Drake and Circumnavigation

Question 1

why did raleigh attempt colonisation?

Answer 1

• north amaerica had an inexhaustible supply of wine, oil, sugar and flax that would make england less reliant on european trade; 1584 gave raleigh exclusive rights to attempt this
• wanted to increase his status and wealth (of low birth)

Question 2

summarise a Timeline of attempts at colonisation

Answer 2

• 1584 - Royal Charter given to Raleigh; intended to provide riches of new world & create a base in the area (could use this to send pirates on raids against spanish fleets)
• Apr 1584 - Philip Amada & Arthur Barlower sent on exploratory mission to determine available resources & a suitable area
• Aug 1584 - returned with 2 inhabitants to report findings
• 1585 - new group sent to establish colonies but ran out of food; resupply attempts failed
• 1587 - expedition led by John White; during an attempt to gain more supplies, the ship was delayed & colonists disappeared

Question 3

describe Drake’s upbringing

Answer 3

• born in Tavistock, Devon ~1540, he was the eldest of 12 & was from lowly birth (tenant farmer father & mother worked for the local estate) & grew up in poverty
• was sent to live with his relatives in Plymouth (~15 miles away) who were sailors, merchants, & occasional pirates
• he started working for his family at 18 in 1558

Question 4

what were some of Drake’s early voyages?

Answer 4

• worked on ships operated by his cousin, John Hawkins
• 1562 - Sierra Leone coast; captured 300 people from the Portuguese & traded them for goods (leather, sugar etc)
• 1562-67 - made 3 voyages to Guinea & Sierra Leone, enslaving 1200 people
• 1568 - San Juan de Ulua; sailed on The Judith under instructions from Liz to capture people for slaves & sell them in the Caribbean

Question 5

what happened on Drake’s trip to San Juan de Ulua?

Answer 5

• sheltered in a Spanish port due to a storm & came under attack from Spanish ships; only Drake’s and Hawkins’ ships escaped
• as a result, english stopped trading in african slaves for 70 years & began piracy & raids on spanish fleets & ports instead (revenge - beginning of Anglo-Spanish conflict)

Question 6

what were some of Drake’s early trips to South America?

Answer 6

• 1572 - Planned to attack Panama (Liz gave him piracy license); ships full of gold and silver left Nombre de Dios to return to Spain
• Aug 1573 - returned to england as investors were eager to finance another expedition however there was a temporary truce with KPII and little was officially said

Question 7

what happened during Drake’s trip to Nombre de Dios?

Answer 7

• raided towns and ships for several months alongside french privateers
• here, he met Diego, an African man enslaved by the Spanish; he had extensive local knowledge and connections with the Cimarrons, who were expert scouts and good fighters - together, they worked against the spanish

Question 8

what were the 2 main causes of Drake’s circumnavigation?

Answer 8

means and desires which created a cycle of prosperity

Question 9

what ‘means’ led to Drake’s circumnavigation?

Answer 9

• England’s stability had provided a platform for exploration
• technological improvements
• privateers were financed by Liz and other nobles

Question 10

what ‘desires’ led to Drake’s circumnavigation?

Answer 10

• increase wealth (for Drake and England)
• increase status and gain Royal favour for Drake
• enhance england’s national reputation and rivalry with other countries
• in the middle ages, people only travelled for work, war, or pilgrimage & sea travel was dangerous so people went over land; HOWEVER spices & silk were imported from China & India, & the Elizabethans wanted new trade routes & partners, especially as Antwerp & Netherlands trade links were in decline
• renaissance ideas of learning and discovery:

Question 11

what technological improvements led to Drake’s circumnavigation?

Answer 11

• maps: printing press had made these more readily available
• magnetic compass
• astrolabe
• ship design improved: carracks, invented the rudder (more control), faster and lighter ships (caravels), lateen sail (ships could sail whatever way, no matter wind direction)

Question 12

what did technological improvements require?

Answer 12

the stability and weakening of the church that the renaissance era provided

Question 13

privateers were financed by Liz and other nobles. what does this indicate?

Answer 13

a desire for status and self-improvement; an increase in finance and reputation for client and patron

Question 14

why was enhancing england’s national reputation and rivalry with other countries a motivating factor for Drake’s circumnavigation?

Answer 14

at the time, the Spanish and Portuguese dominated the seas; trade licenses were rarely given and patriotism and nationalism meant people felt resentful of the Spanish and Portuguese

Question 15

what were renaissance ideas of learning and discovery?

