January(?) 1(?), 1535 - Altofts, Yorkshire - Martin Frobisher is born
January(?) 1(?), 1542 - Altofts - His father, a merchant named Bernard Frobisher, dies
January(?) 1(?), 1549 - London - Sent to London to live with Sir John York, a maternal relative
August 12, 1553 - Portsmouth - 18-year-old Martin Frobisher departs on the first english expedition to West Africa, with 3 ships (Lion, Primrose and Moon) and 140 men, led by Thomas Wyndham and portuguese jewish pilot António Eannes Penteado =(START)
September(?) 1(?), 1553 - Off Madeira Island - Some portuguese ships are plundered
November(?) 1(?), 1553 - Gold Coast, Ghana - The english are able to trade for 150 pounds of gold, while avoiding sailing close to the portuguese fortress of Elmina
December(?) 1(?), 1553 - Lagoons of Nigeria - Wyndham trades his english goods for 80 tons of malaguetta pepper
February(?) 1(?), 1554 - Off Benin - Captain Wyndham dies of malaria fever
May(?), 1(?), 1554 - Madeira Island - Passing Madeira Island
June 1(?), 1554 - Plymouth - The 40 survivors of the Wyndham expedition return to England
October 11, 1554 - Dartmouth - Departs on John Lok's expedition to Western Africa, with 3 ships, the "Trinity" (140-tons), the "John Evangelist" (140-tons) and the "Bartholomew" (90-tons)
November 1, 1554 - Coast of England - Unfavourable winds keep them from leaving the coast of England
November 17, 1554 - Off Madeira Island - Lok passes Madeira Island
November 20(?), 1554 - Off Tenerife Island, Canary Islands - Two days in calms under the Peak of Teide
December 1(?), 1554 - Cestos River, Liberia - Landfall near Cestos River, after 7 weeks sailing
February 10, 1555 - Shama, Ghana - Lok anchors at Shama, site of the portuguese fort of St.Sebastian. The local chief demands an hostage to begin business. Martin Frobisher volunteers. Before business begins, a portuguese ship appears and opens fire of Lok's ships. The english retreat to the east to continue their business, leaving Frobisher in Shama
February 12(?), 1555 - Elmina, Ghana - Frobisher is captured and his african captors hand him to the portuguese at their factory of Mina. He is arrested in the castle of São Jorge da Mina (St.George of Elmina or literally "St.George of the Mine")
February 13, 1555 - While in Elmina, Ghana - John Lok sets sail for England with more than 400 pounds' weight of gold, 36 butts of Guinea pepper, and 250 elephants’ tusks
November 15(?), 1555 - Elmina, Ghana - Frobisher stays in captivity for 9 months. Due to his good nature, the portuguese send him off to purchase victuals at nearby villages, from where he always returned. They decide to transfer him to Lisbon, Portugal
March(?) 1(?), 1556 - Lisbon, Portugal - Frobisher is transfered to a Lisbon jail. He learns of a navigable northwest passage from one of his inmates, a portuguese sailor who swore he had made that voyage
(From 1556 to 1575, details in Frobisher's life are sketchy. Help to complete it is much appreciated)
December(?) 1(?), 1556 - England - Frobisher is released and makes his way back to England
January(?) 1(?), 1559 - Barbary Coast - Leads a voyage to the Barbary Coast to secure the release of an English hostage, Anthony Hammond
September 30, 1559 - West Riding, Yorkshire - Marries Isobel Richard
January(?) 1(?), 1563 - Becomes involved in a privateering business venture with his brother, John Frobisher, and a fellow Yorkshireman, John Appleyard
May 1(?), 1563 - Plymouth - They seize 5 french ships and bring them to Plymouth
January(?) 1(?), 1564 - Marshalsea, London(?) - Released from prison
January(?) 1(?), 1565 - Purchases two ships, the "Mary Flower" and the "William Baxter"
October 31, 1566 - Marshalsea, London(?) - Frobisher is released again
January(?) 1(?), 1568 - Commands the "Robert" in service to the exiled Cardinal of Chatillon
January(?) 1(?), 1569 - Marshalsea, London - Arrested again
March 1(?), 1570 - Marshalsea - Released from prison
August 21, 1571 - Portsmouth - Letter from Captain E.Horsey to Lord Burghley, informing him that he "has expedited the fitting out of a hulk for M. Frobisher"
October 1(?), 1571 - Commissioned to command 4 ships in the search for pirates and smugglers along the english coast
January(?) 1(?), 1572 - Ireland - Directed to the Irish coast to provide logistical support for the English Campaign against the Desmond Rebellions
January 1(?), 1573 - Involved in the seizure of a french ship loaded with portuguese merchandise
