Drakes Circumnavigation

• Drake's Circumnavigation


  • Brought back knowledge and documents which increased England's naval expertise
  • Discovered 'Drake's Passage'
  • Stole rutter and knowledgeable captain - Nuno da Silva - from Portuguese 'Santa Maria'
  • Stole maps and charts of Eastern Americas (North and South) from Spanish settlements on Pacific Coast
  • New maps were produced in 1590 based upon Drake's charts and voyage - most accurate to date of Chile's coast; first European to chart south coast of Java (Indonesia)
  • Prisoner (de Zarata) recounted: "so accurate, no one who uses them can possibly go astray"
• Drake's Raiding and Exploration


  • Privateered Nuestra Senora de la Concepcion - so much treasure it took six days to transfer over (over £480 million)
  • Purchased six tonnes of cloves in Maluku islands - hugely profitable
  • Elizabeth fabricated an official report claiming that little of value had been recovered (The Spanish didn't know how much Drake had actually taken)
  • 46 individual parcels of treasure were handed over to Elizabeth and stored in the Tower of London
• England's Status and Ascendancy

  • Claimed land in 'Nova Albion' for Elizabeth - extending England's colonial reach
  • First Englishman to navigate the Straits of Magellan, and discovered 'Drake Passage'
  • First European to survive circumnavigation
  • Drake's purchase of cloves in the Maluku islands brought England in competition in markets previously dominated / monopolised by the Portuguese
• Increased Tension with Spain / Negative Spanish Reaction

  • Philip II of Spain complained specifically to Elizabeth, and she did not apologise - instead choosing to have Drake knighted
  • Spain significantly stepped up colonists and military presence in South America - resulting in three English colonial missions failing (and later, English attention turning to North America)
  • LONG TERM - increased military activity in Netherlands and Spanish Armada
• Drake's Personal Glory


  • Drake was knighted on the deck of the Golden Hind (by the French Ambassador - a major step up for somebody of his birth, and clearly meritocratic)
  • Discovery of the 'Drake passage' - named after him
  • Drake's personal motto: 'Sic parva magna' (Great things from small beginnings). He had this included in drawings made of him after his famous success (broadcasting his achievement)
  • He, and others at the time, made a big deal out of him being the first (Englishman) to: 'see the Pacific Ocean', 'sail the Straits of Magellan', 'complete circumnavigation'
  • Drake was granted an extra £10'000 of the treasure for himself, and £40'000 to share with his crew. This was enough to buy a house in London and become a frequent member of Court
  • Drake was allowed to buy Buckland Abbey in Devon (crown grant property)