Reflections on Drake's big voyage 6
March 19th 2007 21:16
Drake was a great convincer of men. One man he could not convince was the pilot of the treasure galleon. He wanted the pilot to accompany him and lead him across the ocean. Colchera, the pilot refused and even when hung from the neck, from a spar, refused to help Drake in any way. Drake eventually let the man go free. This trick of putting a noose around a mans neck and then drawing him off the deck was often used with stubborn prisoners.
Maria, a black slave was saved from the galleon along with two other slaves for the use of Drake and the crew. Months later, big with child, she was left on a lonely atoll along with the other two male slaves. A blessing perhaps but though the atoll had plenty of food, the only water was on another atoll several miles away. There is no record if a boat was left for their use!
As a conqueror he is known to have landed on the North American mainland in the vicinity of San Francisco. Here he cleaned and careened his boat and repacked her so the treasure was safe. He also made friends with the local tribes and was made a chief of sorts over them all. He did leave a plaque on a post some miles inland claiming the land for Queen Elizabeth. Such a claim of course has little legitimacy today.
After 56 days at sea, Drake passed what may have been the Caroline Islands and was again tricked by natives rowing out in large outrigger canoes to trade. It was often needed to fire many rounds into the canoes to succumb the men to trade the way he preferred to trade. He was not going to play softy with these possible canibals. He did mange to load up again with fresh stores and was soon off Ternate in the East Indies where he was made welcome by the local sultan and entertained with style.
Drake himself was a great entertainer and carried silver plate embossed and fringed with gold that he was fond of bringing out for his guests. His orchestra and his trumpeter were the toast of any town, village, island or captured ship they played for. The Sultan of Ternate was suitably impressed with this ambassador of queen Elizabeth as he self styled himself now. Here he managed a deal of six tons of spice that put his ship precariously close to her limit as far as stability was concerned. He was going to rely on his men eating their way through the food and drinking their way through the wine and water to make his craft safe again.
At this point he was carefully avoiding any contact at all with the Spaniards or Portuguese as this was now longer worth the risk. The lowliest of his men would retire and live like a gentleman for the rest of his life and so would their heirs for many generations to come. They were seriously rich and needed only to get home.
Maria, a black slave was saved from the galleon along with two other slaves for the use of Drake and the crew. Months later, big with child, she was left on a lonely atoll along with the other two male slaves. A blessing perhaps but though the atoll had plenty of food, the only water was on another atoll several miles away. There is no record if a boat was left for their use!
As a conqueror he is known to have landed on the North American mainland in the vicinity of San Francisco. Here he cleaned and careened his boat and repacked her so the treasure was safe. He also made friends with the local tribes and was made a chief of sorts over them all. He did leave a plaque on a post some miles inland claiming the land for Queen Elizabeth. Such a claim of course has little legitimacy today.
After 56 days at sea, Drake passed what may have been the Caroline Islands and was again tricked by natives rowing out in large outrigger canoes to trade. It was often needed to fire many rounds into the canoes to succumb the men to trade the way he preferred to trade. He was not going to play softy with these possible canibals. He did mange to load up again with fresh stores and was soon off Ternate in the East Indies where he was made welcome by the local sultan and entertained with style.
Drake himself was a great entertainer and carried silver plate embossed and fringed with gold that he was fond of bringing out for his guests. His orchestra and his trumpeter were the toast of any town, village, island or captured ship they played for. The Sultan of Ternate was suitably impressed with this ambassador of queen Elizabeth as he self styled himself now. Here he managed a deal of six tons of spice that put his ship precariously close to her limit as far as stability was concerned. He was going to rely on his men eating their way through the food and drinking their way through the wine and water to make his craft safe again.
At this point he was carefully avoiding any contact at all with the Spaniards or Portuguese as this was now longer worth the risk. The lowliest of his men would retire and live like a gentleman for the rest of his life and so would their heirs for many generations to come. They were seriously rich and needed only to get home.
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