Francis Drake

In 1569, he married Mary Newman, who died after twelve years of their marriage.

In 1585, he married his second wife, Elizabeth Sydenham.

He died at the age of 55 while he was at the Battle of San Juan, after he contracted dysentery and eventually died of fever. He was buried at sea in a lead coffin.

Francis Drake was born in Tavistock, Devon, England as the eldest son of a Protestant farmer, Edmund Drake and Mary Mylwaye. Since there is no accurate record of his birth, his date of birth is assumed.

His father worked on the estate of the second Earl of Bedford, Lord Francis Russell, who became his god father, after whom he was named. In 1549, his family relocated from Devonshire into Kent due to the Prayer Book Rebellion, a revolt of religious conflict.

At the age of 13, he went aboard a merchant ship as an apprentice and sailed to the seas. The ship he boarded sold goods between England and France. His shipmaster was impressed by his skills and manner.

Around the 1560s, he commanded his own ship named, ‘Judith'. He had a small fleet and his cousin, John Hawkin with him. He sailed the ship to Africa, where he pursued slave trade.

From Africa he set sail to New Spain to sell the captured slaves to the various settlers there. However, this action was against the laws of New Spain.

In 1568, he and his cousin, Hawkins were trapped in the Mexican port of San Juan de Ulua. The duo managed a dangerous escape, but other men who accompanied them were killed. This made him hate the Spanish land.

In 1572, Queen Elizabeth I granted him a privateer's commission, after which he went on his first solo voyage to Panama. He captured the town of Nombre de Dios and its treasure but was wounded during a raid.

They stayed in Nombre de Dios till his wounds healed and he returned to good health. They later looted gold and silver from various Spanish settlements and returned to Plymouth in 1573.

On 4 April 1581, he was awarded the knighthood by Queen Elizabeth.