and with other experienced sailors like Martin Frobisher and Sir John Hawkins (and many nameless men who sailored away and occasionally died). On July 29 the Armada was sighted in Cornwall, ready to attack the English. However, Lord Howard and Drake intercepted the ships before they reached their optimal strategical position. The English sent deliberately torched and unmanned ships towards the Armada, which made the Armada panick and flee. This maneuver turned out to be very successful as only 67 of the 130 Spanish ships returned to the mainland. What also helped were the beneficial winds.
-<br/>
-His lasting fame rests on his role in holding off the Spanish [[Armada]] in 1588.
+Throughout all of the conflict with the Spanish, Drake played a decisive strategical role and contributed significantly to the success.
-Although Drake was only Vice Admiral of the English fleet, i.e. the second-in-command under Lord Howard of Effingham, his name is usually associated with the strategy of dispatching fireships: burning ships whose approach put the Spanish fleet into enough disarray that the ships could only regroup when they had drifted too far to the North and were ultimately destroyed in a storm during the attempt of sailing around Scotland. <br/>
-<br/>
+In April 1581, Francis Drake was knighted for his achievements and his contribution for his country. The act of knighting Drake was carried out on command of Elizabeth I by a French nobleman on the ''Golden Hind'', Drake's ship, which was formerly known as ''The Pelican'' (Paige 71).
-After a rather disastrous expedition to Portugal, which he was supposed to help in its rebellion against [[Philip II]], Drake spent some years of "civil" life in England and was elected a Member of Parliament. Ultimately, he took up a new campaign against Spanish America but could not duplicate his earlier successes. Drake died from a tropical disease in 1596 during an expedition against the Spanish near Panama.
+== Literature ==
+“History - Sir Francis Drake.” ''BBC'', https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/drake_francis.shtml.
+Johnson, Ben. “The Life of Sir Francis Drake.” ''Historic UK'', https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/Sir-Francis-Drake/.
+Paige, Joy. ''Sir Francis Drake: Circumnavigator of the Globe and Privateer for Queen Elizabeth.'' The Rosen Publishing Group, 2003.
+“The Defeat of the Spanish Armada Was a Turning Point in the Histories of Both England and Spain.” ''The Sun'', The Sun, 5 Dec. 2016, https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/hold-ye-front-page/2333786/the-defeat-of-the-spanish-armada-was-a-turning-point-in-the-histories-of-both-england-and-spain-and-one-of-the-great-achievements-of-queen-elizabeth-i/.