Golden Hind broken up

Happened: 1650

Description

In 1581 Drake was knighted onboard the Golden Hind, by the French ambassador, in the presence of Queen Elizabeth I - a piece of political shrewdness, Elizabeth could not be seen to condone a man who, to the Spanish at least, was seen as an arch-pirate.

The vessel remained there for nearly 70 years where she eventually disintegrated due to the rains and weather and was broken up. Nothing remains of the ship except a chair carved from its timbers, which can be seen in the Bodleian Library in Oxford. The remains of the ship is still believed to be located at 'Convoys Wharf' a large former Tudor shipyard in Deptford, London.

Drake's journals and maps of the circumnavigation were embargoed by the Queen, as documents of national importance, later believed lost in a palace fire. They contained materials of national importance, including his routes ane ports, plus Drake's failed attempt to find the fabled 'North West Passage' back to England across the top of North America.

Objects