Sir Francis Drake (1542 with Tavistock, Devon - January 28th 1596) was a Corsaire and Explorateur English.

Origin

It was born in a Protestant , poor and many family (12 children). Its career of sailor began very early since it embarked on a modest trading vessel at the age of twelve or thirteen years. With died of the captain and owner, it took the load of this ship. It was then 20 years old. He was captain as of the 22 years age.

Its beginnings of corsair

In 1567, it took part in a forwarding of John Hawkins, its uncle, towards the Africa there to buy slaves and to resell them in the colonies of the Nouveau World. In spite of the importance of their fleet, the two accomplices were made encircle by the Spaniards in roads of the the Antilles. Drake and Hawkins escaped from accuracy.

In the following years, Drake and its men plundered with more or less success the Spanish colonies of America. The fame made of him a sure sailor and an intrepid warrior. In 1572, with the head of two ships, it surprised and removed with the Spaniards the places of Number-with-Dios and Be windy-with-Cruz located on the Eastern coast of the Isthme of Panama.

Of the explorer to the nobility

Of 1577 with 1580, Francis Drake was the first English with the approval of the queen Elisabeth I {{Re}} of England, to go on a journey around the world. To prepare such an adventure, it had seized charts and the person of Portuguese pilots. It passed the Cape Horn by the passage which bears its name today. Then it was off-set by the winds up to 57 Southern degrees, which enabled him to cancel the presence of a southern continent to these latitudes. Towards North, it would be assembled until Vancouver along the coasts of North and South America (it benefitted from it to attack and plunder the Spanish colonies of the west coast of Americas). It took possession of the California, which it named the News-Albion , and returned in Spain by the the Eastern Indies and the Cape of Good Hope. Of return, it was anobli by the Queen Elizabeth.

The gold of the Antilles

It carried out new forwardings against the Spanish colonies in 1585. It was then acquired a new glory while seizing several places to the the Canaries and the Cap Verde. It missed little the convoy of gold and had to be satisfied to plunder the ports of Saint-Domingue (1586), Carthagène and Holy-Augustine. The queen appointed then it vice-admiral. During the preparation of the Invincible Armada (1587), it took by surprised the port of Cadiz and seized the gold of the Spanish Indies. A highly daring action.

Invincible Armada

Nothing went any more between Philippe II of Spain and Elisabeth of England. Francis Drake was illustrated then with the head of several ships to save its country of the Invincible Armada (1588), with other famous sailors of its time (John Hawkins, Martin Frobisher, Charles Howard). It seized in particular the Spanish flagship.

The following year, it tried, but without success, to reconquer the Portugal for Antonio de Crato. In 1595, it removed with the Spaniards in America, Holy-Marthe and Rio-of it Hacha; but it failed in the attack of Panama.

End

The Dysenterie embanked it whereas in 1596, it plundered again the cities of the the Antilles close to San Juan, current capital of Puerto Rico.

One allots to Drake the introduction in Europe of the Potato, which it brought of Santa-Fe (Mexico).

The worship

A reproduction of the ship of Francis Drake, the Golden Hind is lodged along southern bank of the the Thames to London.

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