January(?) 1(?), 1574 - Frobisher petitioned the Privy Council for permission and financial support to lead an expedition to find a north-west passage to "the Southern Sea" (the Pacific Ocean) and thence to Cathay
February 3, 1575 - London - The Muscovy Company issues a license to Frobisher "to venture into the unknown"
June 7, 1576 - Deptford, London - Frobisher departs to find a Northwest Passage to Cathay, with the 30-ton bark "Gabriel", the "Michael" and a 7-ton unnamed pinnace. While in front of Greenwich Palace, Queen Elizabeth bids farewell to him, "shaking her hand" at them "out of the window"
June 26, 1576 - Shetland Islands - Frobisher reaches the Shetland Islands. The "Michael" begins leaking and has to put into shore for repairs. They continue voyage on the same day
June 29, 1576 - After three days sailing to the Northwest, a violet storm rises
July 8, 1576 - 3 days from Greenland - After being pounded continuously for more than a month, the storm finally ceases
July 11, 1576 - SE tip of Greenland - The mountains of the southeastern tip of Greenland are sighted. Due to the ice, an attempt to land fails. Soon, a terrible storm begins and the small pinnace sinks. The crew of the "Michael" decides to turn back to England
July 13, 1576 - Davis Strait (Between Greenland and Baffin Island, Canada) - The "Gabriel" capsizes, but Frobisher orders the mizzen mast to be hacked away while he untangled the rigging and the sails filling with icy water - the ship sails on
July 28, 1576 - In sight of the Labrador coast - Frobisher sights Labrador
August 18, 1576 - Baffin Island, Canada - Frobisher arrives at Baffin Island. Five crewmembers are taken captive by inuits
August 26, 1576 - Frobisher Bay, Canada - Martin Frobisher claims Frobisher Bay for Elizabeth I
September 20(?), 1576 - Shetland Islands - Reaches the Shetland Islands on his return voyage
October 2, 1576 - Harwich, England - Frobisher reaches Harwich
October 9, 1576 - London - Frobisher returns to London
March 30, 1577 - Frobisher petitions the Queen to be confirmed as High Admiral of the North-Western Seas and Governor of all lands discovered, and to receive 5% of profits from trade
May 18, 1577 - Greenwich Palace - Martin Frobisher visits the Court
May 27, 1577 - Blackwall, London - Frobisher departs to the Northeast with three ships, the 200-ton "Ayde", lent by the Queen (who was investing £1,000 in the expedition), the "Gabriel" and the "Michael". The expedition was carrying 30 cornish miners and a group of convicts to be expatriated
May 31, 1577 - Harwich - At Harwich, Frobisher has a letter from the Privy Council waiting for him, commanding him to trim his excess crew. He decides to send the convicts and a number of sailors ashore and continues to Scotland
June 7, 1577 - St.Magnus Sound, Orkney Islands - The fleet anchors at St.Magnus Sound in the Orkney Islands to take on water
July 4, 1577 - Off Southern Greenland - "Friesland" (Southern Greenland) is sighted
July 8, 1577 - Southern Greenland - Unable to land due to the fog and fear of hitting unseen ice, Frobisher sets course to the west
July 17, 1577 - Hall's Island, Frobisher Bay, Canada - After ten days of storms, the weather clears and Hall's Island is sighted, at the mouth of Frobisher Bay
July 18, 1577 - Hall's Island - Frobisher and a small party land on Hall's Island. The next day they make their way to its highest point, which is baptized as Mount Warwick, in honor of one of the main investors of the expedition, the Earl of Warwick
July 30(?), 1577 - Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada - Frobisher sets up a gold mining colony
August 1, 1577 - Frobisher tries to bargain with the natives about exchanging the hostages for the five captured englishmen
August 23, 1577 - Hall's Island, Frobisher Bay - Frobisher sets sail to Wales, taking an eskimo family aboard
September 23, 1577 - Milford Haven, Wales - Frobisher returns to Wales
September 24, 1577 - Windsor - Visit to the Queen after his return
May 21, 1578 - Hampton Court Palace, London - Martin Frobisher visits the Court
May 30, 1578 - Harwich, England - Frobisher departs on his third expedition to the Northeast with 15 ships :"Ayde, Michael, Gabriel, Judith, Dennis, Anne Francis, Francis of Foy, Moon of Foy, Bear of Leycester, Thomas of Ipswich, Thomas Allen, Armenall, Soloman of Weymouth, Hopewell and Emanuel of Bridgwater"
