Sir Francis Drake Research Paper

Pirates have been around for hundreds of years. The first evidence of pirates comes from fourteenth century BC! A couple hundred years ago there were tons of pirates on the seas. As author Kris Lane puts it, "piracy was their unequivocal purpose" (40). Pirates were, and still are, a very interesting group of people, that lived very adventurous lives and are very memorable! There are many pirates that lead fruitful lives including Sir Francis Drake, Edward Teach, Mary Read and Anne Bonny. The first recorded evidence of pirates and piracy is from the 14th century BC. The era that lots of infamous pirates emerged is called the Golden Age. Many articles and people say different times that the Golden Age started and ended with some saying it was

But life at sea is better." Often called Sir Francis Drake, no one is quite sure of the exact date he was born, as there is no actual birth record for him. Many people suspect he was born between 1540 and 1544. He was born in Tavistock, Devon, United Kingdom. Eldest of many sons, he was born to Mary Myllwaye, sometimes written as "Mylwaye", and Edmund Drake. Edmund Drake was a farmer on the estate of Lord Francis Russell, who was the second Earl of Bedford. He had many cousins, most of which were pirates and merchants. He became a pirate very early on in life, like many other pirates. In 1567, Drake started working with his cousin, John Hawkins, as a slave trader in Africa. Hawkins and Drake were captured by the Spanish in the Mexican port of San Juan de Ulúa. The two men escaped on their own ships. Sadly, many of their men were killed in this battle. This whole incident is what sparked Drake's hatred for Spain and Spain's king, King Philip II. A few years after this, In 1572, Drake got a commission from Queen Elizabeth I, which gave him the right to plunder any property that belonged to King Philip II. In the same year, he began his first independent journey to

Most people know him by Blackbeard but his real name is Edward Teach or Edward Thatch, depending on the article. He was born sometime in or near 1680 in the United Kingdom, likely Bristol, though many people think he could have been born in North America. Like Sire Francis Drake, he started sailing pretty early in life. Teach started off as a pirate under Benjamin Hornigold. It is very likely that Hornigold saw potential in Teach and taught him everything he knew. Even though Teach wasn't the most successful pirate, he was still a very impressive and amazing pirate. He and his crewmate stole lots of food and supplies from many people. Surprisingly, there are no officially verified accounts of Teach actually killing anyone. He most likely didn't have to kill anyone, as just the look of him scared people. He lived in Nassau but had headquarters in North Carolina, South Carolina, and the Bahamas. Apparently, Teach accepted a pardon and then retired from being a pirate. Like many pirates, Teach went down with a fight, his death was very brutal. Lots of people say that before his final battle he said, "Damnation seize my soul if I give you quaters." This quote basically means, "I won't surrender to you or accept your surrender." Lieutenant Robert Maynard and his men started to fight with Teach and his men on November 22nd, 1728. Reportedly, Teach was stabbed more than 20 times and shot five times before