Sir+Francis+Drake



__ Sir Francis Drake __ By Trey Croney

Sir Francis Drake was a brave man who succeeded in almost everything that he tried. He was born sometime between 1540 and 1545 and grew up with twelve brothers. His nickname was El Draque and that’s what people in England called him. Drake did so many things during his life such as sailing around the world. Sir Francis Drake is still one of the most famous English explorers. Not much is known about his early days, but we do know that his dad’s name was Edmund Drake. His mother’s name was somehow lost in history. I wonder what his mother was like and why her name got lost in history. Sir Francis Drake may have been a brave man, but that doesn’t mean he was the nicest. In battle he was quick and merciless. These qualities made him one of the most feared pirates of his time. Back then, when a kid did something bad the parents of that kid would say that El Draque would get them. Still, he treated his crew with kindness, but he demanded respect from them. Even though he was the most feared pirate of his time, he doesn’t seem like a pirate because he was a very wealthy noble. He attacked ships and killed the people on the ship, and took all of the valuables on the ship. This man must have been so brave to be a captain of a ship. Drake did so many things during his life. On one slave trading voyage, he lost everything when the Spaniards attacked his ship, but luckily he survived and traveled back to England. He was angry and wanted to get back at the Spaniards, so he decided to steal their biggest treasure. There was a jungle trail that he knew that would take him to the treasure. To get there he would sail for Panama and eventually to Nombre De Dios, which was where the treasure was hidden. When Drake arrived in Panama, he planned to stay there for a few days. When they got in the town, someone noticed them and told everyone and they all panicked. Finally, when they got to treasure, the crew went to grab it, but Drake did not let them because this was not the real treasure. The next day they all found out that that the real treasure had already been stolen and that it was on a mule train in the jungle. Drake said that they would not survive in the jungle and that they should not go through the jungle. Then, they met a slave, named Diego, who said he would help them get through the jungle. When they maneuvered through the jungle and saw the first mule train, they attacked. All that they found were vegetables. Still, Drake wanted to attack again and this time it worked out and they stole 15 tons of silver all together. Sadly the silver was taken away by the guards from the mule train, but Drake stole the gold that would be worth 5 million dollars today. It was a long and hard journey, but he came back as a very rich and famous man. When he returned, he was famous, but some people wanted him arrested for piracy. To get away from his troubles, Drake decided to sail around the world. His journey took almost three years. He was the first English man to sail around the world. He was attacked many times during this voyage, but he battled on. This was an incredible accomplishment for this young sailor. His next adventure was against the Spanish Armada. The Spaniards were sent by their king to defeat the English. They call this battle the Norris- Drake expedition. In 1588 England and Spain met at the English Channel, it was a war. Drake was one of the most important people that led the English to victory over the Spanish. Drake and his army were just too good for the Spanish. The English didn’t lose many people in battle, but after the victory 6,000-8,000 people died because of Typhus and starvation. This was a hard fought battle and is one of England’s biggest accomplishments in war. When Sir Francis Drake died on January 28, 1596 he was at sea and he wanted to die as a warrior so he ordered one of his men to help him get his armor on so he could die as a fighter. There are so any reasons that Sir Francis Drake is important to the Renaissance and England would not be such a strong country if he wasn’t so brave and such a good leader in battle for the English. If he didn’t lead the English to victory over Spain in the Spanish Armada, England would have lost the sea battle and the English would not be such a successful country. Sir Francis Drake is one of the main reasons that England became such a sea power. He was the first English man to ever sail around the world. That is an amazing accomplishment and he must have been so brave and daring to do such a thing. One thing that wasn’t the best accomplishment, but is still important, is how some of his success was bad for Queen Elizabeth. He was a pirate so he other rulers thought that one of her country’s most famous people was a murderer and a stealer. That’s why he left England to sail around the world. Sir Francis Drake was strong fierce and powerful and is one of the reasons that England is such a great country today. He was a great man and will always be remembered as a fierce warrior and is one of the most famous English explorers ever to live. __ Bibliography __ "Drake, Sir Francis." World Book Kids. 2008. March 17, 2008 __ http://worldbookonline.com/kids/Article?id=ar830598&st=sir+francis+drake __. Marrin, Albert. __The Sea King: Sir Francis Drake and His Times__. New York: New York, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 1995. "Spanish Armada." //Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia//. 1 May 2008, 12:14 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 1 May 2008 < http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Spanish_Armada&oldid=209440683