June 20, 1578 - South of Greenland - Frobisher reaches the South of Greenland
July 2, 1578 - In sight of Frobisher Bay - Frobisher Bay is sighted in stormy weather. The 100-ton barque "Dennys" is wrecked on an iceberg" with the expedition's prefabricated "winter house" on board
August 31, 1578 - Frobisher Bay, Canada - Frobisher decides to return to England without establishing a successful colony
October 2, 1578 - Plymouth - Frobisher returns to Plymouth
March 17, 1580 - Plymouth(?) - Sir William Winter sails to Ireland with 9 ships, one of which was the "Foresight" under command of Martin Frobisher. He was instructed to cruise off the Irish coast with a fleet to prevent any help of arriving for the rebels
March 30, 1580 - Near Ballylongford, Kerry, W. Ireland - Winter's ships begin a two-day bombardment of the Desmond Fort at Carrigafoyle
April 6, 1580 - Near Ballylongford - Sails up the Shannon River to land guns, ammunition and powder to enable Lord Deputy Sir William Pelham to take the Earl of Desmond's stronghold at Carrigafoyle and two other forts
July 25, 1580 - Off Baltimore, SW Ireland - Resupplied at Sea by four ships of sea victuals from England
September 5, 1580 - Baltimore, SW Ireland - Sir William Winter sets sail back to England without authorization
September 12, 1580 - While sailing to England - Papal forces land at Smerwick, Ireland
October(?) 1(?), 1580 - Plymouth(?) - Six days after returning to England, news are received that the Spanish Admiral Don Martín de Recaldi had arrived at Smerwick Bay and offloaded supplies and troops before returning to Spain
November 5, 1580 - Smerwick Bay, W. Ireland - Sir William Winter's ships arrive at Smerwick Bay, replenishing the supplies of Grey de Wilton, who was camped at Dingle
November 10, 1580 - Smerwick Bay - Bombardment of the Dun an Oir fort
November 11, 1580 - While in Smerwick Bay - The spanish call for a truce and surrender the next day
December(?) 1(?), 1580 - Plymouth(?) - During the next days, the english slaughter all but a handful of officers and men without mercy. Even pregnant women are hanged. Sir William Winter returns to England
September 14, 1585 - Plymouth - Sir Francis Drake sets sail to the Antilles with a strong armada of 21 ships and 1,800 soldiers under command of Christopher Carleill. One of his captains is Martin Frobisher, in command of the "Primrose"
September 27, 1585 - Bayona, Vigo Bay - Drake sends people ashore to plunder and take hostages, which Carleill had already done
October 11, 1585 - Bayona, Vigo Bay - After taking on fresh water, Drake sets sail again
November 3, 1585 - La Palma, Canary Islands - An attempt to land is thwarted
November 18, 1585 - Santiago, Cape Verde - 1,000 men land, and while they await for ransom, the ships are loaded with provisions. Nobody appears
November 29, 1585 - Santiago, Cape Verde - Drake weighs anchor and begins the crossing of the Atlantic Ocean
December 16, 1585 - Dominica - Arrival to Dominica, passage by Guadalupe
December 25, 1585 - St.Kitts Islands - The english spend Christmas at St. Christopher
December 31, 1585 - In sight of Santo Domingo - The english armada creates panic when it is seen from Santo Domingo
January 1, 1586 - Santo Domingo - The city is taken. During the night, 1,000 men land at the mouth of River Haina
January 31, 1586 - Santo Domingo - Drake departs with a ransom of 25,000 ducats and all riches of Santo Domingo
February 9, 1586 - Cartagena, Colombia - Drake enters in the port of Cartagena
March 10, 1586 - Cartagena - The spanish hand over a ransom of 107,000 ducats. Maybe even more 200,000 from individuals
April 14, 1586 - Cartagena - Drake, with too many sick men aboard, decides to return to England and sets sail
April 27, 1586 - Between Havana and Cape San Antonio - Drake careens his ships and abandons plans to assault Havana, which was well defended
May 13, 1586 - Between Havana and Cape San Antonio - Drake departs with a portuguese pilot to the East coast of Florida
May 28, 1586 - St. Augustine, Florida - Drake lands and destroys the spanish settlement. The spanish run away with their families
June 9, 1586 - Roanoke Island, North Carolina - Drake reaches the Virginia Colony, in the Island of Roanoke
June 18, 1586 - Roanoke Island, North Carolina - Drake sets sail to England taking colonists with him
