The Golden Hind

The Golden Hind: Sir Francis Drake's Flagship

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A replica of the Golden Hind

Few ships in maritime history evoke as much wonder and controversy as the Golden Hind. Best known as the flagship of Sir Francis Drake during his circumnavigation of the globe between 1577 and 1580, this English galleon played a pivotal role in the era of Elizabethan exploration and privateering.

From Pelican to Golden Hind

It is a lesser-known fact that the ship was not originally christened the Golden Hind. When she launched in Plymouth, she was known as the Pelican. She was a relatively small galleon, weighing about 120 tons, with a length of roughly 102 feet.

Mid-voyage, in 1578, as the expedition prepared to enter the treacherous Strait of Magellan, Drake renamed the ship. He chose the name Golden Hind to honor his patron, Sir Christopher Hatton, whose family crest featured a golden hind (a female red deer). This political maneuver was likely calculated to smooth over tensions back home regarding the expedition's controversial nature.

The Circumnavigation

Drake's voyage was a feat of extraordinary endurance. Of the five ships that set sail from England, only the Golden Hind completed the journey. The ship survived violent Atlantic storms, the perilous passage around South America, and the vast, unknown expanse of the Pacific Ocean.

The ship was heavily armed for her size, carrying 22 guns. This firepower was necessary not just for defense, but for the primary purpose of the mission: plundering Spanish shipping routes along the Pacific coast of the Americas.

The Treasure Ship

The Golden Hind became one of the richest ships in history. During her voyage, she captured the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de la Concepción (nicknamed Cagafuego). The haul was immense, including 26 tons of silver, half a ton of gold, porcelain, and jewels.

When the ship finally returned to Plymouth in September 1580, the treasure on board was valued at over £300,000—more than the Crown's entire annual income. Queen Elizabeth I received a half-share of the treasure, which allowed her to pay off the entire national debt.

A Floating Monument

Following the voyage, the Golden Hind was brought to Deptford, London. In a rare move for the time, Queen Elizabeth ordered the ship to be preserved as a museum piece—the first known instance of a ship being preserved for public display. It remained there for nearly a century before eventually rotting away, though timber from the hull was reportedly used to make a chair that now sits in the Bodleian Library at Oxford.

"Whoever commands the sea, commands the trade; whosoever commands the trade of the world commands the riches of the world, and consequently the world itself." — Sir Walter Raleigh

Today, the legacy of the Golden Hind endures as a symbol of the Age of Discovery, representing both the navigational brilliance and the aggressive expansionism of the Elizabethan era.