Drake

In Short

This 1876 drama is an unapologetic celebration of the "Anglo-Saxon" spirit and the British Empire, told through the lens of Sir Francis Drake’s naval exploits. Moving from the deck of the Golden Hind to the court of Queen Elizabeth I, the play depicts a struggle between English Protestant liberty and the perceived tyranny of Spanish Catholicism. It serves as both a historical pageant and a nationalistic manifesto, combining intense sea battles, treasure-hunting, and lofty speeches about England’s divine mission to rule the waves and spread civilization.

The Story

The narrative begins with a clear ideological divide: England, led by a sharp-witted and pragmatic Queen Elizabeth, finds itself in an uneasy peace with Spain. Sir Francis Drake, alongside his captain, John Hawkins, navigates this tension by treating the high seas as a battleground for influence and gold. While the official councils in London debate treaties and the potential for war, Drake and his crew view the world through a more direct lens. They operate as privateers, convinced that the wealth of the Americas, claimed by Spain, is rightfully theirs to seize, and that the Spanish Inquisition represents a global threat to freedom that must be dismantled.

The action shifts frequently between the English court and the Caribbean. In the Americas, Drake encounters the Symerons, indigenous allies who have been brutalized by Spanish cruelty. Their tales of massacre and their desire for vengeance provide a moral justification for Drake’s raids on Spanish ports like Nombre de Dios. These sequences are marked by a sense of wonder at the exotic beauty of the tropics—contrasted with the "cow trees" and monkeys that amuse the crew—and the ruthless efficiency with which Drake’s men sack Spanish assets.

The conflict reaches a boiling point when Drake and his crew return to England with the Golden Hind laden with immense riches. The tension between the nations escalates as the Spanish Ambassador, Don Bernardino de Mendoza, confronts the Queen, citing papal authority to claim the Pacific. Elizabeth, however, dismisses these claims with biting irony, using the occasion to assert her own sovereignty and defy the Vatican. She is portrayed as a master of political instinct, one who knows exactly when to support her "sea-dogs" and when to distance herself from their piracy to maintain the appearance of diplomacy.

The arc concludes with a grand tableau of victory. Drake presents the Queen with a magnificent crown of emeralds, a symbol of the wealth flowing into England from the newly opened sea lanes. In the final scenes, the focus moves from the grit of the ship’s deck to a patriotic celebration. The play ends on a note of triumphalism, as sailors and courtiers alike toast to England’s future. The message is clear: the sea belongs to those who, like Drake, possess the courage to claim it. The era of Spanish dominance is fading, and a new, divinely sanctioned British power is rising to take its place, destined to carry the Bible and the values of a free people to every corner of the globe.

How It Unfolds

The mandate of the sea The drama opens by invoking a divine, providential purpose for the British Empire, establishing the sea as the stage for a grand historical transition. It frames the rise of England not merely as a matter of policy, but as the unfolding of a celestial plan.

The conflict of interest Drake and Hawkins debate the legalities of their privateering, weighing the benefits of open warfare against the constraints of existing treaties. They resolve to act as independent agents, viewing their voyages as a necessary defense against Spanish encroachment.

The voyage of vengeance Moving to the Caribbean, the narrative follows Drake as he allies with local tribes and launches a campaign of destruction against Spanish ports. He discovers that the "New World" is a theater of extreme violence, which justifies his own "mission of blood."

The return to the throne The scene shifts back to London, where the Queen maneuvers around her Spanish rivals. She navigates the dangers of treason and espionage with a cold, instinctive brilliance, ultimately choosing to back her sailors against the demands of the Ambassador.

The coronation of success The play culminates in the arrival of the Golden Hind and the display of its spoils. The drama concludes with a choral anthem that declares England the "Guardian of the Word," cementing the ideological fusion of maritime supremacy and national identity.

The People

Sir Francis Drake is the embodiment of action. He is driven by a fervent, almost religious conviction that he is an instrument of destiny. He views Spain as a "giant frame" that is paralyzed by its own corruption, making England’s dominance inevitable. By the end, he is less a man and more a mythic hero, the "enchanter" who brings the treasures of the world to his Queen.

Queen Elizabeth I is depicted as a master tactician. Her primary motivation is the survival and expansion of her kingdom, and she plays her courtiers and ambassadors against each other with calculated wit. She ends the play as the triumphant monarch, having successfully transitioned from a queen under threat to the ruler of an expanding global power.

Don Bernardino de Mendoza, the Spanish Ambassador, represents the old order. His goal is to maintain the status quo of Spanish hegemony through legalistic and papal mandates. He is consistently outmaneuvered by the Queen’s refusal to recognize the authority he represents, ultimately becoming a foil for her rising power.

Thomas Cobham and other captains like Hawkins serve as the energetic, rough-hewn executors of Drake’s vision. They are men of "blood and vengeance" who view the law as an obstacle to be bypassed. They represent the raw, unrefined force of the English sailor, providing the physical courage that supports the Queen's political maneuvering.

In Its Own Voice

While discussing the inevitable shift in global power, a spy observes the decline of Spain and the ascent of the English fleet.

"There is a Crisis now in the affairs of mankind. Providence re-adjusts his plan to open another chapter in the course of Destiny."

When Drake finally presents his looted treasures to the Queen, he justifies his piracy by the sheer scale of the wealth he has diverted to his homeland.

"Gold plate and bars by tons! What will your majesty say to cases of pearls and emeralds as large as pigeons’ eggs?"

In a moment of intense patriotism, Drake kisses the soil of his home, defining his motivation as a duty to the land that he believes is chosen for greatness.

"Land of my birth! Land of my love! Land of my duty! Blessed England."

What It's Really About

At its core, this play is an argument for the historical inevitability of British exceptionalism. It posits that the English constitution and the Protestant faith are the true foundations of civil liberty, and that these values were destined to supersede the "despotism" of the Catholic powers. The author frames history as a struggle between corruption—embodied by Spanish greed and the Inquisition—and a nascent, divinely favored imperialism. The book asks whether a nation can truly be free if it does not control the oceans, and it answers with a resounding assertion that England’s destiny is to fill the vacuum left by the collapse of older, rigid empires. It is a work that views the accumulation of wealth not as greed, but as the natural reward for a "free born" people.

Why Read It Today

Readers who appreciate the high-flown, bombastic rhetoric of 19th-century historical drama will find this piece a fascinating window into the period’s self-conception. It captures the specific, mid-Victorian fervor for the "Anglo-Saxon" identity and the pride felt in the reach of the British Empire. You will experience the play as a series of grand gestures and ringing declarations; there is very little room for moral ambiguity here. The characters speak in grand archetypes—the cunning Queen, the bold sailor, the treacherous spy—rather than as nuanced psychological portraits.

However, the modern reader should be prepared for the book’s unabashedly partisan perspective. Its period attitudes toward colonization, its portrayal of Spain, and its religious framing are starkly one-sided, reflecting the nationalist spirit of the 1870s rather than contemporary historical inquiry. The language is dense with poetic flourishes and archaic naval slang, which can be challenging, though it adds to the play’s intended atmosphere of swashbuckling adventure. It is best read as a historical artifact—a vibrant, loud, and confident document that reveals how a specific era viewed its own place in the long, unfolding story of the world. It stays with you as a testament to the power of myth-making in service of national identity.