SIR JOHN HAWKINS

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aukepalmhof
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SIR JOHN HAWKINS

Post by aukepalmhof » Wed Jul 04, 2018 9:25 pm

This stamp shows us the British Admiral John Hawkins on the left and Francis Drake on the right, with below it looks a naval battle action.

Sir John Hawkins (1532-1595) a naval commander and administrator, merchant and ship-owner, son of William Hawkins and a cousin of Francis Drake. Before he was 30 Hawkins had already amassed a fortune of £10,000 what was a considerable sum in the 16th century, as a result of trading ventures in partnership with his brother William, principally to the Canaries Islands. Then he turned his attention to the slave trade and made three voyages in 1562, 1564, 1567-8 partly engaged in this sorry traffic. At that time it was a normal trade even Queen Elizabeth I was a shareholder in the last two voyages, she lent Hawkins the Royal Ship JESUS OF LUBECK. viewtopic.php?f=2&t=12818
And she ordered that the Royal Standard should be flown as well as the banner of St George. The third voyage had particularly important political consequences it brought Hawkins and Drake who accompanied him into head-on conflict with Spain when a treacherous attack at San Juan de Ulloa in Mexico cost the expedition several ships (including the JESUS OF LUBECK), much treasure and many lives, Drake’s ship the JUDITH and Hawkin’s were the only ones to return.

This left Hawkins with a passionate hatred for the Spaniards. His opportunity for revenge came when he was appointed Treasurer in 1577 and later also Comptroller in 1589 of the British Navy. He proved himself a great administrator and a successful innovator, building faster ships, with finer lines, improving their armament and taking revolutionary steps towards greater hygiene by reducing overcrowding and supplying better victuals, including fresh meat and fruit on some vessels. He remained a first-rete commander at sea taking the VICTORY against the Spanish Armada and receiving his knighthood during the battle in 1588.

He was one of the founders of the Chatham Chest https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chatham_Chest and he built an alms-house in Chatham known as Sir John Hawkin’s Hospital. In 1595 he set out with Drake on an expedition to raid the West Indies, but he died at sea off Puerto Rico in 1595.

From: A Dictionary of British ships and Seamen by Uden and Cooper.
St Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla 1970 $5 sg 221, scott 222.
Attachments
1970 hawkin's and drake.jpg

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