FRANCIS DRAKE. HEROE OR VILLAIN? ACTIVITIES

Drake’s Circumnavigation: Was Drake a Hero or a Villain?

Task 1: Individual Work

· Using the details of Drake’s journey from the Google Earth tour at www.activehistory.co.uk, find evidence to fill in this table.

· Any evidence that Drake was a hero (for example, he was kind and brave) should be placed in the left-hand column.

· Any evidence that he was a villain (for example, he was cruel and cowardly) should be placed in the right-hand column.

· Any evidence which you are not sure about can be placed in the middle column.

· TIP: Two events have been added to start you off (you can delete them if you wish!).

Hero		Villain
Mogador: 27th Dec. 1577 Drake traded sheep and chickens with the locals. This shows he is willing to make friends with the people he meets.		Cape Blanco: 17th Jan. 1578 Drake hijacks a Spanish ship. This shows that he is a thief.

Task 2: Group Work

Working with a partner, then in a larger group, compare what you put into the middle column. Work together to decide whether it should be moved into the “Hero” or “Villain” column.

Alternatively, your teacher may ask you to contribute these ideas to a whole-class discussion, and for each point raised the class would vote on whether it belongs in the “Hero” or “Villain” category.

Task 3: Writing up your findings

Using your completed table to help you, provide a written answer to this question:

“Was Drake a hero or a villain?”

Paragraph 1: “There is evidence to suggest that Drake was a hero. For example,…” [use your information from column 1]

Paragraph 2: “There is evidence to suggest that Drake was a villain. For example,…” [use your information from column 2]

Paragraph 3: “In conclusion, my opinion of Drake is that…”[reach your own judgement – be as detailed as you can!]

EXPLORER OR PIRATE?

Francis Drake was the first English explorer to sail around the world. His ship was originally called the Pelican, but was renamed Golden Hind, sometimes spelled the Golden Hinde.

 Drake was basically a pirate. He stole gold and silver and cargo from other ships! He loaded his own ship with so much cargo, some from trading, some from theft, that he was a bit concerned his own ship might sink! He pushed on anyway, and sailed successfully round the world.

Drake returned to England with an enormous amount of treasure, mostly stolen from Spanish explorers and Spanish ports in the Americas. This delighted the Queen of England when she heard about it, as England and Spain were enemies at the time. The Queen was so pleased, in fact, that she knighted Francis Drake. Forever after, Francis Drake became Sir Francis Drake.