Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake (c. 1540-1596), English privateer and naval commander who raided the Spanish Americas and circumnavigated the globe.
Category: Figures
- c. 1540Birth of Francis Drake near Tavistock, Devon
Francis Drake, later England's best-known privateer, is born at Crowndale farm near Tavistock. No record survives; estimates range from about 1539 to 1544, and c. 1540 is the usual figure.
- 1568Spanish fleet defeats Hawkins and Drake at San Juan de Ulúa
In 1568, at San Juan de Ulúa (Veracruz, Mexico), a Spanish fleet destroys most of John Hawkins's slave-trading expedition. Drake escapes in the Judith, and the episode fuels his later raids on Spain.
- May 24, 1572Drake sails from Plymouth to raid Nombre de Dios on the Spanish Main
On 24 May 1572 Drake leaves Plymouth with two ships and 73 men to attack Spain's Caribbean treasure route. He is wounded in the attack on Nombre de Dios, then spends months raiding Spanish shipping.
- 1573Drake becomes the first Englishman to see the Pacific
During his 1572-73 raids, Drake is led by Cimarrón allies to a ridge on the Isthmus of Panama and sees the Pacific Ocean in 1573. He vows to sail an English ship there.
- December 13, 1577 – September 26, 1580Drake sails around the world in the Golden Hind
Drake leaves Plymouth on 13 December 1577 and returns on 26 September 1580. He is the first Englishman to circle the globe, and raids Spanish ports and ships along the Pacific coast.
- 1578Drake sacks Valparaíso, Chile
In 1578 the Golden Hind plunders the Spanish port of Valparaíso and takes a ship loaded with Chilean wine. Drake had earlier been wounded by Mapuche archers on Mocha Island; the sack feeds local legend.
- March 1579Drake captures the Spanish treasure ship Cacafuego off Peru
Off the coast of Peru, in early 1579, Drake takes the Nuestra Señora de la Concepción, nicknamed Cacafuego. Its silver and gold make it the richest prize of his circumnavigation.
- June 1579Drake lands in California and claims Nova Albion for Elizabeth I
In June 1579 the Golden Hind anchors at a bay on the Pacific coast of North America, probably near Point Reyes. Drake claims the land for England as Nova Albion; the exact site is disputed.
- April 4, 1581Drake is knighted aboard the Golden Hind at Deptford
On 4 April 1581 Drake is knighted on his ship at Deptford. Elizabeth I's reward for the circumnavigation also shows her support for his raids on Spain.
- September 1585 – July 22, 1586Drake leads a fleet of 21 ships against Spain's Caribbean colonies
From September 1585 to July 1586 Drake raids Spanish settlements, including Santo Domingo, Cartagena and St Augustine, in the first big English naval offensive of the war with Spain.
- January 1586Francis Drake captures and ransoms Santo Domingo
Francis Drake's English fleet takes Santo Domingo, the Spanish colonial capital on Hispaniola, in early January 1586 and extorts a ransom (given as 25,000 ducats by one source). He then sails for Cartagena.
- June 6, 1586Drake burns St Augustine in Spanish Florida
On 6 June 1586, returning from the Caribbean, Drake's fleet attacks and burns the Spanish settlement of St Augustine in Florida. He then visits Roanoke and takes the colonists home.
- April 1587Drake raids Cádiz and delays the Spanish Armada
In April 1587 Drake enters Cádiz harbour and destroys dozens of ships and stores meant for Spain's invasion fleet. He calls it 'singeing the King of Spain's beard'; the damage postpones the Armada by about a year.
- July 1588Drake serves as vice admiral as England defeats the Spanish Armada
In July 1588, as vice admiral under Lord Howard of Effingham, Drake fights the Spanish Armada in the Channel. The invasion of England fails.
- 1589Drake and Norris's 'English Armada' fails against Spain
In 1589 a large English expedition under Drake and Sir John Norris attacks Corunna and Lisbon, hoping to destroy Spanish ships and raise Portugal in revolt. It fails at heavy cost; estimates of the dead vary widely.
- January 28, 1596Drake dies of dysentery off Portobelo, Panama
On 28 January 1596, during his last expedition to the Spanish Caribbean, Drake dies of dysentery aboard ship off Portobelo. He is buried at sea in a lead coffin.