Henry Hudson III: The Explorer Throughout the course of history, there have been many brave seamen, courageous explorers, and thoughtful navigators. But one man, Henry Hudson, was all three. Hudson made four incredibly daring voyages to find the nonexistent Northwest Passage, a route to find Asia by going west. Of course, you can’t find something nonexistent, but in the midst of his futile journeys, he made several discoveries that turned out to greatly influence the course of history over the next four centuries. Childhood and Family Hudson was born Henry Hudson III to Henry Hudson II and Katherine Hudson around the 1560s to 1570s. Hudson’s birthdate is disputed; many sources do not give a birthdate at all. In fact, extremely little is known about Hudson’s childhood. Born and raised in Tamworth, Staffordshire, England, it is thought that Hudson sailed on many voyages as a child. In the late 1500s, Hudson married Katherine Hudson, and they had three children, including John Hudson, who started sailing with his father when he was thirteen. Motive In 1607, Hudson was hired by the Muscovy Company, created in part by his grandfather Henry Hudson I, to find the Northwest Passage, a route to Asia by going west. They provided him with a ship, the 80-ton Hopewell, …show more content…
When the ice cleared in the spring, Hudson made a move that may have cost him his life. Wanting to further explore the Northwest Passage, he ordered the ship to sail randomly, trying to find the passage. This angered the crew, most of whom thought that they could finally return home after the long winter. As the tensions escalated, a band of sailors, led by Robert Juet, mutinied against Hudson in June. Juet cast Hudson, his son, and seven crew members, adrift in a small boat. For several days, the boat trailed the Discovery. Then, an extra sail was put up and Hudson and his loyalists were left behind. Their fate is