July 28, 1586 - Portsmouth, England - Frobisher returns to England with Drake
July 21, 1588 - Eddystone Rocks, off Plymouth - Aboard his flagship "Triumph", Frobisher commands a squadron of 6 ships - "Merchant Royal, Margaret and John, Centurion, Golden Lion, Mary Rose"
July 25, 1588 - Off Dunnose Cape, Isle of Wight - Frobisher engages the Duke of Medina Sidonia's flagship "San Martín". He escapes when more than 30 spanish ships bore down upon him
July 26, 1588 - E. Isle of Wight - John Hawkins and Martin Frobisher are knighted by Admiral Howard, on board his flagship "Ark Royal"
July 29, 1588 - Off Gravelines, France - Battle of Gravelines
October 31, 1588 - The english fleet returns to port
May 1(?), 1590 - Plymouth - Hawkins and Frobisher set sail to the Coast of Portugal to wait for the Silver Fleet
May 10(?), 1590 - Coast of Portugal - Hawkins and Frobisher arrive to the area to wait for the Silver Fleet. However, Phillip II of Spain forbids its departure
October 29(?), 1590 - Plymouth - Hawkins and Frobisher return to England, empty handed
September 1(?), 1591 - Altofts, Yorkshire - Visit to his native Altofts. Meets Dorothy Wentworth, daughter of Thomas, 1st Baron Wentworth
October(?) 1(?), 1591 - Altofts, Yorkshire - Dorothy Wentworth becomes Frobisher's second wife
November 1(?), 1591 - Whitwood, Yorkshire - Frobisher purchases from the Queen the leasehold of the manor of Whitwood in Yorkshire, and of Finningley Grange in Nottinghamshire, for £949
March 5(?), 1592 - Dartmouth - Ready to depart, Raleigh's fleet is held at port with poor weather
May 6, 1592 - Dartmouth - After much delay because of weather, Walter Raleigh sets sail with John Burroughs as vice-admiral and Martin Frobisher. His fleet were 14 or 15 ships of which the "Garland" and the "Foresight" belonged to the Queen. Cumberland had the largest stake in the expedition and helped Raleigh to finance and gather the fleet. The fleet included notables such as William Monson, Robert Crosse, Samuel Purchas, Richard Hawkins, Downton and Christopher Newport. Cumberland provides the "Tiger"(600-tons), his 300-ton ship "Sampson" and the "Golden Noble"(160-tons)
May 7, 1592 - Off Dartmouth - Frobisher goes to Raleigh in the pinnace "Disdain" and delivers him the letter from the Queen, ordering his immediate recall to England
May 9, 1592 - Bay of Biscay - Raleigh meets with a ship belonging to Monsieur Gourdon, governor of Calais, on board of which was one Mr.Nevil Davies, an englishman, who had endured a long captivity of 12 years, and had now by good fortune made his escape, and was on his way home. Davies reported that there was little good to be done or expected that year in the West Indies, as the king of Spain had sent express orders to all the ports both of the islands and the main, that no ships were to sail that year, nor any treasure to be shipped to Spain. Yet Raleigh continues his voyage, despite the Queen's orders.
May 11, 1592 - Off Cape Finisterre, NW Spain - The Fleet is scattered by a severe storm. Three ships sink
May 12, 1592 - Off Cape Finisterre, NW Spain - Upon considering the effects of the storm, the contrary winds expected in a raid to Panama that time of the year, and the depleted supplies with the delays, Raleigh decides to sail home, dividing his fleet between Burrough ("Roebuck"), with orders to sail to the Azores to intercept carracks from Mexico and India, and Frobisher ("Garland"), with orders to patrol the coast of Portugal and watch for ships leaving Lisbon
May 31, 1592 - Off Cape St Vincent, Portugal - A sail is sighted. Burrough pursues it to Cape St.Vincent. The ship, the spanish 600-tons "Santa Clara", is taken
June 15(?), 1592 - Off Cape St Vincent, Portugal - Frobisher rounds Cape St.Vincent without finding Alonso de Bazán's fleet (Which sailed to St.Michael Island, Azores)
June 18, 1592 - Off Northern Portugal - Frobisher captures a ship laden with chests of sugar
July(?) 1(?), 1592 - Dartmouth(?) - The "Garland" returns to England
October 1, 1594 - Ponte des Espagnols, Crozon Peninsula, France - Present at the siege of Fort Crozon, from the Sea
November 12(?), 1594 - Ponte des Espagnols - Frobisher receives a gunshot wound to his thigh. The surgeon who extracts the ball leaves the wadding behind and an infection ensues
November 15, 1594 - Plymouth, England - Sir Martin Frobisher dies on arrival in Plymouth, due to the infection, aged 59 =(END)
No comments:
Post a Comment