Answer 15

• Embracing humanism, curiosity, and exploration.
• i.e. Columbus ‘discovered’ the new world after sailing west across the atlantic
• this was encouraged by stability

Question 16

what were some elizabethan voyages in search of new trade routes and partners?

Answer 16

• martin frobisher, humphrey gilbert & john davis attempted to seek ‘new path’ by sailing around the north of canada but this was impractical due to the ice in those seas
• 1591-4 - James Lancaster went through Cape of Good Hope to reach the East; brought back spices & dyes, so when he returned the East India Company was set up to attract investors
• 1600 - James Lancaster took the first of the Company’s fleets to Indonesia
• 1579 - Eastland Trading Company est.; timber, tar, canvas, and rope with Scandinavia
• 1581 - Levant Trading Company est.; currants and dyes in the Mediterranean

Question 17

who were the Backers of Drake’s circumnavigation?

Answer 17

• privately organised and financed mainly by the Hawkins
• Privy Council members i.e. Walsingham, Dudley, Hatton, and Elizabeth
• Royal support was not officially given due to tense Anglo-Spanish relations
• Cecil didn’t know as he disapproved
• crew was told they were travelling to Egypt to collect a cargo of dried fruit and they were mid-Atlantic when they found out; William Markham, the Elizabeth’s captain, said he wouldn’t have gone if he’d known their destination

Question 18

describe the The Fleet of Drake’s Circumnavigation

Answer 18

• Flagship: The Pelican; 160 tons, 80 crewmembers, renamed the Golden Hind to honour Hatton’s crest (patronage)
• Supply Ships (neither completed circumnavigation):
  
  • The Benedict; given to Spanish crew of the Christopher so they could get to land
  • The Swan
• Other ships:
  
  • The Elizabeth; 80 tons, 45 crewmembers
  • The Marigold; 30 tons, 25 crewmembers
  • the Christopher; renamed and captured off Morocco (originally spanish)

Question 19

what was The Plan for Drake’s Circumnavigation?

Answer 19

• to explore the Atlantic coast of South America, then through the Straits of Magellan and up the Pacific coast to investigate trading, conquest, and settlement opportunities and then to return via the same route
• earlier sailors had the same objectives but needed not to upset the Spanish
• but now, spain had aggressive foreign policy with the netherlands

Question 20

what was the Strait of Anian?

Answer 20

• Mythical Northwest sea passage linking Atlantic and Pacific oceans
• 1576 - Frobisher led an expedition backed by Leicester and Walsingham and claimed to find it
• it would have sped up the time taken to travel between East Asia and Northern Europe

Question 21

what were the Consequences of Drake’s Circumnavigation?

Answer 21

• brought back immense wealth and shocked the spanish in an area where they thought they were untouchable
• increased tensions with Spain
• increased reputation (nationally, and for Drake)
• increased wealth
• foundation of the english colonies
• new technology, knowledge and curiosity

Question 22

how did Drake’s circumnavigation increase tensions with Spain?

Answer 22

• had shown the vulnerability of Spanish possessions in South America; in response, early 1580s, KPII reinforced his territories with more colonists and troops so English expeditions fell and turned to North America
• Drake was idealised by the English, which the Spanish disliked; he was knighted on the deck of his own ship, by the French ambassador (brought french into conflict too)
• Bernadino de Mendoza (spanish ambassador) wanted compensation and the return of spanish property
• a private message was sent to Drake - the public message said that little of worth was gathered, as they didn’t want Spain to know they had this knowledge/money

Question 23

what did Drake’s increase in reputation following his circumnavigation mean?

Answer 23

• caused disruption to the social order
• drake was idealised by the english, despite his piratical reputation
• both drake and all sailors gained respect; drake gave gifts to the secretary and chancellor of state
• drake gained favour with the queen and became one of the richest men in england - disrupting the GCoB

Question 24

what wealth came from Drake’s circumnavigation?

Answer 24

• Drake got an extra £10,000 and bought a house in London
• over 100lbs of gold - stored in tower of london
• 1581 - 50,000 ducat crown given to liz as a new year present
• investors got their money back so funded further expeditions

Question 25

what new technology, knowledge and curiosity came from Drake’s circumnavigation?

Answer 25

• exposed and made important geographical discovers in areas previously unknown
• illustrations, maps, information about water depths and currents and hidden reefs
• Zarata (prisoner) said ‘no one who used these maps could possibly go astray’
• stole books