145. Drake's famous Voyage

Hakluyt

Sir Francis Drake (circa 1545-1595) began his naval career as a chaplain and died an admiral. His greatest voyage was that around the world, begun in 1577. This was made in the ship The Golden Hind, which Elizabeth ordered to be forever preserved as a monument of the glory of the navigators and the country. Drake's circumnavigation of the world was but one of many successful voyages. In these days, when piracy and robbery are not the necessary accompaniments of exploration, his exploits appear well-nigh incredible. Yet there is good evidence of the truth of the tales of towns sacked, galleons plundered, and treasures of silver, gold, and jewels secured. Above all seamen of his time, Drake bearded the Spanish power and tore from it the mastery of the seas. The voyage given is from the pen of one who himself sailed with Drake. It well illustrates the progress of the second great incentive to English exploration in the sixteenth century, the plunder of the Spaniard.

NARRATIVE OF FRANCIS PRETTY

The Famous Voyage of Sir FRANCIS DRAKE, into the South Sea, and therehence about the whole globe of the earth, begun in the year of our Lord, 1577

On the 15th day of November, in the year of our Lord 1577, Mr. Francis Drake, with a fleet of five ships and barques, and to the number of 164 men, gentlemen and sailors, departed from Plymouth. . . .

On the 17th of August we Departed the port of St. Julian, and on the 20th we fell in with the Straits of Magellan, going into the South Sea, at the cape or headland whereof we found the body of a dead man, whose flesh was clean consumed. On the 21st day we entered the Straits... We continuing our course, fell the 29th of November with an island called La Mocha...the next day repairing again to the shore, and sending two men to land with barrels to fill water, the people taking them for Spaniards (to whom they use to show no favor if they take them) laid violent hands on them, and, as we think, slew them.

Our General seeing this, stayed here no longer, but weighed anchor, and set sail towards the coast of Chili, and drawing towards it, we met near to the shore an Indian in a Canoe, who thinking us to have been Spaniards, came to us and told us, that at a place called Santiago, there was a great Spanish ship laden from the kingdom of Peru, for which good news our General gave him divers trifles. Whereof he

was glad, and went along with us and brought us to the place, which is called the port of Valparaiso. When we came thither we found, indeed, the ship riding at anchor, having in her eight Spaniards and three negroes, who, thinking us to have been Spaniards, and their friends, welcomed us with a drum, and made ready a Bottija of wine of Chili to drink to us. But as soon as we were entered, one of our company called Thomas Moon began to lay about him, and struck one of the Spaniards, and said unto him, "Abaxo perro!" that is in English, "Go down, dog!" One of these Spaniards, seeing persons of that quality in these seas, all to crossed and blessed himself. But, to be short, we stowed them under hatches, all save one Spaniard, who suddenly and desperately leapt over-board into the sea, and swam ashore to the town of Santiago, to give them warning of our arrival.

They of the town being not above nine households, presently fled away and abandoned the town. Our General manned his boat and the Spanish ship's boat and went to the town, and being come to it, we rifled it, and came to a small chapel, which we entered, and found therein a silver chalic, two cruets, and one altar-cloth, the spoil whereof our General gave to Mr. Fletcher, his minister. We found, also in this town a warehouse stored with wine of Chili and many boards of cedar-wood, all which wine we brought away with us, and certain of the boards to burn for firewood. And so, being come aboard, we departed the haven, having first set all the Spaniards on land, saving one John Griego, a Greek born, whom our General carried with him as pilot to bring him into the haven of Lima.

When we were at sea our General rifled the ship, and found in her good store of the wine of Chili, and 25,000 pesos of very pure and fine gold of Valdivia, amounting in value to 37,000 ducats of Spanish money, and above. So, going on our course, we arrived next at a place called Coquimbo, where our General sent fourteen of his men on land to fetch water. But they were espied by the Spanish, who came with 300 horsemen and 200 footmen, and slew one of our men with a piece. The rest came aboard in safety, and the Spaniards departed. We went on shore again and buried our man, and the Spaniards came down again with a flag of truce; but we set sail, and would not trust them. From hence we went to a certain port called Tarapaca, where, being landed, we found by the sea a Spaniard lying asleep, who had lying by him thirteen bars of silver, which weighed

about 4,000 ducats Spanish. We took the silver and left the man. Not far from hence, going on land for fresh water,we met with a Spaniard and an Indian boy driving eight llamas or sheep of Peru, which are as big as asses; everyone of which sheep had on his back two bags of leather, each bag containing 50 lbs. weight of fine silver. So that, bringing both the sheep and their burthen to the ship, we found in all the bags 800 weights of silver.

Herehence we sailed to a place called Arica, and, being entered the haven, we found there three small barques, which we rifled, and found in one of them fifty-seven wedges of silver, each of them weighing about 20 lbs. weight, and every of these wedges were of the fashion and bigness of a brickbat. In all these three barques we found not one person. For they, mistrusting no strangers, were all gone on land to the town, which consisteth of about twenty houses, which we would have ransacked if our company had been better and more in number. But our General, contented with the spoil of the ships, left the town and put off again to sea, and set sail for Lima, and, by the way, met with a small barque, which he boarded, and found in her good store of linen cloth. Whereof taking some quantity, he let her go.

