Drake

Who was Sir Francis Drake?

Francis Drake was the first Englishman to travel around the globe. His voyage included raiding Spanish ports in the Americas, and losing several ships from his fleet in storms. He was knighted on his return.

When was Sir Francis Drake's voyage?

Sir Francis Drake left Plymouth to start his most famous voyage on December 13th, 1577.

What was Sir Francis Drake's importance?

There are 3 main reasons why Drake was important.

• ❖ He brought back considerable wealth from his travels.
• ❖ The knighthood he received encouraged more British sailors.
• ❖ He was key to the defeat of the Spanish Armada.

What was important about Sir Francis Drake's circumnavigation of the world?

Drake's circumnavigation of the globe between 1577-1580 was important for 5 reasons.

• ❖ The navy was expanded and seen as a big threat by other countries - its success garnered it an even more fearsome reputation.
• ❖ Trade was improved - for example, by signing a trade treaty with the Spice Islands (now the Maluku Islands) in Indonesia which allowed English merchants to trade in valuable spices.
• ❖ New discoveries were made, such as finding that Java was an island. This corrected an earlier geographical error made by Dutch explorers, who had believed it was connected to a continent.
• ❖ Drake achieved personal glory by capturing the Spanish ship, the Nuestra Señora de la Concepcion, nicknamed Cacafuego. This was Drake's most famous prize, as it carried 362,000 pesos in silver and gold.
• ❖ Drake returned with an estimated £400,000 worth of treasure captured from the Spanish - amounting to about £200 million in today's money. The queen received a half-share of the money, which was more than her entire income for the whole year.

What was Elizabeth's interest in Sir Francis Drake's trip?

Elizabeth took a large part of the treasure that Drake brought home from his journey in order to increase the country's riches.