flagship, theGolden Hind, made it through
the Straits of Magellan and as far as the
Pacific Ocean. Searching for a northerly
passage back to the Atlantic Ocean, Drake’s
vessel landed somewhere near Drake’s Bay,
now in the state of California, and named
the surroundings “New Albion” in the
name of the queen and England. Instead
of retracing his route, Drake then sailed
west, across the vast Pacific to the Philip-
pines, the East Indies, and the Indian
Ocean and then around the Cape of Good
Hope. Having collected a considerable for-
tune from Spanish treasure ships, he re-
turned to England in September 1580. The
voyage had made him the second Euro-
pean to circumnavigate the globe after Fer-
dinand Magellan had died accomplishing
the same feat in 1519. On his return Drake
was rewarded with a knighthood by the
queen on the decks of theGolden Hind.
In 1581 Drake settled in Plymouth,
where his renown as an adventurer and
privateer earned him election as the town’s
mayor. Still yearning for the sea, in 1585
Drake accepted orders to disrupt Spanish
preparations for an expedition against En-
gland. Drake and his crew attacked the
Spaniards on the coast of Spain as well as
at the Cape Verde Islands. The fleet then
crossed the Atlantic Ocean, captured Span-
ish towns in South America, plundered
the Spanish colony of Saint Augustine in
what is now northeastern Florida, and
reached the English colony at Roanoke,
wherehetookonsurvivorsandreturned
them to England. This voyage provoked
open warfare between England and Spain,
and King Philip II was soon ordering
preparations for a naval assault. Elizabeth
allowed Drake to strike the first blow, and
in 1587 he reappeared in the port of Cadiz,
where he destroyed about thirty Spanish
vessels.
In 1588, as the Spanish Armada was
gathering, Drake was appointed a vice ad-
miral of the English fleet. Drake disrupted
the expedition by raiding supply ships, de-
laying and weakening the Spanish fleet.
The Armada then set out for the English
Channel, but turned back after losing sev-
eral skirmishes with Drake and other En-
glish commanders as well as very poor
weather. In 1595 Drake was again in com-
mand, along with John Hawkins, of an ex-
pedition to Panama ordered by the queen.
This time, the Spanish were warned ahead
of time and were waiting for the English
privateers. Off the port of San Juan, Pu-
erto Rico, Hawkins died and Drake was
beaten back from the harbor. On reaching
Panama, Drake was ambushed by Spanish
troops and forced out to sea, where he
soon died of a fever.SEEALSO: Elizabeth I; Magellan, Ferdinand;
Spanish Armadad’Aragona, Tullia .............................
(ca. 1510–1556)
A celebrated courtesan, musician, and au-
thor, Tullia d’Aragona was known to
nobles, artists, philosophers, and princes
as one of Renaissance Italy’s most fascinat-
ing women. She was the daughter of Giulia
Ferrarese, herself a courtesan of great
beauty, and was educated by Cardinal
Luigid’Aragona,whomayhavebeenher
father. She left her birthplace of Rome for
Siena in 1519, and returned to Rome in
1526 to enlist as a professional courtesan,
a woman engaged by wealthy men for en-
tertainment, witty conversation, and physi-
cal pleasure. Among her clients were the
banker Filippo Strozzi of Florence; Emilio
Orsini, scion of a powerful Roman family;
and the poet Bernardo Tasso. She married
Silvestro Guiccardi in 1543 and several
years later joined the Florentine court ofd’Aragona, Tullia