To Lima we came on the 13th of February, and, being entered the haven, we found there about twelve sail of ships lying fast moored at anchor, having all their sails carried on shore; for the masters and merchants were here most secure, having never been assaulted by enemies, and at this time feared the approach of none such as we were. Our General rifled these ships, and found in one of them a chest full of reals of plate, and good store of silks and linen cloth, and took the chest into his own ship, and good store of silks and linen. In which ship he had news of another ship called the Cacafuego, which was gone towards Payta, and that the same ship was laden with treasure. Whereupon we stayed no longer here, but, cuting all the cables of the ships in the haven, we let them drive whither they would, either to sea or to the shore, and with all speed we followed the Cacafuego toward Payta, thinking there to have found her; but before we arrived there she was gone from thence towards Panama, whom our General still pursued, and by the way met with a barque laden with ropes and tackle for ships, which he boarded and searched, and found in her 80 lbs. weight of gold, and a crucifix of gold with goodly great emeralds set in it, which he took, and some of the cordage also for his own ship.

From hence we departed, still following the Cacafuego; and our General promised our company that whosoever should first descry her should have his chain of gold for his good news. It fortuned that John Drake, going up into the top, descried her at about three o'clock, and at about six o'clock we came to her and boarded her, and shot at her three pieces of ordnance, and struck down her mizen, and, being entered, we found in her great riches, as jewels and precious stones, thirteen chests full of reals of plate, fourscore pounds weight of gold, and six-and-twenty tons of silver. The place where we took this prize was called Cape de San Francisco, about 150 leagues from Panama. The pilot's name of this ship was Francisco, and amongst other plate that our General found in this ship he found two very fair gilt bowls of silver, which were the pilot's, to whom our General said, "Senor Pilot, you have here two silver cups; but I must needs have one of them," which the pilot, because he could not otherwise choose, yielded unto, and gave the other to the steward of our General's ships. When this pilot departed from us, his boy said thus unto our General, “Captain, our ship shall be called no more the Cacafuego, but the Cacaplata, and your ship shall be called the Cacafuego," which pretty speech of the pilot's boy ministered matter of laughter to us, both then and long after. When our General had done what he would with this Cacafuego, he cast her off, and we went on our course still towards the west, and not long after met with a ship laden with linen cloth and fine China dishes of white earth, and great store of China silks, of all which things we took as we listed. The owner himself of this ship was in her, who was a Spanish gentleman, from whom our General took a faulcon of gold, with a great emerald in the breast thereof; and the pilot of the ship he took also with him, and so cast the ship off.

This pilot brought us to the haven of Aguatulco, the town whereof, as he told us, had but seventeen Spaniards in it. As soon as we were entered this haven, we landed, and went presently to the town and to the Town-house, where we found a judge sitting in judgment, being associated with three other officers, upon three negroes that had conspired the burning of the town. Both which judges and prisoners we took, and brought them a-shipboard, and caused the chief judge to write his letter to the town to command all the townsmen to avoid, that we might safely water there, which being done, and they departed, we ransacked the town, and

in one house we found a pot, of the quantity of a bushel, full of reals of plate, which we brought to our ship. And here one Thomas Moon, one of our company, took a Spanish gentlemen as he was flying out of the town, and, searching him, he found a chain of gold about him, and other jewels, which he took, and so let him go. At this place our General, among other Spaniards, set ashore his Portuguese pilot which he took at the Islands of Cape Verde out of a ship of St. Mary Port, of Portugal; and having set them ashore we departed hence, and sailed to the Island of Canno, where our General landed, and brought to shore his own ship, and discharged her, mended and graved her, and furnished our ship with water and food sufficiently....

On the 5th of June, being in forty-three degrees towards the Arctic Pole, we found the air so cold, that our men being grievously pinched with the same, complained of the extremity thereof, and the further we went, the more the cold increased upon us. Whereupon we thought it best for that time to seek the land, and did so, finding it not mountainous, but low plain land, till we came within thirty-eight degrees towards the line. In which height it pleased God to send us into a fair and good bay, with a good wind to enter the same. In this bay we anchored, and the people of the country having their houses close by the waterside, shewed themselves unto us, and sent a present to our General. When they came unto us, they greatly wondered at the things that we brought, but our General (according to his natural and accustomed humanity) courteously entreated them, and liberally bestowed on them necessary things to cover their nakedness, whereupon they supposed us to be gods, and would not be pursuaded to the contrary: the presents which they sent to our General, were feathers, and cauls of net-work. Their houses were digged round about with earth, and have from the uttermost brims of the circle, clifts of wood set upon them, joined close together at the top like a spire steeple, which by reason of that closeness are very warm. Their bed is the ground with rushes strewed on it, and lying about the house, they have the fire in the midst. The men go naked, the women take bulrushes, and comb them after the manner of hemp, and thereof make their loose garments, which being knit about their middles, hang down about their hips, having also about their shoulders a skin of deer, with the hair upon it. These women are very obedient and serviceable to their husbands....