Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

  • British Legends: The Life and Legacy of Sir Francis Drake

  • By: Charles River Editors
  • Narrated by: Colin Fluxman
  • Length: 1 hr and 8 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (5 ratings)
Offer ends May 1st, 2024 11:59PM GMT. Terms and conditions apply.
£7.99/month after 3 months. Renews automatically.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
British Legends: The Life and Legacy of Sir Francis Drake cover art

British Legends: The Life and Legacy of Sir Francis Drake

By: Charles River Editors
Narrated by: Colin Fluxman
Get this deal Try for £0.00

Pay £99p/month. After 3 months pay £7.99/month. Renews automatically. See terms for eligibility.

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £6.39

Buy Now for £6.39

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Listeners also enjoyed...

Discovering and Conquering the New World cover art
American Legends: The Pilgrims and the Mayflower cover art
Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca cover art
Voyage of the Liberdade cover art
Leviathan cover art
The Great Race cover art
The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe cover art
The Travels and Surprising Adventures of Baron Munchausen cover art
The Pirate Queen cover art
Conquistador Voices cover art
The Pirate Coast cover art
The Pilgrim Chronicles: An Eyewitness History of the Pilgrims and the Founding of Plymouth Colony cover art
Ernest Shackleton: A Life from Beginning to End cover art
Sir Francis Drake's Raid on the Spanish Treasure Trains cover art
Sir Francis Drake’s Famous Voyage Round the World cover art
The Mutiny on Board H.M.S. Bounty cover art

Summary

  • Includes a contemporary account of Drake's voyage around the world.
  • Discusses the legends and controversies surrounding Drake's piracy and adventures.

"There must be a beginning of any great matter, but the continuing unto the end, until it be thoroughly finished, yields the true glory." (Sir Francis Drake)

The life of Sir Francis Drake, or, more precisely, the tale of it, is one of those prime examples that history is written by the winners. Drake was the most famous sailor of the Elizabethan era, and he has long been considered a hero by the English. His successes against the Spanish as a captain and a privateer were legendary, and Drake was celebrated for fighting the Queen's enemies, sinking their ships, and capturing the treasure that would otherwise be used to finance attacks on England. Drake vigorously pursued every mission given to him by Elizabeth I and brought all his skill, experience, and training to bear against her enemies. He was recognized at court for his valor, praised in story and song, and remembered for the kind of personality and esprit de corps that the English have long desired and celebrated in their military heroes.

While that might have summarized Sir Francis Drake's life from an English perspective, that's not at all how the Spanish remember El Draque (The Dragon), the 16th century's most notorious pirate. Referred to as "the main cause of wars" in one 1592 letter to the Spanish king, Phillip II, Drake harassed Spanish ships in several oceans and was so despised by the Spanish that Phillip II placed the equivalent of a $7 million bounty on his head. This should come as no surprise, given that Spanish accounts tell of a captain who attacked and boarded Spanish merchant ships to steal their treasure and who made off with it in the kind of haughty and dramatic ways that have become standard fare in pirate lore.

©2012 Charles River Editors (P)2015 Charles River Editors

What listeners say about British Legends: The Life and Legacy of Sir Francis Drake

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    3
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    3
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.