The war with Spain still continuing, he went out in 1585, general by sea and land, of an expedition to the West Indies, where he took the cities of St Jago, St Domingo, and Carthagena, and the fort and town of St Augustine; returning from this expedition with great glory and advantage, the profits amounting to £60,000, after defraying all charges, of which £20,000 were divided among the seamen, and £40,000 came clear to the undertakers or adventurers. In 1587, he had the command of another fleet, with which he sailed to the bay of Cadiz, and thence to the Tagus, where he destroyed 10,000 tons of shipping, which the king of Spain had collected for the purpose of invading England. He likewise brought home the St Philip, a very rich prize, said by the writers of these times to have been the first carack ever taken and brought home to England.
In the glorious year 1588, by commission from the queen, Sir Francis Drake was appointed vice-admiral of the fleet of England, then fitted out for opposing the invincible Spanish Armada. In this arduous service, on which the independence and existence of England depended, he performed even more than his former actions gave reason to expect. In the very beginning of the fight, he captured two very large ships of war, one commanded by the Spanish vice-admiral Oquendas, and the other by Don Pedro de Valdez. This latter officer defended his ship with great gallantry for a long time; and at length, on surrendering, and delivering his sword to Sir Francis, he addressed him to the following effect: "That they had all resolved to have died fighting, if they had not fallen into his hands, whose valour and fortune were so great, that Mars and Neptune seemed to aid him in all his enterprises." To requite these Spanish compliments with solid English kindness, Sir Francis lodged Don Valdez in his own cabin, and entertained him at his table. Drake's crew were recompensed by the plunder of the Spanish ship, in which were found 55,000 ducats in gold, which they joyfully shared. Sir Francis performed many other signal services on this memorable occasion against the Armada, and particularly distinguished himself by advising the employment of fire-ships, which some have alleged he then invented.
He was next year admiral of a great fleet, sent to Portugal for the purpose of restoring Don Antonio to the throne of that kingdom. This expedition, though it did not succeed in its grand object, occasioned considerable damage to Spain, on which it retorted the compliment of an invasion, and by which it was rendered unable to repeat another attempt of the same nature. On the whole, therefore, Sir Francis spoiled no less than three Spanish invasions. In 1595, he went upon another conjunct expedition against the Spanish West Indies, in which he performed signal services; but aiming at still greater, and being unsuccessful, he died in the harbour of Porto Bello, on the 28th of January, 1596, as is said, of a broken heart, occasioned by his disappointment. His body, being put into a leaden coffin, was committed to the deep, under a general discharge of all the artillery of the fleet. In his person, though of low stature, Sir Francis Drake was well made, with a fresh and fair complexion, having large lively eyes, light-brown hair, and an open cheerful countenance. He was naturally eloquent, gracefully expressing what he clearly conceived. He was thoroughly versant, not only in the practical part of his profession, but in all the sciences connected with it, being able to discharge all the offices necessary in a ship as occasion required, even that of the surgeon. In his conduct as a naval commander he was skilful and valiant, just to his owners, kind to his seamen, loyal to his sovereign, and merciful to his enemies after victory. His many glorious exploits justly entitle him to high fame; and he died, at fifty-five, in the ardent pursuit of glory, in the cause of his queen and country.
The fame of this Voyage round the World, with the wealth brought home by Sir Francis Drake, and the desire of rivalling him in riches and reputation, inspired numbers of young men of all ranks with the inclination of trying their fortunes at sea. Men of rank and fortune fitted out ships at their own expence, manning them with their dependants. Others, in lower situations, hazarded their persons as subaltern officers in these ships, or in men-of-war belonging to the queen. This spirit grew to such a height, that honest John Stowe informs us that there were many youths, from eighteen to twenty years of age, towards the close of Queen Elizabeth's reign, who were capable of taking charge of any ship, and navigating to most parts of the world.
So alarmed were the Spaniards by the courage and conduct of Sir Francis, and his maritime skill, that they ordered that no draughts or discourses should be published of their discoveries in America, lest they might fall into his hands. What most surprised them was, that he should find his way so easily through the Straits of Magellan, which they had hitherto been unable to perform. They therefore resolved immediately to have these straits completely explored and discovered, by means of ships fitted out in Peru. For this purpose, Don Pedro Sarmiento, who was thought the best seaman in the Spanish service, was sent from Lima, and actually passed from the South Sea into the Atlantic, and thence to Spain. He there proposed to plant a colony in the straits, and to fortify them in such a manner as might prevent all other nations from passing through them. This project was so well relished by Philip II that a fleet of twenty-three ships was fitted out, with 3,500 men, under the command of Don Diego Floris de Valdez; and Sarmiento, with 500 veterans, was appointed to form a settlement in the straits.
This fleet was extremely unfortunate, insomuch that it was between two and three years before Sarmiento arrived with his people in the straits of Magellan. On the north side, and near the eastern entrance, he built a town and fort, which he named Nombre de Jesus, and in which he left a garrison of 150 men. Fifteen leagues farther on, at the narrowest part of the straits, and in lat. 53° 18' S.[39] he established his principal settlement, which he named Ciudad del Rey Felippe, or the City of King Philip. This was a regularly fortified square fortress, having four bastions; and is said to have been in all respects one of the best-contrived settlements ever made by the Spaniards in America. At this place Sarmiento left a garrison of 400 men and thirty women, with provisions for eight months, and then returned into the Atlantic. These transactions took place in the years 1584, 5, and 6. Sarmiento, after several fruitless attempts to succour and relieve his colony, was taken by an English vessel, and sent prisoner to London.
[Footnote 39: The Narrows of the Hope are eighteen leagues of Castile, or about forty-eight English miles from Cape Virgin, the northern cape at the eastern mouth of the straits, in lat. 52° 5' S. long. 69° W. from Greenwich.--E.]
The Spanish garrison, having consumed all their provisions, died mostly of hunger, perhaps aided by the scurvy, in their new city. Twenty-three men quitted it, endeavouring to find their way by land to the Spanish settlements, but are supposed to have all perished by the way, as they were never more heard of. Sarmiento fell into discredit with the king of Spain, for deceiving him as to the breadth of the straits, which he asserted did not exceed a mile over; whereas the king was certainly informed that they were a league broad, and therefore incapable of being shut up by any fortifications. However this may be, even supposing the report of Sarmiento true, and that his fortress could have commanded the straits, even this could have proved of little or no service to Spain, as another passage into the South Sea was discovered soon afterwards, without the necessity of going near these straits.
SECTION VI.