Drake c. His father, Edmund Drake, was a farmer and preacher. The family later moved to Kent , where they lived in an old ship and it was there that his fascination with sailing began. Francis had a trading ship left to him by his apprenticeship boss at the age of 20, which was perhaps the catalyst for his historic naval achievements.
Religion and politics were dominant forces. He would attack Spanish vessels, taking the treasure that they had brought back from abroad, and would raid Spanish and Portuguese ports.
He contributed to the colonisation of the New World. Exploration was obviously in their genes! Drake was definitely not popular! Although vital to the British government and the Queen herself, even the English people were somewhat divided in their view of Drake. Some admired his achievements and courage, whilst others resented him. Drake and his second cousin, Richard Hawkins, led one of the first slavery trips to West Africa in It was illegal in English law to capture people and transport them, but in those days it was perceived as ok if they were slaves, non-protestants or criminals!
They were attacked by Spanish vessels and only two of the six British ships survived those led by Drake and Hawkins themselves. This, as well as other factors, contributed to fuelling the animosity between Spain and England, leading up to the war in and subsequent Armada. Queen Elizabeth I had obvious faith in Drake — in she enlisted Drake as a privateer pirate working for the head of a country to sail to the Americas. Queen Elizabeth had to maintain a public attitude of disapproval for his unlawful methods, to try and prevent hostile relations with Spain.
She did approve of the treasure he returned with though! Magellan led the first voyage round the world, but Drake was next, the first Englishman to achieve this. Hawkins died at the same time, and their bodies were buried at sea.
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This page has been archived and is no longer updated. Find out more about page archiving. Sir Francis Drake c. World War One Centenary. Settings Sign out. He discovered that Tierra del Fuego, the land south of the Magellan Strait, was not another continent as Europeans believed, but instead a group of islands. This meant that ships could sail between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans around the bottom of South America later known as the Cape Horn route.
Drake also sailed further north along the coast of the Americas than any other European had before. Francis Drake was born in Tavistock, Devon, around The eldest of 12 sons, he first went to sea as an apprentice aged While Drake is considered a hero in England, he is remembered as a pirate in Spain. He attacked Spanish ships carrying treasures from their colonies in South America, and also raided Spanish and Portuguese ports in the Atlantic Ocean.
Drake voyaged around the world between to The original purpose of the trip was to raid Spanish ships and ports. The expedition left Plymouth in southwest England on 13 December comprised of five ships: the Pelican , Elizabeth , Marigold , Swan , and Christopher , manned by a total of seamen.
Drake himself sailed on the Pelican, which he renamed mid-voyage to the Golden Hind in honour of his patron Sir Christopher Hatton, whose crest featured a female red deer a 'golden hind'. After reaching South America, Drake was worried that his ships would separate, so gave orders for two of the smaller supply ships to be broken up and the crew transferred to the remaining ships.
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