High Impact Practices Student Showcase Fall 2025

Sir Francis Drake, Pirate or Privateer

Sir Francis Drake, Pirate or Privateer

Streaming Media

Course Code

HIS

Course Number

4150

Faculty/Instructor

Professor Amanda Synder

Faculty/Instructor Email

Amanda.Synder@ucf.edu

About the Author

My name is Sarah, and I am a history major at UCF. I love learning about history, especially pirates, and this is why I chose to do a project on Sir Francis Drake.

Abstract, Summary, or Creative Statement

This project explores the early life of Sir Francis Drake and the legacy he left. I will be focusing on how he operated as both a loyal servant to Queen Elizabeth I and a controversial figure in the eyes of Spain and Ireland. Using sources, I examine how his actions were framed as patriotic service, even though they often involved looting and destruction. Some key focuses that I go into are his failed voyages; one with John Hawkins and the Portuguese, and the other focus is the raid on Nombre de Dios. I also look at his role in Ireland under the Earl of Essex, where he supported campaigns like the resistance against the Gaelic, an episode that shaped how the Irish viewed him, not as a hero but as a violent figure in the campaign. The Spanish saw Drake as a pirate and a threat. The Spanish referred to him as El Draque, which means Dragon. English propaganda, however, turned him into a national symbol. I also explored his voyages to the Northwest, the route he took to get back home from the Northwest, and his last voyage with Hawkins. I will also mention how he died on his last voyage from a deadly illness he caught when he was in San Juan. This also explores whether he should be the hero that England represented him as, or how the Spanish saw him, as a pirate.

Keywords

Sir; Francis; Drake; Pirate; Privateer; El Draque; Dragon; Spaniards; England; life; Sail; sea; raids; voyage

Sir Francis Drake, Pirate or Privateer


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