Drake claims California for England
During his circumnavigation of the world English seaman Francis Drake anchors in a harbor just north of present-day San Francisco California and claims the territory for Queen Elizabeth I.Calling the land Nova Albion Drake remained on the California coast for a month to make repairs to his ship the Golden Hind and prepare for his westward crossing of the Pacific Ocean.On December 13 1577 Drake set out from England with five ships on a mission to raid Spanish holdings on the Pacific coast of the New World.After crossing the Atlantic Drake abandoned two of his ships in South America and then sailed into the Straits of Magellan with the remaining three.
A series of devastating storms besieged his expedition in the treacherous straits wrecking one ship and forcing another to return to England.Only the Golden Hind reached the Pacific Ocean but Drake continued undaunted up the western coast of South America raiding Spanish settlements and capturing a rich Spanish treasure ship.Drake then continued up the western coast of North America searching for a possible northeast passage back to the Atlantic.Reaching as far north as present-day Washington before turning back Drake paused near San Francisco Bay in June 1579 to repair his ship and prepare for a journey across the Pacific.
In July the expedition set off across the Pacific visiting several islands before rounding Africas Cape of Good Hope and returning to the Atlantic Ocean.On September 26 1580 the Golden Hind returned to Plymouth England bearing its rich captured treasure and valuable information about the worlds great oceans.In 1581 Queen Elizabeth I knighted Drake during a visit to his ship.
